The International Road Transport Union (IRU) is calling for practical improvements to the EU Industrial Accelerator Act.
IRU’s new position paper on the European Commission’s proposed Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA) calls for practical adjustments to ensure the framework strengthens industrial competitiveness and decarbonisation without undermining the road transport sector.
Presented by the European Commission earlier this year, the IAA is designed to strengthen the EU’s industrial base and reduce strategic dependencies by accelerating investment in clean technologies and manufacturing capacity in key sectors.
The proposed legislation would make it easier for strategic industrial projects to develop in the EU through targeted financial support, dedicated industrial acceleration areas and new rules encouraging the purchase of products with stronger EU value chains.
While the proposal has a broad industrial scope, it would also affect commercial road transport through public procurement and public support measures requiring electric vehicles to meet “Union origin” (“Made in Europe”) criteria, subject to limited derogations.
IRU supports the objective of strengthening Europe’s industrial base and accelerating decarbonisation. However, the current form of the proposal risks increasing costs, administrative burden and investment uncertainty for operators while limiting access to electric vehicles and the global supply chains needed for an efficient and timely transition.
IRU EU Director Raluca Marian said, “Operators are investing in electric fleets today under current market conditions, but the proposed 2035 cut-off creates major uncertainty about whether these vehicles will remain eligible for future public service contracts.”
“Prematurely forcing vehicles out of operation would create stranded assets, consigning fully functional buses to the bus graveyard, increasing costs and running counter to circular economy principles,” she added.
Affordability remains a critical issue, particularly for small and medium-sized operators. Without sufficient flexibility, stricter Union-origin requirements could significantly increase acquisition costs, making the transition financially difficult for many operators.
For EU preference measures to work in practice, the final framework should preserve balanced market conditions and fully reflect the concerns of electric vehicle buyers, particularly on pricing, supply shortages, lead times, delivery delays and the proposed 2035 cut-off. Otherwise, measures designed to strengthen EU manufacturing risk reducing competitive pressure and limiting procurement flexibility for public authorities and transport operators.
IRU’s position paper calls for targeted improvements to ensure the framework remains workable in practice. Better integration of transport terminals and improved connectivity between industrial acceleration areas are also needed within the strategy to accelerate permitting and financial support, recognising that efficient transport links are essential for the IAA to deliver on its competitiveness and decarbonisation objectives.
“The Industrial Accelerator Act can support both the EU’s industrial ambitions and transport decarbonisation, but only if it works in practice for road transport operators,” said Raluca Marian. “The final framework must reflect market realities and ensure the transition remains workable, affordable and competitive.”
IRU will continue engaging with policymakers to help ensure the final legislation supports both the EU’s industrial ambitions and a realistic, economically viable transition for road transport.
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