IMPACTE

North West Europe (NWE) is in socio-economic terms one of the most prosperous parts of Europe and accommodates some of the regions with the highest GDP/capita. In terms of freight transport, NWE already benefits from high levels of accessibility with an excellent network of motorways, railways and major sea and inland waterway ports. However, freight transport in NWE is characterised by a steady increase of flows fuelled by the continuous growth of international container traffic, which has led to growing congestion especially in the central part of the area. The most rapidly increasing mode is road transport, which is the least sustainable. In the future, freight traffic is expected to increase further.

Through the optimisation of the use of the existing transport network, IMPACTE focuses on the amount of freight that is transported by rail and ship in combination with road transport. The project also aims to increase awareness and knowledge on the vital contribution of ports to the success and prosperity of the European, national and regional economy.