Transport infrastructure in Europe

1.1. Transport infrastructure in context

1.2. The transport sector. Evolving with wealth

1.3. Transport and territory hand in hand

1.3.1. The imprint of the car

1.3.2. Focus on terminals

1.4. Carrying the burden of integration

1.4.1. Tireless travellers

1.4.2. From transport to logistics

1.5. A new European conflict? Expanding transport vs. constrained infrastructure

1.5.1. Roads everywhere

1.5.2. A crossroad for railways

1.5.3. Waterways in a backwater

1.5.4. Too many ports?

1.5.5. Airports. The unchallenged spot

Facing present and future challenges

2.1 A look into the future

2.2 Europe is not an island

2.3 More than a single market

2.4 Lifestyle mutations

2.4.1 Less work, more trips

2.4.2 Urban sprawl

2.5 Technology winks

2.5.1 Rapid and clean

2.5.2 Intelligent

2.5.3 Integrated

2.6 Plenty of energy

2.7 Is environment the real challenge?

2.7.1 Are Europeans the dirty ones?

2.7.2 Is transport to blame?

2.7.3 Which transport, which pocket?

2.7.4 Will TENs respond to the challenge?

2.8 Linking with non-EU countries

2.9 Future partners

2.9.1 Burdened by obsolete infrastructure and services

2.9.2 A demand converging to EU patterns

2.9.3 The need for comprehensive and resolute action

2.10 Mediterranean countries. A medium-term challenge

2.10.1 Spatial disequilibrium

2.10.2 Unbalanced modal distribution

2.10.3 Unyielding demand pressures

2.10.4 Poor organisation and administration

2.10.5 Looking for a European helping hand

The long march toward trans-European networks

3.1 The slow development of a Community policy on transport infrastructure

3.1.1 The missing umbrella of a common transport policy

3.1.2 Infrastructure: always present, never tackled

3.1.3 Maastricht at last

3.2 The foundations of the TENs concept

3.2.1 Transport policy: The need for action

3.2.2 Single Market: Facilitating integration

3.2.3 Distribution of European funds: Linking periphery and centre

3.2.4 Central and Eastern Europe: Coping with a new geopolitical scenario

3.2.5 Unemployment: The long shadow of Keynes

3.2.6 Lobbies: Construction means business

3.2.7 Railways: Change or die

3.2.8 Community budget: The bicycle theory

3.3 The gestation of the TENs policy

3.3.1 The high-speed trains opened the way

3.3.2 The priority projects

3.3.3 New means, new partners

3.4 Future action. Aiming at a moving target

3.4.1 European planning?

3.4.2 What about the market?

3.4.3 Where is the money?

The TENs Guidelines. A half-missed opportunity

4.1 Potential and limitations of the Guidelines

4.2 For the European scale: The high-speed train network

4.2.1 A revealing design process

4.2.2 Unyielding national interests

4.2.3 A system for the future

4.3 No role for conventional rail in TENs

4.4 Combined transport needs much more

4.5 Just national roads?

4.6 The inland waterways network: old dreams

4.7 Ports do not "network"

4.8 All airports are TEN

4.9 Too many flaws

4.9.1 Modal biases

4.9.2 Terminals out of focus

4.9.3 Restricted view

Rethinking TENs: towards an integrated planning framework

5.1. The need for a new approach to TENs planning

5.1.1. Towards a multimodal TEN

5.2. A golden triangle of goals

5.2.1. Efficiency

5.2.2. Sustainability

5.2.3. Cohesion

5.3. An open set of objectives

5.3.1. Searching for efficiency

5.3.2. Responding to sustainability concerns

5.3.3. Opening the way for a cohesive Europe

5.3.4. Complex objectives need simple solutions

5.4. The message is integration

5.4.1. A joint effort by all Member States

5.4.2. Infrastructure plans linked to other policies

5.4.3. The best combination of transport modes

5.4.4. Merging with the regional and local scales

5.5. A framework proposal for a multimodal TEN

5.5.1. Roads for accessibility

5.5.2. Creating a future for rail

5.5.3. Backing inland navigation where it matters

5.5.4. Launching short-sea shipping

5.5.5. Enhancing airports links

5.5.6. Planning from the nodes up

5.6. Connecting the multimodal TEN with the neighbours

5.7. Key issues for the multimodal TEN

5.7.1. Technical questions can be answered

5.7.2. Politics will make the difference

Realising the multimodal TEN

6.1. The political context

6.1.1. A major investment effort

6.1.2. A change in approach towards infrastructure construction

6.1.3. A European plan

6.1.4. Commitment from Member States

6.2. The decision-making process

6.3. The need for EU contribution

6.4. What Community Interest?

6.5. Efficiency issues

6.5.1. Economic evaluations at all stages

6.5.2. Project costs and benefits

6.5.3. The scenario behind the plot

6.5.4. Speed and safety

6.5.5. Network effects

6.5.6. Harmonisation

6.5.7. Redistribution

6.6. Sustainability issues

6.6.1. Introducing some logic into the "green" debate

6.6.2. A separate environmental evaluation

6.6.3. Towards better environmental assessment

6.7. Cohesion issues

6.7.1. Minimum accessibility to the basic networks

6.7.2. Social impacts

6.7.3. TENs and job creation

6.7.4. European integration

6.7.5. A neighbourly approach

6.7.6. Many secondary effects

The financing of trans-European transport projects

7.1. Transport infrastructure investment: a business like no other?

7.1.1. The overwhelming presence of the public sector

7.1.2. More room for the private sector?

7.2. Options to finance major transport infrastructures

7.2.1. Budget financing

7.2.2. Public financing through autonomous project vehicles

7.2.3. Concessions

7.3. Implications of private financing

7.4. Is private financing expensive?

7.5. Where are the risks?

7.5.1. Feasibility studies

7.5.2. Construction

7.5.3. Operation

7.6. Setting up the right context for private financing

7.7. EU contribution to TENs financing

7.7.1. Grants from the EU budget

7.7.2. Loans of the European Investment Bank

7.7.3. Guarantees of the European Investment Fund

7.8. Any more EU money for TENs?

7.8.1. A helping hand for the accession countries

7.8.2. Financing links with the Mediterranean partners

Going trans-European

8.1. A political and financial challenge

8.2. Moving ahead

8.2.1. Co-operative planning

8.2.2. Commitment through joint programming

8.3. Additional funds

8.4. From consensus to action

8.4.1. Identification of the project's key issues

8.4.2. The European components

8.4.3. Joint programming

8.4.4. Studies with a European bias

8.4.5. A clear set up

8.5. A more assertive role for the European Institutions

8.5.1. Commission's initiative

8.5.2. A European Transport Infrastructure Agency

8.5.3. EIB: new ways for new challenges

8.5.4. EIF: catalyst for private investment

8.5.5. A fertile field for accession assistance

8.5.6. No TENs without policy action

Acronyms

References

Annex A. Community legislation and texts on trans-European networks

Annex B. Decision 1692/96/EC on Community Guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network

Annex C. TENs maps