Centre for Efficient Transport / Centrum pro efektivní dopravu (CEDOP) ID: 91401263184-62 Nám. Winstona Churchilla 2, 130 00 Praha 3, Czech Republic
Opinion on EU Strategy for the Danube Region
OVERALL QUESTIONS Topics
– What are the main challenges and opportunities in the Danube Region? There is neccessity to increase „sustainability and quality of life“ in the region. In our opinion it means – among other things - to offer fast, reliable, secure, affordable and climate-, landscape- and enviroment friendly mode for both passenger and goods transport. Such transport mode fulfilling these conditions is railway.
An example of opportunity is modal shift from road to rail between Poland and the Czech republic to Germany or Austria. The situation can become threat in case no competitive railway connections will be available in medium-term horizon at latest and the still raising volume of traffic will use road transport. Of course, similar is true for dozens relation in the Region.
– Which topics should be covered by the Strategy? Strategy should – among other topics – focus on transport development in direction to sustainable mobility of people and goods and territorial cohesion.
– What are the main concrete actions and projects to be recommended in the coming years? Main action should be defining and preparing new railway links to be realized during programming period 2013-2020. Main purpose of these new links is to ● connect important political and economical centres in the Region with „Danube axis“ i.e. with railway Paris – Strasbourg – Stuttgart – Wien - Bratislava (priority project No. 17) and related facilitie (e.g. logistic centres) as well as with Danube river, ● connect neighbouring areas in the Danube Region with a priority to cross-border links.
Suggested projects are ● upgrade of priority project No. 22 Bratislava – Budapest – Sofia – Athina to high-speed railway as a natural extension of project No. 17, ● construction of new high-speed (HS) lines Berlin – Dresden – Praha – Brno – Wien, Wroclaw – Praha – Pilsen – Nürnberg – Stuttgart and Wien – Brno – Wroclaw as new priority projects, ● construction or essential modernisation of railway lines connecting neighbouring areas and their centres together and connecting them with high-speed railway network (meaning already operated or constructed lines as well as lines proposed in this document). Some suggested links are listed bellow, ● construction or modernisation of railway lines (or tram-train systems) connecting places with natural and cultural heritage to regional centres in order to allow and support sustainable tourism. Good example of such project can be railway from České Budějovice through Český Krumlov (UNESCO world heritage) and Šumava/Böhmerwald natural park to Passau.
Proposed connections (especially high-speed) must fulfill following requirement: travel times are approximately one half of travel times by private car. The 0.5 ratio comes from formulas for total travel time from door to door and for non-direct journeys. This enables public transport system to be competitive.
We are realizing there are other links, e.g. roads, that should be modernized, but current railway connections are so uncompetitive that it is possible say that there is still Iron Curtain between East and West, as evident from table bellow. That is why we give absolute priority to railway projects.
Current travel time Target travel time HS railway line Berlin – Dresden - Praha – Brno - Wien Dresden - Praha 2:15 1:00 Praha – Brno 2:45 1:00 Brno - Wien 1:30 0:45 HS railway line Warszawa – Wroclaw – Praha – Pilsen – Nürnberg – Stuttgart Wroclaw – Hradec Králové approx. 5 - 6 hours 1:00 – 1:30 Hradec Králové – Praha 1:40 0:45 Praha – Nürnberg approx. 5 hours 1:30 Nürnberg – Stuttgart 2:10 1:00 Other cross-border projects (selection) Railway line Pilsen - Regensburg 2:30 1:30 Railway line (Praha) - České (5 hours) 2:09 (2:15) 1:00 * Budějovice - Linz
*) with usage part of HS line Praha – Brno
It is evident that projects listed above should be given higher priority than possible new road projects because of much more worse state of railway infrastructure comparing to road. Not speaking about sometimes discussed Danube-Oder-Elbe Canal project because currently there is already connection from North Sea to Black Sea via Rhine – Main - Danube Canal. In our opinion there must be given higher priority to projects that in sustainable way support mobility of people (especially for commuting including cross-border journeys). This purpose new canal project cannot work for and for goods transport railway offers at least equivalent services.
Implementation
– How is it possible to cooperate better, to coordinate more and to exchange good practices? Exchange of good practices is really useful (and we in CEDOP are willing to contribute to). Another idea for discussion is to define some EU-wide strong standards for transport projects co-funded by EU and especially for EU priority projects. There should not be important differences in parameters and utility value of transport infrastructure depending on member state where a particular part of infrastructure is.
– How can the cross-border links and the transnational policies be improved?
– What would be the added value of this Strategy to the existing mechanisms in the Region?
– What would be expected of the different EU policies and their financial instruments?
– What are the needs in terms of funding and how to improve the use of existing financial instruments to achieve the objective of the strategy?
Approach
– How could the Strategy contribute to improve the situation? Strategy could (and should) define projects that will – in concordance with top-level EU policies – can become practical implementation of integration effort in the Region.
– What are the advantages / disadvantages of an approach going beyond national boundaries? See bellow.
– What is the value - if any - of an approach which covers several topics together and looks at their interrelationship (e.g. how economic and environmental issues interact?)
– What is the added value of the EU in the process? Coordination, support, dissemination of good practises, co-funding
SPECIFIC QUESTIONS To improve connectivity and communication systems (within and outside the Region) For the following topics, in addition to the specific questions, you are invited to indicate: - The main challenges / opportunities; - The main concrete actions and projects to be recommended in the coming years. You are also invited to indicate how these topics might be considered together and how they can interact positively with each others and with the other topics mentioned below.
1. Inland waterways, road and rail systems
See above.
2. Intermodal nodes (including ports and airports)
Projects suggested above will increase importance of several intermodal nodes e.g. Stuttgart (Ulm), Ingolstadt, Regensburg, Linz,Wien etc.
3. Energy systems and security of supply
4. Increased use of renewable and clean energies, energy efficiency and savings
Railway transport currently represents the only transport mode that can massively and commonly use renewable and clean energy produced without fossil fuels. That is also a contribution to energy security.
5. Information Society
To protect the environment, preserve water resources and prevent against natural risks For the following topics, in addition to the specific questions, you are invited to indicate: - The main challenges / opportunities; - The main concrete actions and projects to be recommended in the coming years. You are also invited to indicate how these topics might be considered together and how they can interact positively with each others and with the other topics mentioned below.
6. Environment of the water (especially rivers)
7. Quality of air and soils (including waste)
8. Biodiversity and landscapes
9. Natural risks (floods and droughts)
Railway land occupancy is from 2 to 3 times lower than for high-way and moreover from railway tracks rain water flows out 9 times slowly than from areas covered by asphalt or concrete (road surfaces). Hence railway infrastructure represents smaller contribution to the risc of floods caused by rainstorms comparing to road.
10. Mitigation and adaptation to climate change Railway transport is generally climate friendly because of overall lower energy consumption and because of readiness for supplying from carbon free power sources.
To reinforce socio-economic, human and institutional development For the following topics, in addition to the specific questions, you are invited to indicate: - The main challenges / opportunities; - The main concrete actions and projects to be recommended in the coming years. You are also invited to indicate how these topics might be considered together and how they can interact positively with each others and with the other topics mentioned below.
11. Internal market / trade
12. Competitiveness of economic sectors (agriculture, industry and services)
13. Innovation / research
14. Human capital (including job markets, education and health)
Railway is an integral part of public transport that represent important tool to increase mobility of human resources. Efficient public transport is affordable way to enable/motivate employees to commute to new (and farer) destinations. A special importance has high-speed railway that because of psychological barrier of one hour travel time (for one direction) extends radius for commuting to 200-300 km.
Similarly will be increased mobility of students what will result in bigger competition of schools and universities with positive effect on quality of education system.
15. Institutional capacity
16. Danube identity / culture (including tourism)
17. Roma community and other disadvantaged groups