Due to Growing Road Congestion, EC Suggests 'Motorways of the Sea'

Under current trends, inland freight in the EU-15 is forecast to increase by 70 % by in the next 15 years, a shifting of freight off Europe’s roads onto so-called ‘motorways of the sea’  as well as the successful cooperation of different countries regarding transport and traffic capacities would achieve great results in the economy as well as in  environmental protection, said Jaques Barrot Vice-president of the European Commission with responsibility for transport at the Tuesday opening of the first Ministerial Conference ‘Motorways of the Sea’.

He added that the EC had secured necessary funds for the feasibility study on that transport mode, for the current and next year. The funds for the mid-term period until 2013 are secured within the transport program TEN-T, 5th trans - European corridor which will connect countries of the European Mediterranean with Central and Eastern Europe, as well as within the Marco Polo II program.

It is expected that initial funds provided by the EC will be followed by private investments and by investments of member countries.

The participants of the Conference, attended by transport ministers or their deputies of 25 member countries, were greeted by the Slovenian PM Janez Janša.

Janša pointed out that maritime transport and intermodal transport along with the joining of railroad transport represented a clear alternative to the current transport options, and that for the realization of that concept it was necessary to achieve higher coordination and modernization of port capacities, as well as the integration of port and railroad corridors.

He called on the EC to include the neighboring countries in the projects of the ‘motorway of the sea’. For now, those countries were being left without the necessary funds.
 

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