Newsroom

As the EU road transport sector accelerates its green and digital transition, the spotlight is increasingly on the people who will make it work on the ground. That was the message from a week of IRU discussions in Brussels, where EU policymakers, industry leaders and operators gathered to focus on one priority: how to align skills, technology and regulatory frameworks to deliver the transition.

IRU welcomes the European Commission’s proposal for a regulation on the Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act but warns that the transport dimension, the backbone of EU mobility and industrial supply chains, remains underrepresented.

With new powertrain technologies becoming increasingly available on the market and EU-level policies pushing the sector towards zero-emission vehicles, operators are facing tough choices in planning investments for future vehicle purchases. Spain’s national trucking association gave us an overview of the key competing factors.

With the new UN sustainable transport decade under way, it’s now time to make it happen. In this two-part series, IRU’s Secretary General – who led efforts 30 years ago to establish the first sustainable development charter by a global transport organisation – reflects on the significance of sustainable transport and joint IRU–UN efforts since the historic 1992 Earth Summit.

Coach mobility must be fully integrated into the EU’s future tourism framework if the bloc is to strengthen competitiveness, sustainability and resilience, IRU stressed at high-level discussions in Brussels.

The electric duo-trailer will first travel a 90km route twice a day. In a second phase, it will run an intermodal route between Spain and Germany. The long-term ambition is to promote cross-border operations with electric vehicles and encourage regulatory changes that normalise the use of duo-trailers.

Significant progress has been made in reforming the ECMT Multilateral Quota, including the launch of a digital permit system.

Tolls are undergoing a big technological shift – with significant implications for road transport operators. AS 24, a subsidiary of IRU member TotalEnergies, made a strong technological bet four years ago that is now paying off for its customers.

IRU and more than 40 European transport organisations jointly call on EU Member States and the European Commission to allocate at least EUR 100 billion to the next Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) funding round under the forthcoming Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF).

CEOs and senior figures from North American trucking companies came together in Mexico City to exchange views on cross-border policies at IRU’s annual North American Leadership Dialogue – amid the upcoming revision of the Mexico–United States–Canada trade agreement.

The world road transport organisation, IRU, intervened in major policy debates and marked the 70th anniversary of CMR at the highest UNECE Inland Transport Committee events.

How can we advance interoperability and trust in road transport? Industry leaders explored this increasingly urgent digitalisation challenge at the second edition of the IRU Technology and Innovation Roundtable, hosted by Daimler Truck.

The European Commission has published a comprehensive study conducted by IRU on the recruitment and integration of professional bus and truck drivers from third countries into the EU labour market.

IRU marks the 70th anniversary of the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR) – a cornerstone of international road transport law.

Transport companies have wasted no time taking advantage of the new types of operations now possible under the global TIR transit system.

Longstanding public-private partnerships (PPPs) like the TIR transit system are accelerating the Kingdom’s evolution into a logistics powerhouse, IRU underscored at the Roads, Bridges & Tunnels KSA Conference.

International organisation and customs chiefs, along with national authorities, met with IRU in Geneva this week to discuss transit measures and digitalisation.

With robotaxi deployment moving steadily towards commercial reality, bringing the taxi sector into sharp focus across global mobility markets, IRU presented the EU’s automation framework at an international taxi summit in Vienna.

IRU hosted the H2Accelerate consortium as hydrogen truck deployment in the EU transitions from small-scale trials to early market deployment.

The EUR 3 billion ETS2 Frontloading Facility is a welcome development. However, without explicit prioritisation, commercial road transport risks being left without the predictable support it needs to decarbonise.

The chairs of the European Parliament’s political groups decided yesterday to allocate the Greening Corporate Fleets file to both the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) and the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN), overturning an earlier provisional allocation to only ENVI.

IRU brought together policymakers and the industry to clarify how EU driving and rest time rules apply as electric fleets scale up.

The Federative Republic of Brazil has become the 79th contracting party to the United Nations TIR Convention.

IRU, the world road transport organisation, and the International Transport Forum (ITF) have signed a new cooperation agreement ahead of the ITF 2026 Summit, fuelling their long-standing partnership.

The Upply x Ti x IRU Q4 2025 European road freight rates index shows divergence between contract and spot markets. Contract rates climbed to 136.9, a solid 2.6-point increase quarter on quarter (q-o-q), and a 3.1-point rise year on year (y-o-y). Meanwhile, spot rates reached 135.1, advancing modestly by 0.3 points from the previous quarter, but declining 3.3 points compared to the same period last year.

Experts at Iraq’s first major logistics exhibition discussed the reshaping of strategic transit corridors and trade in the Middle East.

Tolls have been on the industry’s mind across Europe. We discussed the latest developments with Axxès, a European leader in this area.

IRU member the American Trucking Associations (ATA) continues to stack up legislative wins in the battle against cargo theft in the United States. But the war is not over yet.

A new six-day transport corridor – enabled by the global TIR transit system – is giving traders more options in the Middle East and strengthening regional connections.

The types of operations possible under TIR have been broadened, unleashing new momentum for seamless logistics across Eurasia.

IRU marks International Customs Day 2026, honouring the vital work of customs officers worldwide.

Diesel VAT rates range from 8.1% to 27% in Europe – and 17 European countries apply a CO2-based component to their diesel tax. Our latest Intelligence Monitoring details the various taxes applied to diesel by country.

IRU, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) and T&E urge the European Commission to ensure continuity of EU funding for heavy-duty vehicle charging and hydrogen refuelling infrastructure, warning that a break in support in 2026–2027 would risk slowing the deployment of zero-emission vehicles.

From driver coaching to the latest AI-powered tools enhancing road safety, we caught up with Lytx® to discuss the interplay between human-led and technology-based solutions.

Freight flows are realigning around new trade routes, but borders remain the weakest link. IRU presented concrete measures to streamline freight flows along the increasingly important Middle Corridor at a major Turkic Week event in Vienna.