Romania and Bulgaria, after 17 years since they joined the European Union, got the green light to become part of the borderless Schengen travel zone.
The decision of other EU member states means that from 1 January 2025 it will be possible to drive to France, Spain or Norway without a passport.
It is a great relief for the 25 million people living in Romania and Bulgaria who will finally feel accepted as full members of the EU.
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Lajen said that it was a "day of joy".
Although border controls for air and sea travel were abolished for these two countries in March last year, until last month Austria had resisted the abolition of customs checks by land.
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For truck drivers, the bureaucracy at border crossings is not over yet.
It looks like Hungary will continue to check every truck and its documentation for at least six months at the main Romanian-Hungarian border crossing, Nadlac.
Bulgaria has built a new truck park and electronic barrier in Ruse, next to the bridge over the Danube to Romania, charging 25 euros per truck.
And "temporary" border controls have been imposed across the continent by countries fearing a surge in illegal migrants.
The Schengen area first became a reality in 1985 and now includes most EU countries, as well as some non-EU countries such as Norway and Switzerland.
The UK has never been in Schengen, although UK citizens can currently visit the zone visa-free for up to 90 days every 180 days.
Hungarian and Romanian border police were restrained when I crossed from Hungary to Romania a few hours before the EU announcement.
"We will find out the details tomorrow," said the Hungarian official with a smile.
And the devil is the one who can lie in the details.
Ovidiu Dabija headed for the border at dawn after driving his SUV from Strong by motorboat from a yard in Timisoara, the capital of western Romania.
He drives a motorboat from where he is stationed in Germany to exhibitions.
He was in Athens last week.
Next week they will head to the manufacturer's base near Nuremberg.
"Romania's entry into Schengen will save me hours at every border crossing," he tells me at the rest area next to the Nadlac crossing.
"Our drivers lose at least 12 hours at each border crossing.
"At the border of Hungary and Romania, we waited for five days," says Radu Dinescu, president of the Association of Romanian Road Transporters.
He estimates that the Romanian road transport industry lost 19 billion euros between 2012 and 2023 due to border delays.
This raised the prices that consumers ended up paying.
"The main users from January 1 will be cars and companies," says Dinesku, although there will still be random controls.
For trucks, he doesn't believe there will be much change.
A big problem for truck drivers, he says, is that all checks are carried out at the border, from measurements to permits and cargo controls, sanitary and environmental inspections, as well as searches for illegal migrants.
In other countries that are already in the Schengen zone, such checks take place faster and more efficiently in special parking areas for vehicles on highways far from the border.
Rada Dinescu is blamed by several governments in Romania for failing to reach an agreement with neighboring countries in order to reduce pressure on the borders.
He cites an EU regulation from 2008 that calls for the removal of controls on the weight and dimensions of trucks at border crossings between EU member states.
This was never implemented at the Romanian border with Hungary or at the Romanian border with Bulgaria, due to competition between rival inspectorates.
"It is not only about trade, but also about investments," says the president of the Association of Romanian Road Transporters.
When it is BMW was trying to choose between Hungary and Romania a place for a new car factory, the wait at the border between Romania and Hungary mysteriously increased.
BMW later chose the Hungarian city of Debrecen.
Dacia Renault, the largest car manufacturer in Romania, faces constant delays in the delivery of parts across Schengen borders.
"I don't want to underestimate the value of our land borders joining Schengen, but there is still work to be done," says Dinescu.
In Timisoara, Filip Cox, representative of the Romanian wine exporter Recas wineries, is more optimistic.
"Border controls will slowly disappear," he believes, "but it will happen, maybe in six months, because it's in everyone's interest."
This, he believes, will make his wines more competitive in the western and northern markets of Europe.
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