NS CEO Roger van Boxtel (photo right) seems happy with the Green Agreement that the European Commission released on Wednesday. According to the FD, rail operators are assigned an important role in the climate plans. Three-quarters of road transport in the EU must eventually be moved to rail and waterways.

“The Green Accord is a step forward. There is a trend that the car is being pushed back into the European city centers and that air traffic at a short distance is also under discussion. Light rail and fast rail connections are given more space in London, Paris and the Ruhr area. The European climate plan benefits from this. People are starting to make different choices. Travel behavior is being reconsidered, ”says Van Boxtel.

There are concerns about the enormous demands that hang above the Green Accord program. National interest is often paramount in transport policy. That changes very slowly. Europe should accelerate the pace of execution, it said John Verbeek from the FD.

According to him, the European Commission should entice the member states to swift execution. The climate plans should not be optional. Thinking from the home base has to be overhauled.

“A sensible package of measures from the European Commission,” says Joris Melkert, associated with TU Delft.

2,5% of the total CO₂ emissions are the result of aviation. The measures will contribute to sustainability. But aviation continues to grow internationally. Brussels proposes, among other things, to levy tax on kerosene within the Green Agreement. 

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