ECG — 2026-09-17
News from ECG
Last year, ECG published an initial analysis of the Eurovignette Directive, looking at the main changes introduced by the revised EU framework and their implications for road freight operators. One year on, implementation is progressing unevenly across Europe, while several important developments in 2026 are further shaping the way heavy-duty vehicles are charged for using road infrastructure.
What is the Eurovignette Directive?
The Eurovignette Directive (Directive 1999/62/EC, as amended by Directive (EU) 2022/362) provides the EU framework for road tolls and user charges for heavy-duty vehicles. It sets common rules for Member States that impose distance-based tolls or time-based user charges (vignettes), while allowing charges to be differentiated according to factors such as vehicle weight, Euro emission class and CO₂ emissions.
The revised framework places greater emphasis on the “polluter pays” principle. The overall direction is therefore increasingly towards charging systems that reflect both road use and environmental impact.
2026: EU rules clarified
On 30 June 2026, the European Parliament and the Council reached a provisional agreement on targeted amendments to the Directive, providing greater legal and technical clarity on how CO₂-based charging rules should be applied, in particular on the classification of different types of vehicles and emission classes, including zero- and low-emission vehicles. Member States will also retain the possibility to apply reduced charges to low-emission vehicles.
The agreement now needs to be formally endorsed and adopted by both the Parliament and the Council.
For operators, the development is relevant because it should reduce uncertainty around the interaction between vehicle CO₂ standards and road charging systems, while supporting a more consistent application of the rules across Member States.
But implementation remains uneven.
While Bulgaria, Greece and Poland have been referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for failing to fully transpose the revised Eurovignette rules within the required timeframe, a number of Member States are introducing or further developing CO₂-differentiated charging, meanwhile others are moving from vignette-based systems towards distance-based electronic tolling.
What has changed so far? In 2026, the landscape continues to evolve at national level.
In Belgium, new kilometre charge rates came into effect on 1 July. Brussels introduced an indexation of its rates and Wallonia adjusted its tariffs, while Flanders introduced a new CO₂ component. The Flemish system now differentiates charges according to five CO₂ emission classes, with lower rates applying to cleaner vehicles, alongside existing parameters such as vehicle weight and Euro emission standard.
Germany provides a different example. The country has operated a CO₂-differentiated truck toll system since 2023, and the exemption for zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles was extended until 30 June 2031. In Estonia, zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, which had been exempt from the road user charge until the end of 2025, became subject to the charge from 1 January 2026.
Perhaps the most significant development of the year is taking place in the Netherlands. On 1 July 2026, the country left the Eurovignette system and introduced a new distance-based truck toll. The new system applies to both Dutch and foreign trucks and requires the use of an on-board unit. As a temporary measure, a 22.3% reduction in truck toll rates applies from 1 September 2026 until 31 December 2026.
The move away from traditional vignette systems is not limited to the Netherlands. Lithuania is preparing to introduce its new Via Toll system from 1 January 2027, replacing the current vignette model with distance-based electronic tolling.
What does this mean for road freight?
Taken together, these developments show that there is no single model emerging across Europe. Some countries are adding CO₂ differentiation to existing tolling systems, others continue to rely on time-based charges, while others are moving towards distance-based electronic tolling.
For operators, this increasingly makes road charging a factor in day-to-day fleet economics, as it becomes the result of a combination of distance, vehicle weight, Euro emission standard, CO₂ emission class and zero-emission status, with the precise approach varying from one national system to another.
Keeping track of these developments is therefore relevant not only from a compliance perspective, but also for route planning, cost forecasting and fleet investment decisions. As CO₂ performance becomes more closely integrated into national charging systems and more countries move towards distance-based tolling, road charges are becoming an increasingly important element of the economics of European road freight.
You can read the latest report here.