ROSYTH– ZEEBRUGGE FERRY Options to develop a sustainable Motorway of the Initial report July 2014 Sea (MoS) between Scotland Updated August 2014 and the Continent & Implications of the EU Sulphur Directive Prepared by Contact: Transport Research Institute Edinburgh Napier University, Merchiston Campus, Edinburgh EH10 5DT E-mail:
[email protected], Telephone: +44 (0) 131 455 2951 Internet: http://www.tri.napier.ac.uk/ Rosyth–Zeebrugge Ferry Executive Summary Introduction This report examines the present service provided between Rosyth and Zeebrugge, flags up a number of operational issues and explores the prospect of EU funding of improvements both to services and to port facilities. It identifies some alternative models for consideration for long term sustainability and how the route may be developed and strengthened. It does not carry out a detailed cost/benefit analysis of the alternatives but suggests areas for fuller, more detailed consideration. TEN-T and Connecting Europe Facility TEN-T and the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) represents an opportunity to start new Motorways of the Sea (MoS) projects and for existing MoS projects to be developed further. A key focus now is on clean fuel strategies however MoS remains fundamentally about modal shift, transferring traffic flows from road to sea. MoS are also about moving people as well as goods, and MoS is much more than the port. EU TEN-T guidelines permit Member States to intervene in the market and to help deliver MoS services. Mechanisms include applying EU funding together with Member State (and private sector) funding, competitive tenders employed to open new and/or develop improved services, and direct financial incentives paid to truckers when they use an MoS instead of long-distance road transport.