Important information about transport worldwide
Here you will find important traffic information on Road Transport in Denmark and Europe. You are, of course, always more than welcome to reach out to your local Blue Water contact for further information.
January 2022
Consequences of the EU Mobility Package phase two
As from 2 February 2022, the EU Mobility Package phase two becomes effective. At Blue Water, we always follow the current legislation, and we demand the same of the hauliers driving for us.
Fundamental elements changed in the Mobility Package phase two are among others:
- Return to home
Any driver must return to home every 4th week and truck every 8th week, causing lost days of production calling for further compensation. - Stricter rules for cabotage
Foreign haulier must drive no more than 3 cabotage trips within 7 days – followed by a waiting period / pause for 4 days. Driving related to combined transports is also regarded as cabotage. - Minimum wage
Remuneration of foreign haulier by cabotage, combined transport or international third country driving must take place referring to the minimum wage in the EU country of operation. Example of third country driving: Lithuanian haulier driving between Norway and Germany. - Requirements of registration
Demands of registration is enforced at cabotage, combined transport or third country driving in the European IMI system. - Tightened requirements of documentation
Any driver must at roadside controls be able to document their movements at any time, for instance by presenting consignment notes for a period of 7 days as a minimum. - Penalty and sanctions
If registration and documentation is missing, the penalty is increased, and the second time this occurs, the penalty is doubled. - Changed taxation for Polish, Rumanian and Bulgarian hauliers
In these countries, taxation of driver’s salaries is changed, meaning increased gross expenses by up to 40%.
If you have any questions regarding your transport, please reach out to your regular contact at Blue Water.
January 2022
European Holidays 2022
December 2021
Departures Christmas & New Years 2021/2022
FEBRUARY 2021
Status of the European transport market
At the moment, we are experiencing an overheated European transport market. On a general level, volumes and quantities have reached a level which is considerably higher than the last 12 months – also before COVID-19. This means that it is difficult to find the necessary capacity.
- In the Nordic countries, the level during spring 2021 is above what we have seen in the last 12-18 months, and volumes are significantly high. Particularly in Denmark, a pressure on foreign capacity is seen due to tightened cabotage requirements
- In the UK, quantities are on the same level as before Brexit. However, the production time (number of days a trailer spends on a trip) is increased by 3-4 days and in some cases even more
- In Germany and Benelux, quantities are by now over the same period in 2019 – and even higher than the same period in 2020. The same goes for Southern Europe, however, to a lower degree. In Central Europe, volumes are particularly above level – especially out of Poland and the Czech Republic.
We are looking into a market under great capacity pressure that we have not seen for many years. The challenges are expected to affect the rest of 2021.
At Blue Water we are doing everything we can to solve your transports as agreed without having to compromise on quality nor service. However, we acknowledge that even though we screen every option, delays can unfortunately occur on our operations.
January 2021
Changed rules for semi-trailers loaded on “pocket wagons” in Denmark
The ban has been changed meaning that trains are now allowed to carry “pocket wagons” from the Danish/German border to the railway terminal in Padborg. This means that services are expected to normalise during week 7. However, rail departures can still be cancelled or delayed, and transit times may vary.
We do our utmost to avoid our customers being affected by these irregularities, and we will continue to keep you informed.
Blue Water calls attention to a decision made by the Danish Transport, Building and Housing Authority. A national ban of semi-trailers loaded on “pocket wagons” became effective from 23 January 8AM.
This will unfortunately have consequences on parts of our traffics to and from Italy.
We are looking into alternative options such as train solutions between Italy and Northern Germany as well as road transport. Unfortunately, this is quite a challenge, and we are not able to guarantee date of departure, transit time or price, as the rail network is the major artery of traffics between Denmark and Italy.
The ban is introduced for the sake of railway security after an incident 13 January, where a tipping trailer passing the Great Belt Bridge was observed. The Accident Investigation Board Denmark has followingly ran tests and observed that by a few tests the lock effect is malfunctioning when pulled vertically even though the lock is well functioning and in correct locking position. This calls for further testing and examination after which the necessary precautions are expected.
Blue Water follows the situation closely and will continually inform you, but for the time being we cannot state anything about the length of the shutdown.
If you have any questions regarding your transport, please reach out to your regular contact at Blue Water.
DECEMBER 2020
Italian weather situation affects traffics
UPDATE! The rail stretch by Brenner and the northern Italy will likely be shut down until 12th December 2020 2PM. Great delays must be expected, and it is still uncertain when traffics are back to normal.
Heavy snow has hit Italy in short time, and on the same time floods arise. Because of this, rail transports are called off until further notice. The statement from Italy is that no transports are running regularly, and for this reason notable delays must be expected.
The delays concern all means of transport, since the joint capacity cannot be transferred from rail to road immediately, and the weather situation will thereby challenge the general capacity on the market.
Blue Water apologises to our customers for the inconvenience followed by this, and we will continue to keep you updated on the situation. Please reach out to your daily Blue Water contact if you have any questions.