“Give the transport industry some space, make way for the EcoCombi and provide sufficient funds for subsidising particle filters.” These were the three themes addressed by Ron Bonsen, chair of The European Road Transport Show (TERTS) exhibition committee, during a passionate plea for fairer treatment of the transportation industry. Bonsen spoke at the official opening of TERTS, which is being held in the Amsterdam RAI from October 26 to November 3. 
Bonsen named three issues which he believed emphasise the character of TERTS 2007: Mobility, environment and the financial burden of transport companies. He also placed the exhibition in a historical context by pointing out how much the Netherlands has owed its prosperity over the centuries to the transport sector. “This cannot and should not be allowed to change,” said Bonsen. “Even if most of the discussions surrounding transportation seem to focus on the negative consequences.”  
Bonsen stressed that transport is self-evidently as clean as possible and underlined the enormous environmental improvements that have been made by the industry over the past 15 years: “Trucks have become 30 percent more sustainable and particle emissions have been reduced by 95 percent.” Bonsen criticised the plans of the Dutch government to further increase diesel tax, which he described as incomprehensible: “Even if the announced extra tax is reduced by one cent now, the remaining increase of three cents will seriously jeopardise our competitive position on the international market.”  
Bonsen is an enthusiastic supporter of the ‘Long Heavy Vehicles’ currently being researched by the Dutch government. He did however point out that the name is inaccurate: “These vehicles might be longer but they place a lighter load on both the road system and the road surface. There are many different names for this type of vehicle in Europe, but I suggest the EcoCombi. I also suggest that we give it a level playing field.” 
Bonsen continued his speech with an overview of the content of TERTS 2007. He pointed out the many promising and sustainable concepts exhibited by the industry and substantiated this claim with the message that two-thirds of all new trucks comply with Euro V or even EEV. “This reinforces how seriously the industry is taking the environment.”
 
Innovation Award
Earlier during the TERTS opening ceremony, Peter-Jan Bentheim of sponsor ING Lease and the chairman of the jury Henk Nooteboom announced  the winner of the TERTS Innovation Award. This prestigious prize was awarded to the hydrogen-powered Hytruck city distribution vehicle. Hytruck BV was one of the five award nominees. Jury member Henk Noteboom explained that the Hytruck had won the award due to its refreshing new concept and for being a zero-emission transport solution. He also mentioned that the flexible nature of the drive concept allows the technology to be used on a wide range of vehicles, lowering the threshold for using fuel cells. ‘Its efficient load potential of 3.4 tons makes this 7.5-ton vehicle a realistic mode of transport that deserves our support.”