SLOVENIA: Short term road toll stickers to be introduced after six-monthly and annual stickers angered tourists neighbouring drivers and the EU

Record ID: 731359

  • Title: SLOVENIA: Short term road toll stickers to be introduced after six-monthly and annual stickers angered tourists neighbouring drivers and the EU
  • Date: 22nd June 2009
  • Summary: TREBNJE, SLOVENIA (FILE - JUNE 2008) (REUTERS) SIGN BESIDE MOTORWAY READING: 'SLOVENIA IS BUILDING MOTORWAYS FOR YOU' CARS BEING DIVERTED OFF MOTORWAY LANE BY ROAD WORK SIGNS CARS QUEUING TO GO THROUGH TOLL GATES CAR APPROACHING TOLL GATES .
  • Embargoed: 7th July 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Slovenia
  • Country: Slovenia
  • Topics: Domestic Politics,Transport
  • Reuters ID: LVA25OPCLLXO0FHMNWFKNJ5N59EV
  • Story Text: The Slovenian government has given in to European Commission (EC) demands to introduce short-term road toll stickers for drivers using its roads, but has not backed down on its toll price which the EC said remains too high.
    Slovenia introduced its road toll system last July and is mandatory for domestic and foreign vehicles. However, its introduction angered neighbours and tourists driving through the country from neighbouring Austria, Germany and Czech Republic, on their way to Croatia.
    They had to buy either 6-month road toll stickers for 35 euros or annual ones for 55 euros, or risk a fine of up to 800 euros.
    But from July 2009, Slovenia will scrap the six-month stickers in favour of weekly, monthly and annual toll stickers instead.
    Any vehicle travelling through Slovenia's motorways, expressways and the Ljubljana bypass is required to pay the toll.
    The Slovenian transport minister Partick Vlacic, said Slovenia's toll system was similar to those in other European countries.
    "The prices of road toll stickers will be - for one week 15 euros, for one month 30 and for one year 85 euros. These prices will be enforced on July 1st. The toll system is now changed so that we will have weekly, monthly and annual toll stickers. And this system is comparable with ones in other European Union countries," Vlacic said.
    The European Commission said the system was discriminatory to those who rarely used Slovenian motorways, while benefiting local drivers.
    As a compromise, Slovenia said it was introducing the new short-term weekly and monthly stickers. The EC considers the price of the new stickers is too high.
    Vlacic said Slovenia will not back down on the price.
    "The Republic of Slovenia is in charge of the prices. The European Commission informed us that for them the acceptable price would be 10 euros and not 15. And we do not know why 15 euros would be discriminatory and 10 would not? They haven't given us any new legal basis for this. They keep talking about the 12th article and discrimination, but they made no calculations. This is why we have stayed at this price," Vlacic said.
    From July 1, six-month stickers will no longer be sold. Drivers who buy the six-month stickers before then will remain valid for the full six months.
    The toll stickers are sold at Slovenian petrol stations, tourist agencies, post offices, kiosks and offices of Automobile Association of Slovenia. In neighbouring countries they are sold at major petrol stations.
    The stickers are not transferable as the user has to stick it to the left corner of the front windshield.
    Control of paying toll by vignettes will be performed by the police, transport inspectorate, customs administration and toll-collection officers.
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