Headlines
Commission agenda planning highlights major transport and energy initiatives for October–November 2025
IRU presses Member States for fairer energy taxation across all road passenger services
ALLRAIL warns EU HSR Master Plan risks failure without competition and structural reform
ICAO climate process under fire for corporate capture as Assembly convenes
Commission prepares Automotive Omnibus Proposal to simplify regulatory framework
Logistics and power companies urge Commission to set binding zero-emission targets for corporate fleets
Commission agenda planning highlights major transport and energy initiatives for October–November 2025
The European Commission’s indicative agenda for the next two months points to a busy autumn for transport and energy policy, with several headline initiatives slated for adoption.
On 29 October, the College is expected to table a transport package featuring two major files: a European high-speed rail network plan and, subject to final confirmation, a Sustainable Transport Investment Plan (STIP). Both initiatives are framed as central pillars for achieving the EU’s 2030 climate objectives and delivering the Green Deal’s modal shift commitments. The package will also feed into discussions at the European Council on 23–24 October and the Parliament’s October plenary.
On 25 November, the Commission is set to unveil the Clean Industrial Deal implementation package, including a Clean Energy Investment Strategy, a European Grid Package, and potentially a new Battery Booster Strategy and Industrial Accelerator Act. These measures will aim to scale up clean energy infrastructure, accelerate electrification, and reinforce Europe’s industrial competitiveness as decarbonisation pressures mount.
In parallel, the 16 October College meeting will focus on global energy and climate diplomacy objectives ahead of COP30, to be presented jointly by Commissioners Teresa Ribera and Kallas. The package is expected to outline Europe’s international positioning on clean energy and strategic resources in advance of the UN talks.
While the planning document is explicitly indicative and subject to change, the sequencing of files suggests the Commission intends to position transport decarbonisation and energy security at the centre of its autumn legislative agenda, linking infrastructure investment with industrial strategy and climate diplomacy.
IRU presses Member States for fairer energy taxation across all road passenger services
The International Road Transport Union has urged governments to amend the Council’s draft Energy Taxation Directive to ensure that all road passenger services qualify for reduced rates. In a letter to energy attachés, the lobby group argued that excluding occasional coach services or taxis while granting exemptions to other modes would create distortions.
IRU EU Director Raluca Marian warned that micro-enterprises operating school runs, hospital shuttles and tourism services cannot absorb full taxation without cutting services or raising prices. She noted that aviation and maritime continue to benefit from exemptions despite higher emissions, undermining environmental objectives.
The group also flagged administrative complexity if Member States are required to distinguish between regular and occasional services, despite operators using the same vehicles.
With the Danish Presidency aiming to conclude negotiations this autumn, IRU is pressing for Article 16a of the revised directive to explicitly cover all bus, coach and taxi services. It highlighted data from Germany showing that long-distance coach travel produces only 13% of aviation emissions per passenger kilometre.
ALLRAIL warns EU HSR Master Plan risks failure without competition and structural reform
Lobby group ALLRAIL has welcomed the forthcoming EU High-Speed Rail (HSR) Master Plan but warns that infrastructure investment and subsidies alone will not deliver affordable, sustainable high-speed rail. In a new position paper, it calls for open access, lower track access charges and non-discriminatory financing to unlock competition and ridership growth.
ALLRAIL highlights evidence from liberalised markets such as Italy, the Czech Republic and Sweden, where competing operators have driven down fares, filled trains and increased modal shift. By contrast, monopoly models in countries such as Spain and on the Channel Tunnel route have left costly infrastructure underused. The group says the Master Plan must ensure multiple operators from the outset, with flexible timetables and transparent ticketing, rather than pre-defined paths or quasi-PSO concessions.
The paper sets out detailed reforms including cutting disparities in HSR construction costs, reducing and stabilising track access charges, guaranteeing new entrants access to second-hand rolling stock and maintenance facilities, and mandating “ticket unbundling” so dominant rail platforms display all operators. It also calls for stronger resources at DG MOVE and the EU Agency for Railways, and for an independent EU HSR coordinator to oversee implementation.
According to ALLRAIL, only a demand-driven, competitive HSR market will make the EU’s 49,400km high-speed network commercially viable, deliver lower fares and higher quality for passengers, and ensure taxpayer-backed investments generate returns.
ICAO climate process under fire for corporate capture as Assembly convenes
The UN International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) opened its 42nd Assembly in Montreal this week amid renewed criticism of industry influence over its climate agenda. Research by InfluenceMap shows that industry delegates outnumbered environmental representatives 14 to 1 at ICAO’s technical meetings in February 2025, up from 10 to 1 in 2022.
Corporate representatives now account for one third of delegates at the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protection (CAEP), with eight state delegates employed by airlines or fossil fuel companies. InfluenceMap says this dominance has shaped ICAO’s positions, leaving offsetting as the organisation’s central climate tool despite repeated criticism that it delivers no binding emissions cuts.
The Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation remains weakened after pandemic-era lobbying reduced its baseline. ICAO has also advised governments to resist levies and taxes on aviation, echoing airline industry opposition to fiscal measures.
Governance practices remain opaque. CAEP meetings are closed, delegates must sign confidentiality agreements, and submissions are withheld from the public. Reports are published with minimal transparency, contrasting with IMO and UNFCCC processes.
InfluenceMap links these practices to outcomes falling short of Paris goals, citing failures to meet longstanding sustainable aviation fuel targets and growing doubts over ICAO’s 2030 SAF framework. With long-haul flight emissions still rising, the International Council on Clean Transportation warns that aviation must peak emissions by 2025.
Lucca Ewbank of InfluenceMap said ICAO is a “clear case of corporate capture in global environmental policy, with no sign of change since transparency issues were first raised in 2022”.
