The European Commission and all member states established active policies to
promote intermodal transport. The EU White Paper “European transport policy for
2010: Time to decide” clearly states that the development of combined transport
should be actively promoted. A principle motivation behind this reasoning is to
significantly break between economic and transport growth, without restricting
mobility, by making more efficient use of means of transport.
In June 2002 the European Union Transport Ministers discussed in Gijón the
possibility of an action plan on the key issues for developing the political priority
given to Short Sea Shipping. In the following, the Commission released a
Communication in which one key strategy for promotion of Short Sea Shipping are
the Short Sea Promotion Centres. Presently 21 SPC are installed and horizontally
co-ordinated by the European Short sea Network (ESN). In this respect the short
sea mode clearly is a step further in terms of international organisation and cooperation of short sea promotion in Europe. It is therefore a logical step to take the
SPC network as a starting point for extension of promotion of intermodality by
means of integrating or co-operating on the promotion of intermodal transport
options using rail and inland waterway transport.
Although, a main objective of EU transport policy is still on sustainable mobility and
disconnecting the transport sector from negative side effects, the focus as stated in
the White Paper review “Keep Europe moving” is now including efficiency criteria,
for which promotion measures and programmes are identified as a suitable
measure to further develop the European transport system. In particular promotion
measures and programmes are suggested for:
Rail fright policy
Short Sea Shipping, especially in connection with hinterland links
Setting up a transport logistics action plan
Supporting profession and training of transport actors
PROMIT is a Co-ordination Action for intermodal freight transport aiming to a faster
improvement and implementation of intermodal transport technologies and
procedures and to help promoting intermodal transport and mode shift by creating
awareness on innovations, best practices and intermodal transport opportunities for
potential users.
Introduction
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Within WP 6 PROMIT addresses intermodal promotion in order to provide a better
awareness on new and innovative intermodal approaches, concepts and products.
The promotion strategy aims to develop a promotion concept that brings to the
attention of the different users of intermodal transport the most promising innovative
concepts. Core of PROMIT work package 6 activities is to link innovations in
intermodal transport with efficient promotion measures. Deliverable D 6.1
“Promotion strategy plan” must be seen in the context of developing a promotion
concept by providing an analysis and roadmap. In D 6.2”Promotion matrix” the aim
will be the setting up of a promotion matrix coming out of the results from D6.1.
Furthermore the results from this report D6.1 shall give an overview about possible
demonstrators for enhanced promotion which can be implemented in WP7.