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The transport sector faces major challenges of sustainability, digitisation and harmonisation of regulations

| News | Public and Regulatory Law

The Secretary General for Transport stresses that public managers must be aligned with international demand and put society and economic agents at the centre of policies

The transport sector has on the table important challenges to face, from companies and institutions, such as sustainability, digitalization, harmonization of regulations or intermodality, among others.

This was highlighted by José Vicente Morote, managing partner of the Public and Regulatory Law area of Andersen Tax & Legal, during the inauguration of the conference on the Challenges of Land Transport, organized by Andersen Tax & Legal, in collaboration with CEOE and the Ministry of Development. During his speech, Morote highlighted that the firm has promoted a working group specialized in Transport and Logistics in order to provide a multidisciplinary approach to a sector of special importance such as transport, and specifically land transport, which represents 2.9% of national GDP and is of vital importance, as 94% of the total tons transported are moved by road.

The day was also attended by the Secretary General of Transport of the Ministry of Development, María José Rallo; the President of the Transport Council of CEOE, Rafael Barbadillo; the Deputy Director General of Infrastructure Planning and Transport, Pascual Villate; the Deputy Director General of Land Transport Regulation and Regulation, Marta Santamaría; the Deputy Director General of Land Transport Inspection, Alicia Rubio; the Director General of the International Road Transport Association (ASTIC), Ramón Valdivia; the Director of Business Strategy of Adif, Luis Fernando López; and representatives of Puertos del Estado, José Damián López; of VIIA, Rafael Calvo; of Faconauto, Ignacio de Benito; together with the partners of Andersen Tax & Legal Miguel Nieto and Antonio Pérez Moreno, as well as Silvia del Saz, of counsel of the firm.

Andersen Tax & Legal partner and head of the firm's Transport group, Miguel Nieto, stressed that land transport acts as an essential vehicle for the industry and that Spain has a privileged position within Europe to unite the actors involved in the different modes of transport and thus take an advantage in the future of the sector.

For his part, Rafael Barbadillo stressed the need for basic rules involving all EU Member States and paying special attention to transport management in the future, with new conditions such as the autonomous car, intermodality, railway liberalisation or the financing of transport itself.

During her speech, the Secretary General of Transport stressed the importance of the sector for the impact it has on social cohesion and the need for supply and recalled that road transport accounts for more than 90% of modal transport in Spain and is a fundamental pillar to achieve accessibility to certain products throughout the territory.

For María José Rallo, we are experiencing a disruptive change and paradigm shift in mobility and the two main aspects that the sector must face are digitalisation and the fight against climate change. He structured the transport challenges in three ways: on the one hand, the one that has to do with political and commercial aspects, such as the consequences that could come from Brexit; on the other hand, the regulatory challenge, with the commitment to large European packages; and finally, the one related to the efficiency of the sector, which must respond to increasingly complex and demanding value chains.

"Transport is going to continue to grow, society is changing, and the role of the public manager must be aligned with international demand and putting society and economic agents at the centre of policies," Rallo said.

During the day, the speakers highlighted the need to unify regulations, both at European and national level, in order to promote fair trade relations within a stable legal framework. Likewise, the sanctions for the loss of good repute contemplated in the Regulation of the Law on the Regulation of Land Transport (ROTT), which may involve the loss of transport authorisations or the disqualification from holding new ones, were analysed, and the available modal alternatives, such as railway motorways, were assessed.

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