News – BSR Access

On March 16th 2022 partners and stakeholders from all over Europe came together one last time – at least virtually – to celebrate over three years of intensive work and great cooperation in the BSR Access Project Platform.

The online conference which lasted roughly over two hours was fully packed with contributions not only from the partner regions but also from various friends, partners and stakeholders that joined the BSR Access journey along its way.

After welcoming words by Ossi Savolainen, Regional Mayor of Helsinki-Uusimaa and lead partner of the BSR Access project platform, the event was kicked off by Catherine Trautmann, European Coordinator for the TEN-T North Sea Baltic Corridor. She led the audience through the proposed changes for “her” corridor, also highlighting new priorities will be set for the next period. The revision of the TEN-T regulation will also bring changes in the organization of the network. In her opinion, the corridor needs to be an accelerator for green transition in the transport sector. The coordinated integration of alternative fuels will be the overarching objective in the next Corridor work plan. 

Catherine Trautmann praised the work of the BSR Access platform, since it involved stakeholders and regions into the work of the TEN-T CNCs. “In that sense, I believe that BSR Access complemented the work of the corridors very well”, she emphasized.

After a summary video highlighting the BSR Access partnership and its work, moderator Sven Friedrich from Infrastruktur & Umwelt opened the “Corridor development and governance panel” discussion. Representatives from partner regions in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) looked back on their work and achievements in BSR Access and discussed how the results can be carried into the future.

Ossi Savolainenespeciallywelcomed the northern extensions of both the Scandinavian-Mediterranean and North Sea Baltic CNCs as Helsinki-Uusimaa is located on both corridors. This strengthens Finland’s integration into the common TEN-T network much more than before and assigns a special value to that. Especially in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, physical connections between Scandinavian and Baltic countries like the proposed corridor extension and mega-projects like Rail Baltica and the Helsinki-Talinn fixed link would become even more important.

For a regional authority as Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, bottom-up projects and platforms as BSR Access are of vital importance since they bring together local and regional stakeholders with European policy makers to generate effective results from this. The continuity of such stakeholder cooperation and the question how the collaboration should further develop are equally important. This sentiment was echoed throughout the event by several other speakers. Thomas Jacob from the international projects department at the Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, highlighted the challenges that project-based partnerships face when the funding eventually ends and reminds everyone that the “real work” only starts after that. Both, the funding mechanisms as well as the partnerships, need to become more flexible to ensure a higher success rate. Additionally, Mr. Savolainen proposed to supplement short-term project funding by creating more permanent collaboration structures and moving ‘from projects to process’.

Joakim Strand, City of Vaasa and chair of Kvarken Council EGTC, spoke about how transport is an important piece for regional development and economic growth. Kvarken region is an excellent example of a cross-border cooperation as it spans two countries and the Baltic Sea. The region also plans to build a fixed link between Vaasa and Umea, complementing the very modern and climate friendly passenger ferry that is already crossing the Kvarken strait.

Elin Petersson, Chair of the regional development board at Region Blekinge, pointed to the differences between the first mile concept as laid out in the draft TEN-T revision and the understanding formulated in BSR Access. The latter has developed a broader geographical perspective where peripheral regions such as Blekinge actively generate an inflow of goods and passengers to the TEN-T Core Network. She therefore welcomes the fact that the Policy Area Transport within the European Strategy of the BSR has put the First Mile on their agenda. The region strives to continue their work in their various collaboration networks of which some of them have their origin also in past INTERREG projects.  

The Capital Region of Denmark was represented by its Head of eMobility, Kathrine Jørgensen, who highlighted the region’s big ambitions for clean and green transport in line with the Danish national objective demanding the reduction of CO₂ by 70 % by 2030. That is the reason why they looked at the current status of clean fuel deployment in the BSR. To avoid a patchwork of incompatible solutions, this issue still calls for more intensive cross-border cooperation. 

Dr. Jürgen Neumüller, Joint Spatial Planning Department Berlin-Brandenburg, conveyed the statement of the Brandenburg minister for Infrastructure and Regional Planning, Guido Beermann, mostly welcoming the TEN-T proposal. He also explained that in their special case the functional urban area encompasses a number of peri-urban and regional nodes described in their joint strategic development plan 2019 as “Berlin and Berlin Surrounding Area”. For instance, connections from and to the airport or from and to logistic centres are not yet included. Thus, a more flexible definition of TEN-T criteria that reflect better on the functionality of urban nodes is still needed.

Mr. Neumüller represented the current chair of the Scandria®Alliance, which was founded to consolidate experience of its member cities and regions, particularly in the areas of climate-smart multimodal transport connectivity and sustainable regional development between Scandinavia and the Adriatic Sea. He stressed the importance of this collaboration to strengthen the voice from the bottom.  The alliance was also praised by Ossi Savolainen who called it “a great continuation for the previous project-based collaborations on the Scan-Med corridor”.

The BSR regions were joined by Bert Boerman, Regional Minister of Province Overijssel in the Netherlands. He sees a lot of the same challenges in his region that the former speakers have already mentioned and stressed that intensive collaboration across the EU and especially along the corridor will be even more necessary in the future. Together with various public and private partners, the province of Overijssel is also involved in several projects contributing to reach the goals described in the European Green Deal. He offered their knowledge and competences to the attending stakeholders in the BSR for future collaboration.  

The panel discussion was followed up by perspective on durable cooperation and cooperation networks beyond the scope of BSR Access.

Orsolya Schulz, project officer at the Managing Authority/Joint Secretariat of the Interreg BSR Programme, gave a brief overview of the new programme 2021-2027 with a special focus on funding available for furthering green mobility solutions towards greener and more resilient societies and economies.

Daniel Meltzian, VASAB Chair at the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community in Germany, calls back to one of BSR Access’ founding projects, NSB CoRe that VASAB was already an active part of. They are currently updating the “VASAB Vision 2040”(You are transferring to another service) that complement the issues that were already elaborated in BSR Access.

The synergies between a stakeholder collaboration platform as BSR Access and other independent cross-border networks were also pointed out by Lucas Bosser, Director for Transport at the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR). He also confirms CPMR’s positive outlook on the new TEN-T revision that addresses a lot of the topics relevant to their member regions. In his experience, national states tend to look more at their own issues, while regions tend to be more European focused and more dedicated to cross-border collaborations. He wished to continue the valuable exchange and to join forces.

The final conference was closed by the responsible project manager at Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, Sakari Saarinen, who extended the partnerships thanks to every person and organization that has contributed to BSR Access along its way.

If you missed the event or want to revisit the work of the BSR Access partnership, the video with the results by the partners can be watched here(You are transferring to another service).

The study ” Regional development processes of mega-projects” is focusing on describing and analysing the wider economic impacts of selected European cross-border transport mega-projects.

Cost-Benefit Analysis on transport economic impacts has become a standardized process and achieved a strong role in the impact evaluation of large transport projects in EU and in other developed countries. There is a broad consensus that investments in transport infrastructure may have wider economic and societal impacts outside the direct external ones, but the wider effects can only exist if there are significant positive direct effects to households and firms using the transport infrastructure.  

This study makes a comparative analysis of selected cross-border transport mega-projects in Europe. How was the impact assessment carried out? What are the contents of the analysis and which methods are applied? For a background we present a framework of the economic impact analysis of transport system and accessibility changes, based on a literature review. The result, a discussion paper, will feed discussion by both planners of the transport systems and stakeholders of the EU-level and national transport policies. The discussion paper aims to support development towards more comprehensive and standardized practice of impact assessment in large transport projects in the EU. 

The study is based on comparative analysis of selected mega-projects. The projects are:

1. Öresund Fixed Link connecting Copenhagen (Denmark) with Malmö (Sweden) (in operation since year 2000)
2. Oslo-Stockholm 2:55 project connecting Stockholm (Sweden) with Oslo (Norway) (at planning stage, no implementation decision))
3. Fehmarnbelt tunnel connecting Lolland Island (Denmark) with Fehmarn Island (Germany) (under construction)
4. Brenner Base Tunnel connecting Innsbruck (Austria) with Fortezza (Italia) (under construction)
5. Rail Baltica from Tallinn (Estonia) to Warsaw (Poland) over Latvia and Lithuania (under construction)
6. Helsinki–Tallinn Railway tunnel connecting Helsinki (Finland) with Tallinn (Estonia) and Rail Baltica.  (plans and studies done, no implementation decision)

The summary: Regional development processes of mega-projects (pdf)
Final report: Regional development processes of mega-projects (pdf)

For more information contact:

Senior Adviser Sakari Saarinen, Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, mobile +358 40 637 5934

The transport sector is the second largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU. To overcome the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation, the European Commission presented the European Green Deal, a set of policy initiatives with the aim of making Europe climate-neutral by 2050.

Some member states and regions have set high ambitions and implemented strong measures in the deployment of clean fuels. Still, the level of ambition in target setting and policy proposals varies greatly between member states. In order to achieve the climate targets set by the international community in the Paris Agreement, the EU needs to accelerate the uptake of zero-emission vehicles and the related infrastructure. Efforts will need to be considerably higher both on a European and national level.

At the BSR Access Clean Fuel Agora on 9th June 2021, hosted by the Joint Spatial Planning Department Berlin-Brandenburg(You are transferring to another service), the status quo of clean fuel deployment in the Baltic Sea Region (report(Will be opened in a new window)) and the BSR Access position paper on clean fuels deployment (summary(Will be opened in a new window), full version(Will be opened in a new window)) has been presented and discussed with 50 participants from all over the Baltic Sea Region. Organised as online meeting place for experts, practitioners and officials across the national borders, thematic sectors and administrative levels in the Baltic Sea Region, following questions were raised:

– Is the Baltic Sea Region a front-runner in clean fuel deployment?
– How to collaboratively govern the transition to zero-emission mobility?

With the attendance of the European Coordinator for the North Sea-Baltic Core Network Corridor, Catherine Trautmann, the Prioroity Area Coordinator Transport of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, Thomas Erlandson and other distinguished speakers, the panelists clearly committed themselves to accelerate clean fuel deployment in the Baltic Sea Region by better collaboration to coordinate the process of transition towards zero emission transport acrosss borders. The discussion on how to organise coordinative measures shall be continued after the summer break under the umbrella of the EUSBSR Priority Area Transport.

Check programme, presentations and the summary report(You are transferring to another service) to find out more!

BSR Access Multimodality Agora – an intensive dialogue between stakeholders in transnational transport development – was hosted by Kvarken Council EGTC led by Director Mathias Lindström and moderated by Malla Paajanen on April 27th 2021.

Total 48 professionals representing organisations in 10 countries had made their registrations. Approximately 40 online guests were present during the 90-minute program. 

You can find the Summary of Multimodality Agora with a concise synopsis of all the contributions here(Will be opened in a new window).

With the outcomes of the Multimodality Agora together with our Position Paper our work  on the integrated planning along transport corridors continues. 

We look forward to further cooperation with you! 

Activities on GoA 3.1 in BSR ACCESS is dedicated to first mile interoperability solutions, and tackles challenges, needs and improvement proposals for interconnectivity between the CNCs and so-called first mile areas. Such areas have never been defined or delineated in any of the EU-level policy documents.

First mile areas are defined as:
– areas located outside commuting distance of corridor hubs and nodes
– areas containing substantial export industries, thus dependent on international transport chains
– areas with scattered, low density, population settlement.

When applying the definition on Local Area Units only commuting distance can be calculated. If industries are ‘substantial’ and if areas have ‘low density population settlement’ has to be assessed arbitrary. Furthermore, freight of national or regional importance should be added to the definition.

A survey of projects financed by Interreg programmes – and in one case Horizon 2020 – resulted in identification of 15 projects with possible relevance for first mile areas, whereof 11 have been further analysed. Only two of these explicitly address first mile issues. While TENTacle emphasizes the importance of multi-level governance structures to spread benefits from CNCs to first mile areas, the project SubNodes focus on how to expand the CNC hinterland.

With priority on implementing CNCs there is no or little attention to areas that will not benefit from accessibility improvements following the implementation of the CNCs. The territorial divide between nodes along the CNCs and areas outside can increase without policies addressing how developing CNCs and how they can contribute to sustainable growth in a larger hinterland. Among EU funded projects there are almost no findings on best practices. However, at national and regional level best practice solutions are to be found.

The GoA 3.1 Activity had the ambition to highlight best practice solutions for first mile areas. The findings after inventory of EU funded projects are however a general lack of knowledge and awareness of first mile issues. EU funding programmes should therefore support policy development by elaborating the concept on first mile areas in the corridor approach as well as promoting analysis of transport interoperability analysis. 

Furthermore, existing multi-level governance structures provides a framework for reaping benefits from CNC development and its contribution to sustainable growth. These structures can be called upon to develop first mile area policies and actions by promoting these issues in Interreg programmes.

Based on the findings in this report the following recommendations can be suggested to the BSR Access partnership, and in extension to EU institutions (commission, secretariats for the programmes for territorial cooperation and coordinators of TEN-T core network corridors:

Increase awareness!

Since first mile issues are rarely addressed improved knowledge is essential. Building knowledge can be made by identify and analyse first mile areas that might be affected by the implementation of CNCs. The challenges might be about boosting potentials as well as mitigate relatively decreased accessibility. Furthermore, both best practice and learning examples should be identified among national and regional projects which are not to be found with Interreg or Horizon funding.

Develop the concept of first mile area!

Apart from “outside commuting distance from CNC hubs and nodes” is a criterion that is simple to calculate. Defining “substantial exporting industries” provides challenges to measure whether industries are to be regarded as substantial and to what extent production is aimed for non-domestic markets. At the same time the definition is excluding clusters of small and medium sized industries which together can be considered as substantial. Furthermore, the importance of freight hubs in first mile areas are not acknowledged. The perception of “dense population settlement” and “medium or large urban centres” might differ considerably between EU member states. Classifications as for example developed by ESPON can be misleading as they are often based on NUTS3 or NUTS2 administrative areas.

Formulate first mile policy!

In EU policy urban core nodes are considered connecting CNCs to its hinterland. However, along the corridors several nodes have the function connecting to a larger geographical area, whether classified as TEN-T, national or regional infrastructure. In EU policy, and especially regarding the CNCs, first mile connections need to be acknowledged and addressed in policy documents.

Clarify governance and responsibilities!

With the variety of preconditions in different areas first mile issue should be addressed with a bottom-up approach. The well-developed governance structures in the Baltic Sea Region provides a framework gathering national, regional and, many times, local actors. The Interreg programmes can promote analysis of first mile issues by explicitly give priority to project applications with integrated first mile perspectives. Giving priority to first mile issues should be based on a clear policy formulation based on the interface between EU and national interests.

The summary and full final report on first mile corridor areas are available here.

For more information contact:

Strategist Mattias Andersson, Region Blekinge, Mobile: +46 723824791

In the next years it will be crucial to develop and implement measures to reduce GHG emissions from road transport and at the same time to handle the expected growth in transport volume to meet the targets set by the European Green Deal.

Phasing out – during a limited number of years – the hegemony of fossil fuels and fossil fuel vehicles and replacing them by other fuels and drive lines takes time. Collaboration, public awareness, new business ideas, infrastructure for green fuels, legislation and regulations are needed to make it happen.

From a BSR perspective, the specific challenges identified are:
– different ambitions in targets and goals across countries and corridors
– different focus on the different fuels between countries
– some countries do not have tax benefits or incentives for alternative fuels in place
– lack of concrete targets for infrastructure and vehicles for alternative fuels for transport
– many countries are characterised by short-term plans and incentives.

To tackle these challenges and to respond to the Green Deal and its more ambitious goals the BSR countries must revise their strategies and actions plans and to make their policies for clean fuels more ambitious and more concrete.

Efficient instruments should substantially contribute to reducing GHG emissions. Review of current instruments to foster clean fuels shows that there is not any single instrument that fits all countries and every stage of market development. The effectiveness of instruments broadly depends on their ability to bridge the gap between conventionally fuelled vehicles and those using alternative fuels. Therefore, it is important to introduce measures that make it more attractive to invest in clean fuel vehicles according to the polluter pays principle, e.g. bonus-malus systems.

It also seems important to have technology neutral policies and by that support all clean fuel technologies, even if there is no “ideal” technology available but rather technologies that have “use-specific” advantages. This is especially important in an international context, as it is necessary to avoid a situation where a certain technology or technical standard is limited to only some of the countries and by that will become a barrier for border-crossing transports and travel.

This position paper is the result of the activities specially related to group of activities 2.4 Clean Fuel Deployment. The position paper provide input to discussion on measures needed to ensure the future development of clean fuel deployment in the BSR. The position paper will also serve as an input to discussions at the Clean Fuel Agora on June 9, 2021.

The position paper outlines 10 positions and draws attention to the most important areas and issues being collaboratively governed transition to zero emission, more ambitious and technology neutral policy and harmonised and interoperable clean fuel infrastructure across borders, which with priority need coordinated actions.

> The position paper is available here(Will be opened in a new window)

The global economy has been suffering the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic for the better part of the last year. The shipping sector was hit especially hard and is still expecting to see a decrease in transport volumes one year later. Meanwhile, major issues such as climate change and sustainability slipped into the background. Although inland navigation, short sea shipping and river-sea shipping are already CO2-efficient, there is still potential to make the European fleets greener.

On 24 March 2021 in  digital workshop “Greening of Inland Navigation, Short Sea Shipping and River-Sea Shipping“, six high-level speakers presented and discussed different the sectors potentials and issues, while at the same time presenting solutions to make these modes of transport even more climate- and environment-friendly.

In her key note speech, Theresia Hacksteiner, Secretary General EBU, emphasised that the Inland Waterway Transport (IWT) sector plays a key role in realising the EU’s climate goals. To unfold the sector’s full potential, however, a strong policy framework as well as investments in infrastructure and fleet renewal are essential. Between 2021 and 2027, the sector’s ifnrastructure and ports needs are around EUR 47 billion, where it is currently only receiving less than EUR 2 billion CEF Funding. Besides the obvious lack of financial support for fleetrenewal towards zero emission, the sector needs access to research programmes to test and validate greening the fleet actions, Hacksteiner stated.

Policy frameworks and subsidies are also key aspects in the process of energy transition, according to Saeed Mohebbi, Advisor electrical safety and alternative fuels at the Swedish Transport Agency. He highlighted the importance of regulations and guidelines on a national and regional level to help companies and authorities make the transition from fossil to alternative fuels.

For ARKON Shipping, a medium-sized shipping company from Haren/Ems with a focus on European Short Sea Trade, the alternative fuel solution to go with is methanol, according to Project Manager Werner Plenkmann. As of today, retrofitting existing engines is already possible and regular (also known as grey) methanol is competitive compared with other alternative fuels. Sufficient availability of grey methanol already exists, he explained, a green methanol economy will be based on the increasing demand and will replace grey methanol step by step in the next years. 

Accordingly, Ingvar Landälv, who has more than 45 years’ experience in gasification technology-based process plants, broke down the complex chemical processes of bio-methanol production for the audience and presented a list of methanol projects currently under development. Unfortunately, he noted, the amount of green methanol on the market does not yet match the amount actually needed to cover all the planned projects. These still depend highly on subsidies as already emphasised by Theresia Hacksteiner.

Overall, it is nearly impossible to predict which alternative fuels and technologies are the most promising, said Friederike Dahlke-Wallat, Naval Architect at the Development Centre for Ship Technology and Transport Systems (DST). Their contributions to the CCNR studies on energy transition towards a zero-emission inland navigation sector shows how a future alternative fuel mix could potentially look like, but in reality it is a question of cost and infrastructure. The best option now is to take it case-by-case and become aware of the obstacles and challenges that need to be overcome in order to make inland navigation greener, she explained.

Benjamin Weinacht also underlines this case-by-case strategy when it comes to the certification and regulation of alternative fuels. As managing director at CMB, he sees great potential in hydrogen dual-fuel engines that promise a wide range of industrial applications, from ships to trains and power generators. CMB has an entire division (CMB.TECH) dedicated to hydrogen powered technology and infrastructure to produce and distribute the clean fuels of the future. Weinacht emphasises the importance of first-movers in this field, as they lay the groundwork for large-scale application. In his words: „Small steps create big success.“

You can find more information as well as the speaker’s full presentations at:

Theresia Hacksteiner, Secretary General European Barge Union (EBU): Greening of Inland Waterway Transport and Short Sea Shipping – Policy framework and potential of the sector(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service)

Ingvar Landälv, Senior Advisor, Fuels & Energy Consulting: Status of bio-methanol production(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service)

Werner Plenkmann, Project Manager, ARKON Shipping: The end of fossil fuels – Energy transition at Sea through methanol(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service)

Benjamin Weinacht, Managing Director, CMB Germany: CMB Group – Hydrogen dual-fuel applications(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service)

Saeed Mohebbi, Advisor electrical safety and alternative fuels, Swedish Transport Agency: Regulations for alternative fuels and propulsion technology(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service)

The event was hosted by the project platform BSR Access which combines competences and geographies of the involved projects (e.g. NSB CoRE, TENTacle, Scandria2Act) into one cooperation platform dealing with transport interoperability and regional development. Furthermore BSR Access supports the European Coordinators and the EUSBSR Priority Area Transport Coordinators and Horizontal Action Coordinator in their efforts to achieve innovative and sustainable services for transport and mobility along the corridors. 

Port of Hamburg Marketing leads a work package highlighting more environmentally friendly transport modes (rail, inland waterway and short sea shipping) as competitive alternatives to conventional lorry transport.

BSR Access has investigated urban nodes in the Baltic Sea Region to identify challenges associated with their role as interface between urban transport and trans-European transport.

Urban nodes are highly discussed for future policy of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) and along the core network corridors.

Based on the results from interviews and a stakeholder webinar, BSR Access has developed a key point paper that presents policy recommendations for the integration of urban nodes in the Baltic Sea Region into the TEN-T network considering all relevant policy levels. 

The paper includes all urban nodes in the BSR as defined by Annex II of the Regulation (EU) No 1315/2013 including Oslo and St Petersburg.

For future TEN-T policy, urban nodes require a further developed definition which helps to focus on the interaction between the urban transport network and the European transport network. 

The definition of urban nodes shall respond to dynamic developments of TEN-T access points within urban nodes such as market developments, innovations and political and global challenges such as climate change. Urban nodes are functional areas that interconnect long distance, regional and local traffic, both for freight and passengers including first and last mile connections. 

BSR Access recommends defining urban nodes as follows: 

“An urban node is a functional area where long distance, regional and local traffic is interconnected. It provides access from and to the trans-European network, for both freight and passengers including first and last mile connections.  

An urban node consists of: 
– Transport infrastructure in the urban node being part of the TEN-T network or being functionally linked, including bypasses that increase the performance of the TEN-T network.
– Access points to the TEN-T network like multimodal railway stations, multimodal terminals, ports or airports irrespective of the fact, whether they are included in the TEN-T network or not, provided that they are relevant for the interaction of the urban node with the TEN-T network.
– First and last mile connections to these access points.

Urban nodes are facing a growing need in terms of transport infrastructure investments to address current and future mobility needs and to implement mobility transition. 

Therefore, it seems to be essential to further develop and use smart financing schemes that correspond to societal needs for a balanced and sustainable transport development and involve innovative financing instruments, combining public finance, loans and guarantees.

The Baltic Sea Region can serve as a platform that connects urban nodes and enhances collaboration with respect to integrated urban node planning and financing.

This paper presents the results of GoA 3.2 in the Interreg BSR Access project platform by the Joint Spatial Planning Department Berlin-Brandenburg. 

Key Point Paper, interoperability of Urban Nodes (pdf)(Will be opened in a new window)

For further information, please contact:

Helena Rietmann, Joint Spatial Planning Department Berlin-Brandenburg(You are transferring to another service) 

Region Blekinge is responsible the GoA 3.1 in BSR Access is dedicated to first mile interoperability solutions, and tackles challenges, needs and improvement proposals for interconnectivity between the CNCs and so-called first mile areas.

Such areas have never been defined or delineated in any of the EU-level policy documents and – therefore, need to be addressed in GoA 3.1 for the purpose of proper understanding by the project team, the associated organisations and the identified target groups.

BSR Access has developed a definition of first mile areas and policy implications based in EU transport policy. A survey of EU-financed projects of interest, for elaborating policies of first mile areas connectivity to CNCs, have found 12 projects of interest, even though the first mile perspective has not been directly addressed, 7 of which are presented in this report. 

Experiences for a selection of projects have been discussed at a webinar the 27th of October 2020 which were organized in cooperation with CPMR Baltic Sea Commission – Transport work group and a summary were presented and discussed during the VII Forum of the Baltic – Adriatic Transport Corridor on the 20^th of November organized by the Association of Polish regions on the Baltic Adriatic Corridor.

The event on the 27^th of October gathered 29 participants and the event on the 20^th of November gathered 83 participants including the Coordinator of the Baltic Adriatic Corridor Mrs Anne E. Jensen. 

During the workshop some of the findings were presented. The participants provided feedback and input. The first mile-solutions presented will be collected in a catalogue for a knowledge basis and later reference. 

The Concept of First Mile

The BSR Access platform has made an extensive definition of the concept of first mile. First mile is the first leg of the route and chain of goods and/or passengers between an origin and a destination. 

This first leg collects goods and/or passengers from a larger catchment area and offers access to the infrastructure via an adjacent hub or interchange point. In the BSR concept the second leg of the route is the core network corridors (CNC). 

For passengers, the first mile solutions are mirrors of last mile solutions. But for freight transport, the last mile solutions can’t be implemented as first mile solutions. Raw materials from mining, agriculture or forestry demand different types of transportation to the nearest terminals and different ways to access the long-haul transportation infrastructure. 

First mile solutions for distribution of commodities also differs from last mile solution. When distributing from stores and shopping malls there are different kinds of first mile solution which are not relevant within the scope of this project.

Figure. Chain of goods or passengers between origin and destination.

The First Mile Corridor Areas

The first mile corridor areas are defined as areas located outside the daily commuting distance to corridor hubs and nodes. They lie on secondary and tertiary road or rail links which feed traffic into the core network corridors. These areas represent type of land use with scarce settlement patterns and habitated areas, and a few medium-to-large urban centres. 

An analysis of first mile corridor areas should also include locations of substantial exporting industries which connect to international infrastructure and international supply chains. 

See Figure 2 below for an example of how these first mile corridor areas could be analyzed in the south of Sweden. Heavy green means that the area is within the TEN-T and close to node, red means it’s outside the TEN-T and far away from node. These red areas could be the areas in need of first mile solutions to better connect to the core network corridors. 

What also should be included in a mapping of a first mile corridor analysis are the locations of substantial exporting industries and international supply chains, that are not included in figure below.

Figure. Example of first mile corridor areas in the south of Sweden (ScanMed (LAU) and Baltic Adriatic in Poland (NUTS3).

Read more about conclusions and projects presented in the workshop (pdf)

For more information contact:

Strategist Mattias Andersson, Region Blekinge, mattias.andersson@regionblekinge.se, Mobile: +46 723824791

The Scandinavian-Mediterranean Rail Freight Corridor (ScanMed RFC) crosses Europe from North to South like a spine. Together with the TEN-T Core Network Corridors the RFCs represent the main axes for the development of intramodality and multimodality across the EU and therefor the BSR.

It is important that the whole EU territory is given the same opportunity to be connected by rail, following the principle of cohesion and accessibility policy. Cooperation and knowledge exchange involving all the stakeholders along the ScanMed RFC is crucial which is why Port of Hamburg Marketing as a partner in BSR Access teamed up with the ScanMed RFC for their Digital Customer Workshop this year.

The workshop was divided into different sections – Railway Advisory Group-, Port of Hamburg-/BSR Access-, Terminal Advisory Group- and ScanMed RFC-Section – to give participants from various sectors along the corridor the chance to present recent developments.

Andrea M. Penso, Senior Referent and DB Cargo RAG-Speaker of the ScanMed RFC, explained The Xborder methodology and the measures that can be derived from it for the Munich-Verona corridor section. He also described a 2-way strategy for the ScanMed RFC North by mentioning the Øresund Bridge as an example. 

The RAG section was continued by Johan Carlgren, Accessibility Manager of the ScanMed RFC, who took up the topic of harmonizing investment plans by bringing the market’s view. 

Also, a stakeholder from the southern part of the ScanMed RFC, Aldo Maietta, Head of Marketing of Mercitalia Rail, took the floor and outlined the Verona-Bologna Axes as the Gateway between Northern and Southern Europe. 

Lastly, Conor Feighan, Secretary General of ERFA European Rail Freight Association, joined the discussion and spoke about support for rail transport by waiving and reducing track access charges.

This was followed by the Port of Hamburg/BSR Access section, in which Inga Gurries, Project Manager at Port of Hamburg Marketing, presented the BSR Access Position Paper(Will be opened in a new window) on best practices of multimodality and interoperability in the Baltic Sea Region.

The position paper summarizes the advantages and untapped potentials of less dominant modes of transport (rail, inland navigation and short sea shipping). It includes success stories from past EU projects that answer the Issue Papers’ and Green Deal’s desire to create durable, streamlined and capitalized actions. 

Afterwards, Daniel Mansholt, Head of Railway Development of the Hamburg Port Authority, explained the importance of the Hamburg Port Railway through its direct connection to DB Netz and the hinterland.

In the following TAG section, Andreas Pietsch, Operations Manager of Kombiverkehr, provided a wide range of innovative opportunities of the MegaHub Lehrte, the new terminal in the Hannover region. 

Subsequently, Fulvio Lino di Blasio Secretary General, Port Network Authority of the Ionian Sea – Port of Taranto, introduced the Port of Taranto as a competitive intermodal hub in the med. State of the art and presented future perspectives.

The meeting was concluded by representatives of the ScanMed RFC representing their recent work in different task forces (e.g. on the Brenner Axis).

If you did not have the opportunity to participate you can still watch the meeting and download the presentations here(Will be opened in a new window, You are transferring to another service). 

For more information please contact:

Ms. Inga Gurries, Project Manager at Port of Hamburg Marketing

The transport sector is currently the second largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU. Freight transport continues to grow and specifically road freight is projected to increase by around 40 % by 2030 and by just over 80 % by 2050 (compared to 2005).

The next years will be crucial to develop and implement measures to reduce emissions from freight transport and at the same time to handle the expected growth in transport volume to meet the targets set by the EU. 

Even though multimodal transport is recognized as one of the most environmental friendly way to transport goods, the reduction of CO₂ emissions alone is not an important motivation for companies to shift from solely road transport.

One integral part of the BSR Access project platform highlights more environmentally friendly transport modes as competitive alternatives to conventional lorry transport and showcase smart transport solutions (e.g. River Information Services in inland waterway transport).

The position paper summarizes the advantages and untapped potentials of less dominant modes of transport (rail, inland navigation and short sea shipping) in the Baltic Sea Region. It includes success stories from past EU projects that answer the Issue Papers’ and Green Deal’s desire to create durable, streamlined and capitalized actions. 

The paper was put together by Port of Hamburg Marketing and will be presented at the Scandinavian Mediterranean Rail Freight Corridor (ScanMed RFC) Online Workshop (incl. RAG-TAG) on the 12th November.

> Position paper on multimodal and interoperable supply chains (pdf)

For more information please contact:

Ms. Inga Gurries, Project Manager at Port of Hamburg Marketing

Kvarken Council is one of the project partners in the BSR Access project (BSR Access – Access to Clean, Efficient and Multimodal Transport Corridors in the Baltic Sea Region) that supports sustainable growth in the Baltic Sea region. On 21st October 2020, the Kvarken Council gathered circa 40 stakeholder members to a webinar that addressed the various forms of cooperation along transport corridors.

Director Mathias Lindström held a presentation on the Kvarken region’s preparatory work for the EGTC (European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation). This process received instructions from Krzysztof Żarna, Director of the Central European Transport Corridor (CETC-EGTC), and Wiktor Szydarowski from the European Union’s ESPON-EGTC programme in Luxembourg. The Kvarken region’s long-standing and close cooperation was emphasized as a great strength, along with the new EGTC’s planned comprehensiveness. 

Other speeches in the webinar brought up the need for efficient cooperation between stakeholders, and especially the private sector’s significance on the implementation of large infrastructure projects and the expanding of their financing base received great attention. This was highlighted by Jonas Karlsson, CEO from the Oslo-STHLM 2.55 project. This problem is typical for infrastructure projects in border regions because the improvement of border region transport connections often takes second place in national transport strategies and funding programmes.

The improvement of transport connections is often linked with the economic life’s most common development programmes. For instance, the STRING collaboration between stakeholders in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Northern Germany – represented in the webinar by Managing Director Thomas Becker – has managed to create a competitive brand for the region. The advancement of the STRING region’s transport connections is linked especially to the growth prospects of the region’s renewable energy industry.

The connection between politics and the improvement of transnational transport connections was discussed by Paal Iversen from the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Chair of the BEATA organization promoting the Barents region, and by Lucas Bosser,who is responsible for transport and accessibility at the Brussels-based CPMR organization. 

Cooperation between national and regional actors concerning the improvement of transport corridors is active and tackles concrete development needs in addition to strategic policies. Nevertheless, the efficient incorporation of transnational transport corridors’ development needs into national and regional political programmes has proven to be an ongoing challenge.

Helka Kalliomäki, Associate Professor at the University of Vaasa in Finland, envisioned the increasingly versatile opportunities of university research in the development of transport corridors. The more we know about the needs and operations of people and businesses in transport corridors, the better we can create targeted and cost-efficient services for them. 

Ulf Wikström, Project Manager of the European Union’s Interact programme emphasized the need for combining the various funding opportunities offered by the European Union for large transport projects. Funding programmes and their adjoining strategies unfortunately often act as silos, regardless of their parallel objectives. There is a great societal need for transverse cooperation between programmes.

The webinar and its preceding survey and mapping will be compiled into a position paper in December 2020 to present functional and advisable collaboration models that focus on cross-border cooperation.

The work presented here is a result of the BSR ACCESS project – and especially of the Kvarken Council’s work package 2.2 – funded by the Baltic Sea Region programme.

The statement will be available online at: www.uudenmaanliitto.fi/bsraccess. The previously mentioned report based on the survey is available in the same address.

We wish to thank everyone who has participated in the work so far.

For more information:

Mr Mathias Lindström, Director of the Kvarken Council 

BSR Access participated in the Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) on the 20th of October. The 11th forum was supposed to take place in Turku, Finland, but due to the on-going COVID-19 pandemic it was organized online.

The three objectives of the EUSBSR – ‘Save the Sea’, ‘Connect the Region’ and ‘Increase Prosperity’ were the central focus points during the individual sessions. 

High ranking politicians such as Mr.Grzegorz Poznański (Director General Council of the Baltic Sea States Secretariat), Ms.Elisa Ferreira (Commissioner Cohesion and Reforms), Mr.Tālis Linkaits (Minister for Transport of Latvia) and Mr.Mika Lintilä (Minister of Economic Affairs Finland) took to the virtual stage to discuss cooperation and innovation in the BSR – as well as lessons learned from the pandemic.

During the Networking break, participants visited the virtual rooms of the Networking Village with more than 20 virtual stands presenting Policy Area Coordinators’ work as well as organizations from the BSR. 

As a so-called project platform, BSR Access facilitates innovative and sustainable transport by creating connections between traditional infrastructure nodes and smart transport solutions to further develop the TEN-T Core Network Corridors, and contribute to sustainable growth in the region. At the Virtual Networking Village the platform represented Policy Area Transport.

The EUSBSR Policy Area Transport is currently establishing what is called a Flagship Process. The intention is to establish long-term processes, focusing on specific transport related (umbrella) topics, to support the efforts of the rather short-term Flagship Projects. 

The Process serves as a multi-level governance stakeholder exchange (e.g. Workshops, meetings, conferences), exchanging best practices, thematic outputs, and results and achievements throughout the whole multi-annual financial framework period and beyond.

By joining forces, the BSR Access partnership support the European Coordinators with knowledge on how to facilitate the high quality, innovative and sustainable services for transport and mobility along the corridors and how to make these the drivers for accessibility and economic, social and territorial cohesion. 

Representatives of eight urban nodes in the Baltic Sea Region discussed challenges with the European Commission.

During an online seminar, organised by the Joint Spatial Planning Department Berlin-Brandenburg on 10th June 2020, in the frame of the BSR Access project, first outcomes of a survey amongst urban nodes and their challenges have been discussed in the context of ongoing TEN-T revision.

After a tour-de-table presentation of participating urban nodes, Vera Kissler, Advisor to Ms Catherine Trautmann, coordinator of the North Sea – Baltic Core Network Corridor, presented the current status of TEN-T revision with special attention to urban nodes. 

She highlighted, that it is discussed to improve the TEN-T functionalities in urban nodes, recognizing their importance as intersection between TEN-T and urban transport as well as hotspots for developing and implementing smart and innovative mobility solutions, especially for first and last mile transport. For the future it is discussed to both, extend the list of urban nodes and to refine their definition.

Sven Friedrich, INFRASTRUKTUR & UMWELT Professor Böhm und Partner, briefly presented the outcomes of the survey carried out in BSR Access and conclusions, the consultants have drawn. 

According to him major challenges are related to integrated planning, financing and an urban node definition, that well distiguishes between the TEN-T dimension and urban transport dimension yet being flexible enough to react on market developments, especially in the logistics sector.

In the discussion it became evident, that a more comprehensive view on urban nodes and their inter-relations to the transeuropean transport network is needed. 

This mainly means to better reflect on TEN-T planning in urban transport planning and vice-versa. Funding mechanisms need to get better coordinated between different European and national funding schemes.

One specific interest area of the BSR Access project platform is dedicated to integrated planning along cross-border and transnational transport corridors.

It aspires to connect representatives of international and cross sectoral initiatives along the corridors or, in some cases, in a cross-border transport area, todiscuss the value added of the cooperation and the key success factors to succeed with coordinated investments.

Ramboll Sweden AB, assigned by Kvarken Council, lead organisation for this thematic activity, has delivered a report screening results to identify experiences and success stories related with the setting.

The survey was distributed in October 2019 to 15 corridor or area governance initiatives and by mid-December 2019 the response came from 12 of those. 

The report sums up the feedback received on the cooperation modalities; the management practice and the implementation of a joint vision, aims and priorities for transport corridors or transport areas in and outside the Baltic Sea Region. 

This report serves as a working material for upcoming platform workshops and discussions with policy and business stakeholders, including the European Coordinators responsible for the implementation of TEN-T core network corridors.

A workshop will be held as a side event to the Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, in Turku, Finland, 19-20 October 2020.

Please contact Mr Mathias Lindström, Director of the Kvarken Council for further information or interest in the workshop.

>The full report can be downloaded here(Will be opened in a new window)

For more information:

Mr Mathias Lindström, Director of the Kvarken Council, mathias.lindstrom@kvarken.org, +358 50 918 6462

One specific interest area of the BSR Access project platform is the so called first mile corridor areas.
These, in the TEN-T core network corridor context, are the territories:

– located farther away from the core network corridors (outside the daily commuting distance to corridor hubs and nodes);
– with dispersed population settlements and a low density of medium-to-large urban centres;
– with substantial exporting industries that generate international supply chains.

The first mile areas feed freight and passenger transport flows into the core network corridors through the corridor access infrastructure (secondary road, rail and/or inland waterway links, and regional airports) connecting to the nearest corridor hub/urban node.

Ramboll Sweden AB, assigned by Region Blekinge, lead organisation for this thematic activity, has delivered a report screening results of Horizon 2020 and Interreg projects of relevance to the first mile corridor areas.

The report sums up the feedback received on the project implementation progress, the rationale for collaboration, the solutions produced and the accumulated good practice.

The report serves a working material for upcoming BSR Access activities aiming to identify interoperability solutions with the potential to boost interconnectivity between the CNCs and first mile areas in the BSR. 

Such solutions are thought to be instrumental in easing passenger and freight transport access to the TEN-T core network corridors, and thereby to improve the competitiveness of more remote regions and cities.

> The full report can be downloaded here(Will be opened in a new window)

For more information contact:

Strategist Mattias Andersson, Region Blekinge
Mobile: +46 723824791
E-post: mattias.andersson@regionblekinge.se

The status of the clean fuel deployment in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR) reveals vast differences between the different countries and consequently along the TEN-T Core Network Corridors. Some countries and regions are forerunners, there are a lot of good examples, initiatives and successful projects, but the overall European picture is scattered.

The Capital Region of Denmark has reviewed the status quo of clean fuel deployment in the Baltic Sea Region including current status of alternative vehicles and infrastructure, policy frameworks, clean fuel targets and action plans in eight countries. 

In a five-year period (2015-2019), there has been an increase in the uptake of alternative fuel vehicles. This increase predominantly applies to BEVs and plug-in hybrids.

Market share of BEVs and PHEV in the BSR countries. Development from 2015 to 2019. Source [EAFO].

The level of ambitions in the national strategies towards clean fuel deployment differs among the countries and the coherence between the national policy frameworks is low. Some countries’ efforts reflect an ambition to simply live up to the minimum requirements of the AFI Directive, which is not enough if the EU is to live up to its part of the Paris Agreement, while others have plans of higher ratios of public infrastructure than required by the AFI Directive.

From a BSR perspective, the main challenges are:

– Different ambitions in targets and goals across countries and corridors.
– Some countries do not have tax benefits or incentives for alternative fuels in place.
– Lack of concrete targets for infrastructure and vehicles for alternative fuels for transport.
– Many countries are characterized by short-term plans and incentives.

The purpose of the clean fuel deployment activities is to streamline and communicate the already existing experiences, knowledge and best practices based on the Scandria2Act and the GREAT project, in order create alignments in the clean fuels systems across the countries of the BSR.

Next up in the clean fuel deployment activities is a stakeholder involvement process. The positions from the process will feed as input when disseminating policy standpoints to European, intergovernmental and national decision-makers.

A Workshop on clean fuel deployment in the BSR will be held in Copenhagen the 7th of May 2020. Please contact Project Manager Kia Madsen for further information or interest in the workshop.

> Download the full report(Will be opened in a new window)

Representatives from all project partners came together in the offices of Region Blekinge in Karlskrona on 13th February 2020 for the 4th BSR Access partner meeting. We discussed first interim results that will be published in the “Project Library” section of our website by April 2020.

Kia Madsen from the Capital Region of Denmark – to highlight one example from the partnership – provided an overview of the status quo of clean fuel deployment in the Baltic Sea Region. In the last months they reviewed policy frameworks, clean fuel targets and action plans in eight countries. All findings reveal vast differences between the different countries and consequently along the Core Network Corridors.

Region Blekinge presented the received feedback from their survey carried out among relevant projects (Horizon 2020, Interreg) for first mile geography. Important results such as lessons learned, replicability potentials and key success factors will be summarized and uploaded to our website.

In the coming year, BSR Access will participate in high-level European events like the Fehmarnbelt Days (17-18 May), the EUSBSR Annual Forum (16-17 June) and the TEN-T Days (13-15 May). Visit our website for more information and follow #BSRAccess for future updates on our activities!

The workshop and open forum on Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) policy revision’ took place during the Digital Transport Days in Helsinki, on the 9th and 10th of October 2019 respectively. Open Forum focused on how this policy can contribute to gaining cohesion in the European Union.

The Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) Baltic Sea Commission (BSC) Transport Working Group, together with the Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council organised an Expert Meeting and Open Forum on Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) policy revision. 

Both events took place during the Digital Transport Days in Helsinki, on the 9th and 10th of October 2019 respectively. While the Expert Meeting highlighted good governance and stakeholder cooperation in the TEN-T policy, the Open Forum focused on how this policy can contribute to gaining cohesion in the European Union (EU). 

Following the Expert Workshop on the day before, around 60 transport policymakers at European-, national- and regional levels gathered once more to discuss the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the TEN-T guidelines. 

The TEN-T Guidelines Expert Workshop and Open Forum built upon the European Commission’s public TEN-T Policy consultation process from July 2019. Active participation in the TEN-T policy review is crucial to strengthen the role of northern Europe in innovation, digitalisation, and as a frontrunner in sustainable economic growth.

Ossi Savolainen, Regional Mayor of Helsinki-Uusimaa, greeted the participants via video-message. He stressed the importance of northern regions being actively involvement in the TEN-T policy revision process. Gaining cohesion through TEN-T policy will be an important tool in the fight against climate change. 

Bosse Andersson Chair of CPMR BSC Transport Working Group.

Jari Nahkanen, President of CPMR BSC (Oulu Region), and Bosse Andersson Chair of CPMR BSC Transport Working Group (Region Stockholm), took to the stage afterwards to extend their welcome as well. They both expressed their gratitude towards the northern extension of the Scandinavian-Mediterranean (ScanMed) and North-Sea Baltic (NSB) Core Network Corridors (CNCs) and reminded the attending policy makers that “EU policy is not only something for us to implement, but also for us to direct and formulate.” (Nahkanen)

The first session was opened by Kaarin Taipale, Vice-Chair of the CPMR BSC Transport Working Group (Helsinki-Uusimaa). She expressed that regions and areas located in the periphery of the EU are concerned about equal access to the core network. Cohesion — including territorial-, social- and cultural cohesion — is essential to fulfil the EU’s vision. “Without mobility on the TEN-T, the Union would not have any content,” Taipale stressed. 

Kaarin Taipale, Vice-Chair of the CPMR BSC Transport Working Group.

“Many people would consider TEN-T and transport as an infrastructure issue, but it is much more. It is about reducing inequalities and very much about climate action (these days). That is why we must understand more what clean energy and renewable energy means for transport and how to solve the issue of infrastructure for renewable energy. (…) Transport and the TEN-T are not only about moving from one place to another. In the EU, it is a powerful tool for European social and territorial cohesion. Globally, it is a powerful tool for climate action.” This view was shared by Mikael Nyberg, High level representative of the Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communications. 

Finland has already set the national goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2035 and he is hoping for the EU to set the same goal for the year 2050.

Jean-Louis Colson, Head of Unit B1-Transport Networks at DG Move, held the keynote address as a representative of the European Commission. He was very happy to see “that the Baltic Sea Commission and the CPMR are actively contributing to the involvement of a wide group of stakeholders in the debate of the future of the trans-European transport network policy.” 

DG Move is currently preparing for the next steps to reinforce the policy implementation through CEF 2 and the revision of TEN-T. The first initial results of the stakeholder consultation process will be presented during the TEN-T Days 2020 in Croatia. Mr. Colson assured that CEF 2 will continue to support major infrastructure investment in the BSR (e.g. Rail Baltica, Fehmarnbelt tunnel).

Together with the lead partner Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, partners from BSR Access contributed best practise examples from regional initiatives and past projects. After sharing their experience on establishing a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC), Mathias Lindström, Director of Kvarken Council, presented the benefits of including the Midway Alignment in the Extension of the NSB and ScanMed CNCs. 

Lindström also expressed the need for separate calls in the upcoming funding programme for growing peripheral regions, who are not directly on the corridors, but want to undertake infrastructure investments to improve cross-border cohesion.

Wiktor Szyrarowski, Lead Consultant at Ramboll Sweden, talked about further examples of multi-level level governance serving the implementation of TEN-T like Kvarken Council EGTC or the intergovernmental multilateral co-operation ‘Vision and Strategies around the Baltic Sea’ (VASAB). These kinds of actions ensure that even if a region is not in the privileged position of being directly located on a corridor, they still have a platform to voice their needs and opinions. 

Another tool for first-mile or corridor catchment areas is BSR Access. The project platform unites several flagship projects that delivered good results in the past. These results are going to be combined and presented to different decision-makers. Spatial planners and experts representing a variety of thematic sectors are also invited to discuss what kind of solutions were successful in specific locations and could be replicated in other parts of the BSR facing similar challenges.

Wiktor Szyrarowski, Lead Consultant at Ramboll Sweden.

Szydarowski also raised the issue of continuous funding of cross-border cooperation and infrastructure: “If there is commitment, there must be funding/financing. We do not want to have the projects to be the only way to ensure cross-border cooperation.”

During the afternoon session, Thomas Erlandson Coordinator for the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) – Policy Area Coordinator (PAC) Transport, and Malla Paajanen, Chief Adviser at Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, once again took the floor to explain the concept of flagship processes and its role in supporting EUSBSR policy implementation to the Open Forum attendees. 

A flagship – in this sense – encompasses a strategic action and tackles a specific macro-regional challenge. In combining and involving relevant stakeholders not only from regional policy areas, but also from the transport industry for the whole multiannual financial framework, it could change the “how” of transnational collaboration and ensure more adaptability and flexibility than the current project-based format. 

“The goal for the flagship is to become the engine of implementation,” Malla Paajanen said already during the Expert Meeting, “(It) is intended to implement the PAC Transport Action Plan which is approved by the involved Member States.”

In addition to the BSR Access partnership, input to the discussion different levels of TEN-T cohesion was presented by Kimmo Mäki, CEO of Finavia, Louise Weinreder, Senior Project Financial Manager at Vätgas Sverige (Hydrogen Sweden) and Jukka Honkanen, Chief of Branch Defence Command Finland. 

Mäki gave an overview of Helsinki Airport’s growth as an international transport hub. The expansion plans include a new multimodal travel centre that combines different transport modes for passenger travel.  Ms. Weinredder presented green hydrogen as a suitable solution for long-term energy storage and highlighted some successful applications from Sweden. 

The current problem is that there is no cooperation or joint strategy between the northern countries on renewable energy solutions. This issue was already noted by Catherine Trautmann, European Coordinator of the NSB CNC, during the Expert Meeting the day before. Jukka Honkanen shared the military perspective on the TEN-T network and the importance of dual usability for infrastructure.

Erki Must, Task Leader Auditor at the European Court of Auditors, held a presentation on the learnings from European transport mega-projects. According to Must, TFIs are the purest examples of the TEN-T vision – they connect people, destinations and create new opportunities.

Currently there a 35 so-called Transport Flagship Infrastructures (TFIs). To be awarded the label of a TFI, a transport project must have significant EU co-funding (without a quantitative threshold), relevance for the transport network in the EU (regarding cross-border links) and transformational socio-economic impact in the future. 

The European Court of Auditors identified the following success factors for TFIs:

1. A “shared vision” on the needs and expected impact of the TFI exists and is stable over time and over changes of government (EU/National/Regional and Local)
2. Stakeholders are involved in the decision-making process sufficiently early and in a transparent way
3. Construction works are managed in a cost-efficient way

One big issue is that there is no common approach for Cost-Benefit-Analysis and no framework for measuring wider economic impacts in the EU. Furthermore, Must stressed the importance of publicly linking the TFI strongly to the vision of TEN-T: “We are very weak in showing why the infrastructure is necessary,” he continued. “We do not build roads, rails and bridges, we build solutions and opportunities.” 

Such projects only make sense when concerned Member States work jointly and when a project has mutual support, also beyond the EU budgetary framework of 7+3 years. During the following panel discussion, Must then reminded the attending policy makers that while discussing ways of extending or improving the TEN-T CNCs, there is first of all an obligation in the existing TEN-T regulation to deliver a coherent core network by 2030 and the supporting network by 2050.

The workshop and open forum on Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) policy revision’ took place during the Digital Transport Days in Helsinki, on the 9th and 10th of October 2019 respectively. The workshop highlighted the special characteristics of transport development in northern Europe.

The Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR) Baltic Sea Commission Transport Working Group, together with the Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council organised this Expert Workshop. The latter being the lead partner of the BSR Access platform project. 

The Expert Workshop brought together more than 50 transport policymakers at European-, national- and regional levels. The stakeholders discussed the relevance, effectiveness and efficiency of the TEN-T guidelines. 

The TEN-T Guidelines Expert Workshop and Open Forum built upon the European Commission’s public TEN-T Policy consultation process from July 2019. Active participation in the TEN-T policy review is crucial to strengthen the role of northern Europe in innovation, digitalisation, and as a frontrunner in sustainable economic growth.

The workshop session attendees were greeted by Bosse Andersson, Chair of the CPMR Baltic Sea Commission Transport Working Group (Region Stockholm) and Kaarin Taipale, Vice-Chair of the CPMR Baltic Sea Commission Transport Working Group (Helsinki-Uusimaa), who also moderated the rest of the session. 

“Transport and the TEN-T is not only about moving from one place to another,” Taipale said. “In the EU it is a powerful tool for European social and territorial cohesion. Globally, it is a powerful tool for Climate Action.”

Catherine Trautmann, European Coordinator of the North Sea – Baltic Core Network Corridor (CNC) chaired the meeting and reminded the audience in her opening address that the debate on the multiannual financial framework package for 2021–2027 is still on-going and we need a strong CEF 2 to deliver sustainable transport in the future.

The BSR Access partnership provided input to the debate on TEN-T policy

Mathias Lindström, Director, Kvarken Council, shared their experience from Vaasa-Umeå Region on intensifying cross-border cooperation by establishing a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC). The EGTC is a European legal instrument designed to ensure implementation of cross-border development projects, maintenance of cross-border infrastructure and day-to-day cooperation. 

Essential for the future growth of these two regions is the establishment of a joint sustainable LNG-ferry connection. Lindström also stressed the importance of extending the TEN-T network northwards. Regions and urban nodes are only to receive additional funding if they are part of the TEN-T map.

Wiktor Szydarowski, Lead Consultant at Ramboll Sweden, shed light on first mile areas in a corridor context. The firstmile covers the first leg of the logistics-chain for goods and/or passengers between the origin and the destination places. 

The first mile is part of the last-mile discussion but has never been defined or delineated in its own right in any of the EU-level policy documents. Source and sink usually lie on secondary and tertiary road- or rail links that feed traffic into the CNCs and is therefore not directly on the TEN-T corridors.

BSR Access (GoA 3.1) is dedicated to first mile interoperability solutions. The GoA tackles challenges needs and improvement proposals for interconnectivity between the CNCs and so-called first mile areas.

Erik Verroen, Principal Advisor Network development and Transport Modelling at Rijkswaterstaat Water, Traffic and Environment shared insights from the Eurodelta case and presented cross-border cooperation on the North Sea – Baltic CNC:

1. Common strategic and operational picture: cross-border cooperation needs a clear perspective and shared ambitions
2. The importance of scale: multi-level approach is needed for coherent infrastructure and spatial development
3. Enabling TEN-T: TEN-T corridors are important vehicles for learning and cooperation
4. Customized approach: Corridors are diverse, coherent development calls for region-specific strategies and schemes

Apart from accessibility to- and from the CNCs, the deployment of renewable clean fuel was also discussed during the session. 

Nora Schindler from Berlin-Brandenburg Joint Spatial Planning Department, co-founder of the Scandria®Alliance, presented the project results on utilising means of governance to enhance the harmonisation of clean fuel deployment and green mobility solutions. This work is continued by them within the BSR Access platform project.

Right before the Q&A, Thomas Erlandson, Coordinator for the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) – Policy Area Coordinator (PAC) Transport, and Malla Paajanen, Chief Adviser at Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, took the floor to explain the concept of flagship processes and its role in supporting EUSBSR policy implementation. 

A flagship – in this sense – encompasses a strategic action and tackles a specific macro-regional challenge. In combining and involving relevant stakeholders not only from regional policy areas, but also from the transport industry for the whole multiannual financial framework, it could change the “how” of transnational collaboration and ensure more adaptability and flexibility than the current project-based format. 

“The goal for the flagship is to become the engine of implementation,” Paajanen said, “(It) is intended to implement the PAC Transport Action Plan which is approved by the involved Member States.”

Ms. Trautman then wrapped up the Expert Workshop. She expressed her gratitude for the valuable input she received during the session. Particularly in the area of alternative fuel. Looking at the current state investments in hydrogen, there is currently no coordination between the Baltic countries. 

However, Ms. Trautmann promised to make this a priority now and integrate cohesive planning to make green hydrogen a reliable energy source in the future. In order to achieve this goal, public authorities – European, national and regional – and business stakeholders working in (hydrogen) fuelling station deployment have to work more closely together in the future:

“We see that there is a real added value through cooperation when it goes through (…) the first mile to integrate and to give content to the corridor. The corridor must be a sort of frame and an opportunity and an enabler, but it is nothing if we don’t have the will to go quickly through cross-border issues and bottlenecks.“

She concluded the workshop by addressing the attendees: “Innovation is a question of process, but also of infrastructure, but one alone is not efficient. So, a corridor is a question of infrastructure, but innovation is a question of process. You give energy to the process.”

BSR Access partnership took part in the 10th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR), looking at circular and sharing economy as an answer to demographic changes and environmental challenges in the BSR. The high-level conference was held in Gdańsk from 12 to 13 June 2019.

BSR Access strives to mobilise stakeholders to a more coherent, cross-sectoral and adaptive planning approach that would ensure a better access infrastructure to and an enhanced development of the TEN-T core network corridors, and thereby a sustainable regional growth. 

Therefore, the BSR Access partnership took part in the 10th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR), looking at circular and sharing economy as an answer to demographic changes and environmental challenges in the BSR. 

The high-level conference was held in Gdańsk from 12 to 13 June 2019. It was hosted by the Pomorskie Voivodeship together with Baltic Sea States Subregional Co-operation in close cooperation with the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Commission, Horizontal Action Capacity and the Let’s communicate project.

BSR Access co-hosted a seminar together with VASAB (Vision and Strategies around the Baltic Sea) Secretariat on the question “What will demographic changes bring to BSR accessibility?”. The attendees were welcomed by Thomas Erlandson, EUSBSR – Policy Area Coordinator (PAC) Transport. 

During the workshop the speakers presented solutions for shared mobility for both densely and sparsely populated areas and spatial planning tools. They discussed the regional development perspective and lessons learned from current approaches tackling accessibility challenges.

Most speakers represented mobility projects looking both at rural (e.g. MAMBA, MARA) and urban areas (e.g. Cities.multimodal, Cities&Rail). They shed light on new mobility patterns, as for example shared community cars, transport on demand for rural citizens and also complex and integrated mobility systems in metropolitan areas. 

All attending stakeholders agreed on the importance of balancing available resources and increasing mobility to ensure territorial cohesion, quality of life and sustainable economic development.

During the panel discussion, Malla Paajanen, representing BSR Access’ Lead Partner Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, stressed the important task for future improvements in accessibility to work on “silo-breaking”. This means the need for cross-sectoral integration and challenging policy-making framework as well as established funding for policy implementation.

BSR Access aims to establish lasting mechanisms and to move from separated projects to processes to ensure knowledge transition and capacity.