Source: European Parliament
1. Under the Regional Programme Sicily 2021-2027[1], EUR 90 million are indicatively allocated for upgrading or extraordinary maintenance of secondary and local roads benefitting inner areas, to increase their safety standards and their functionality.
Under the Regional Programme Sicily European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2014-2020, around EUR 201 million were allocated to strengthen secondary and local connections of inner areas and those in agricultural and agro-industrial production districts with the main roads and railways of the trans-European transport network.
2. In its Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy[2], the Commission committed to ‘explore options to further support safe, smart and sustainable road transport operations under an existing agency or another body’. In line with this commitment, the Commission launched a feasibility study, which identifies shortcomings in the current policy implementation and governance set-up and explores options to enable swifter deployment of innovation and new technologies for competitive, safe, smart and sustainable road transport and keep EU technical regulation fit for purpose. While the feasibility study on the possible support to this development has been completed, the Commission’s assessment of the needs has not been finalised yet. F urther steps on this issue will be decided by the Commission following the outcome of this assessment.
3. The construction of Highway 117 (Santo Stefano di Camastra to Gela) is not financed under the ERDF. According to the available information, support is provided by national funding; therefore, the matter falls under the responsibility of Italian authorities only.