Motorway of the Sea

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The Motorways of the Sea ( English Motorways of the Sea ) is a variant of combined transport . To relieve traffic on roads and railways , freight traffic is being shifted to a highly frequented sea corridor. The concept is based on a proposal by the European Commission for an implementing regulation for the second EU funding program Marco Polo , which the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union had approved in the co-decision procedure .

The concept

The 2004 growth in road freight transport projected for the European Union by 2013 is more than 60 percent, and for the ten newer Member States it is expected to double by 2020. The consequences would be traffic congestion, environmental degradation, accidents and the risk of losing competitiveness for European industry, which relies on cost-effective and reliable transport systems to manage supply chains. As a way out, the European Commission is planning to shift some of the freight traffic to the sea . Suitable ports at strategically favorable points are to be connected to one another via high-quality sea ​​routes .

According to the draft regulation, four corridors should be established by 2010. The countries bordering the Baltic Sea should be connected to the states in Central and Western Europe. The second corridor would run along the Atlantic coast , bypassing the Pyrenees . The third would connect Spain, France, Italy and Malta in the Mediterranean , while the fourth would eventually connect Slovenia to Cyprus.

practice

In Italy , between 2007 and 2009, a compensation payment of 170 million euros was paid to freight forwarders . With this ecological subsidy, the ferries along the coasts were used by 1.2 million trucks annually.

background

This concept would integrate the entire European transport network. Trucks with goods, containers with rail loads or entire trains could continue their journey after arriving in the destination country. In addition to the seamless integration of overland transport, the choice of ports based on their infrastructure is important. Perfect connections to the road network , the rail network and inland waterways are ideal .

The fact that the European Commission is taking the motorways of the sea also has a price background. It would cost € 400 million to build four ships for the sea corridors, while a railway tunnel through the Pyrenees to transport trucks would cost € 6 billion. Another plus point is the avoidance of backlogs at the border crossings.

The new European satellite navigation system Galileo can also provide transport control with great precision. It will give freight forwarders and authorities the ability to pinpoint the position of a load at any time.

Possible effects

Many regions of Europe are located off the major transport corridors and cannot fully exploit their economic potential. The motorways of the sea would have great added value for freight traffic and are therefore an opportunity especially for remote regions and islands . Natural barriers such as mountains could be bypassed and thus shorter transport routes could be realized. This may help the regions to develop economically and be competitive regardless of weather conditions .

The concept could create new jobs and bring in the possibilities of the regions. The concentration of the economy in certain areas would be avoided and thus ensure economic development in all regions. Population decline and urbanization would be counteracted and more prosperity would be created by improving the infrastructure . This and the relief of the roads could also improve the quality of life for citizens.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Italy: Eco bonus can be paid out. The financial incentive is intended to bring transports from the road to the motorways of the sea. Verkehrsrundschau, August 29, 2013, accessed on October 1, 2013