Combined goods transport: financial assistance to action pilots PACT

The Council common position corresponds very largely to the Commission's proposal but includes the following changes; (a) Scope of combined transport projects: the common position states that a combined transport action may, under certain conditions, cover routes outside Community territory. The action must be carried out in the interests of the common transport policy and concern the territory of at least one Member State. (b) Applicants submitting a combined transport project: any Member State and any public or private natural or legal person established within the Community may submit a combined transport project to the Commission. Third countries and public or private natural or legal persons established outside the Community and directly concerned may be associated, in presenting a project, with the Community applicants. (c) Beneficiaries of financial assistance under the Regulation; the beneficiaries are the Member States and any public or private natural or legal person established within the Community in respect of the expenditure and costs incurred in Community territory. In the case of projects relating to routes situated partially outside Community territory, Community assistance is limited to the Community part of the route. (d) Comitology: the common position provides for a type IIIa committee to assist the Commission in granting financial support. (e) Financial reference amount: a new article specifies the financial reference amount laid down for the period 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2001, namely ECU 35 m. It should be noted that the Council has followed the Commission proposal in adopting Parliament amendments aiming to: - specify that innovative measures introduced under this regulation consist of investments in specific operational measures; - include the possibility of granting assistance for the cost of access to the inland waterway infrastructure; - include among the criteria to be taken into account when assessing a project the degree of harmonization with the main routes of trans-European networks or trans-European rail freight corridors (importance of the project in terms of the development and use of trans-European networks). The amendments aiming to stress synergy with the PHARE programme were not adopted. �