Fixing Europe’s Freight Rules

By Ton Klijn, director, European Association of Abnormal Road Transport and Mobile Cranes (ESTA)

From Issue 2, 2026 of Breakbulk Magazine.

Good news can seem hard to come by in these difficult times. We have all our fingers crossed, but it is just possible that the coming weeks and months will see the most positive reforms of Europe’s heavy transport regulations in a generation.

The cause of my cautious optimism is two pieces of important European legislation currently making their way through the Brussels bureaucracy.

The first is the proposed revisions of the EU’s Weights and Dimensions Directive. This sets the maximum allowed size and weight of heavy goods vehicles operating within the European Union. Intended to support the single market by allowing trucks to move freely across EU borders, the mandate has proved ineffective, with many member states introducing local regulations of their own.

However, we are delighted to see that the current revised directive contains a series of measures that have been long called for by ESTA and Europe’s heavy and abnormal transport companies.

In January, Cyprus took over the Presidency of the Council of the EU and officials have reassured ESTA that they regard the reforms as a priority and believe the process will be completed before the end of June.

The revisions could be transformative for our industry. They include:
• a “one stop shop” per country for permits
• standardized permit application forms
• use of electronic permits
• harmonization of escorting rules and vehicle markings
• permitting systems to be available in all EU languages

The second related reason for our cautious optimism is the EU’s Military Mobility Package. Expected to take several more months to come to fruition, the package aims to create a system of efficient and common heavy transport regulations for both military and industrial use. Crucially, it contains proposals for a network of pan-European transport corridors, again something that we at ESTA have been requesting for many years.

Such routes will necessarily integrate road, rail and water infrastructure, but we sincerely hope that national and sectoral differences can finally be put to one side for the greater benefit of all.

It is, of course, tragic that the urgency to introduce such reforms has only been seen in a time of crisis. But (assuming that they do not fall at the last moment) the revisions to the directive and the Military Mobility Package will represent a huge step forward for our industry, significantly boosting both efficiency and safety.

Heading to Breakbulk Europe? Join Ton Klijn on the Breakbulk Voices Stage on Thursday, June 18 at 10:30am for an introduction to the European Trailer Operator License (ETOL) and its role in reducing risk on complex projects.