ECG — 2025-11-21
News from ECG
Over the past few days, the EU has made substantial progress in its long-running effort to revise the Weights and Dimensions Directive under the Danish Presidency in the Council.
During the week of 19–21 November, Member State representatives at the COREPER level reached a political agreement on the latest compromise text. This effectively cleared the path for the file to advance after years of complex negotiations.
The next milestone will come very soon. On 4 December, the EU transport ministers are expected to give their formal approval to what is known as the “General Approach,” essentially the Council’s official negotiation mandate. Once this happens, the Council will be able to open talks with the European Parliament, which already adopted its position back in March 2024. If all goes as planned, the institutions could reach a political deal early in 2026, followed by the legal fine-tuning and final adoption later in the year. Member States would then have one to two years to translate the new rules into national law.
The compromise that has now emerged includes several important elements. One of the key points is the agreement to allow zero-emission trucks to operate at 44 tonnes in cross-border transport, giving operators the capacity they need without losing competitiveness. The text also clarifies how longer vehicle combinations can be used across borders where countries already permit them, strengthens the framework for intermodal operations, and introduces a crisis-response clause to ensure supply chains can keep running during emergencies.
Taken together, these developments suggest that the reform is finally gaining real momentum. The political settlement in Brussels shows that Member States are ready to move forward, and the upcoming ministerial meeting in December will mark the moment the process enters its decisive phase.