The European Court of Justice delivered a significant ruling on October 4, 2024, concerning international road transport. The judgment addressed appeals lodged by several countries against the First Mobility Package, adopted by the European Union in 2020. The court validated most of the package's provisions, but annulled the obligation for vehicles to return to the transport company’s operational center every eight weeks, stating that the EU legislature lacked sufficient information to assess its proportionality.
The appeals—filed by Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta, and Poland (and in some cases supported by Belgium, Estonia, and Latvia)—challenged the key provisions of the package, including: the prohibition for drivers to take their regular or compensatory weekly rest in the vehicle; the requirement for transport companies to organize work so that drivers can return to the operational center or their place of residence every three or four weeks for their regular or compensatory weekly rest; the accelerated implementation date for second-generation smart tachographs; the obligation for vehicles used in international transport to return every eight weeks to their operational center in the country of establishment; the four-day waiting period, during which non-resident hauliers cannot perform cabotage operations in the same member state after completing a cabotage cycle; and the classification of drivers as "posted workers" during cabotage operations, cross-trade transport between different member states, or certain combined transport operations, with the resulting application of host member state working conditions.
The court rejected most of the challenges, emphasizing that the Mobility Package aims to better balance the interests of drivers, improving their social working conditions, and employers, ensuring fair business conditions. The court concluded that the EU legislature acted within its margin of discretion and that the new rules were proportionate to the objectives pursued.
