European transport policy--a historical and forward looking perspective.
German Policy Studies › Vol. 2 Nbr. 4, October 2002
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European transport policy--a historical and forward looking perspective.
Abstract
This article discusses the development of European transport policy in historical perspective and the challenges this faces at present. European transport policy took some time to emerge and progress has been slow and with hold-ups due to the long process of approximation of national transport policies and the resulting institutional reforms. The development of European transport policy shows clear phases. Following a rather protracted phase of intense exchange of views with little policy output, during the eighties the common market began to be implemented in transport as well and liberalisation became the overarching goal. The liberal market approach remains today the core idea of European transport policy and it is on this basis that solutions are sought to the pressing problems of congestion and environmental pollution. However the first doubts regarding this approach are also beginning to be voiced, not least by the Commission itself. While it is unlikely that the liberal market approach to transport ceases to be crucial, this contribution ventures the proposition that successfully coping with the problems of congestion and pollution will bring about a paradigm shift towards the re-definition and, in part, re-assertion of the role of the state in transport policy. Introduction Is there a European transport policy? In the nineties--not so long ago--this question was legitimate for two reasons: first, transport mostly concerned infrastructure (investment)--thus wanting to relate transport to policy could understandably have been considered a peculiarity or, worse, an abnormality; second, transport was still primarily a national agenda item, at best the subject of bilateral state agreements. Today the question no longer leads to raised eyebrows and those questioning the existence of a European transport policy are in the minority. As a new directive on road pricing is under preparation and will consider, among other things, the earmarking of revenues from pricing for the financing of future rail infrastructure investments, it would appear that we are entering a new era in transport policy, namely that of intermodality and strategic planning. In this era a strong emphasis is placed on the coordination between modes and the use of poli...See the full content of this document
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