date: Thu 14/05/2009 11:00 till Fri 15/05/2009 16:00
THE EUROPEAN PORT SYSTEM - Towards a sustainable network vision
Europe has a diverse port system which consists of a range of major hubs as well as a vast amount of regional and local ports. This system has to accommodate continuous flows of cargo and passengers moving in and out of Europe. For this, it depends on a complex network of land-based and navigational modes. How sustainable is the current lay-out and geographical balance of this system? Are all modes used in the most optimal way? What is the impact of the current economic crisis on growth expectations and will the system be able to cope with these without creating more congestions and negative externalities? What is the competitive effect of new hubs emerging in countries neighbouring the EU? What visions exist for the future?
The ESPO 2009 Conference will deal with these key questions in the context of the forthcoming mid-term review of the Trans-European Transport Networks which is announced for 2010 and the European Commission’s maritime transport strategy for 2018. Bottlenecks on the major European transport corridors concerned will be analysed as well as the development potential of regional co-operative networks between ports.
The conference will finally look at the opportunities EU policy instruments and funding mechanisms may bring. Particular attention will be paid in this context to the impact of the EC State aid and environmental guidelines which are both expected to be published in 2009.
The full proceedings of the conference can be found here.
Presentations can be found below.
Photos of the event.