The European Commission has found that a Swedish public support project to encourage a shift of freight transport from road to rail is in line with EU State aid rules. The aid takes the form of a subsidy to railway companies that carry freight, with the objective of channelling part of the advantage to end customers, incentivising them to switch to rail transport. The Swedish measure will promote EU environmental and transport objectives, whilst maintaining competition in the single market.
The new scheme has an overall budget of SEK 563 million (approximately EUR 56 million) and will run until 2019. The European Commission found that the scheme is beneficial for the environment and mobility, supporting rail transport, which is less polluting than road transport, while also decreasing road congestion. The Commission concluded that the measure is compatible with EU State aid rules, in particular the 2008 Commission Guidelines on State aid for railway undertakings.
Currently, in Sweden, around 40 per cent of freight is transported by road, 40 per cent by water and just over 20 per cent by rail.
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