7-10 april 2005

ITE conference at Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain)

together with T & E

International freight traffic and sustainable development

Thursday 7 April
9:00 - 18:00 T&E: Sustainable freight transport through sensitive areas

Friday 8 April
9:00 - 13:00 T&E: Sustainable freight transport through sensitive areas
14:00 - 18:00 ITE General assembly
20:00 - 20:00 Common dinner

Saturday 9 April
Day of the organisations and groups from mountaineous areas in Europe, coordinated by FNE, ITE and T&E

9:00-12:00
The challenges of the European policy and its effects on our regions
European transport policy and the role of the European institutions
The instruments: true costs, limit values, rules & regulations (noise, air pollutants), driving bans, Alpine convention, concept of sensitive areas
Short presentations, discussion and exchange of experiences

14:00-17:00
A greater impact due to cooperation: On the way to common actions

Enrolment

Sensitive areas, such as mountainous regions, wetlands and coastal zones are particularly vulnerable to the impacts of transport. The rapid increase of road freight transport in Europe's sensitive areas, such as the Pyrenees, has seriously deteriorated air quality in the valleys and causes widespread noise nuisance. It also represents a safety risk and transport infrastructure is increasingly congested.

There are various instruments needed to respond to this situation. A 'one size fits all' approach does not effectively protect sensitive areas from the negative impacts of freight transport. For practical not to mention political reasons, one single instrument is not enough.

T&E has been intensively dealing with the question of freight transport in sensitive areas since 1999. In May 2005, T&E's project 'Safe and Sustainable Freight Transport' will come to an end. Freight transport in sensitive areas played an important role within the project. Therefore, the second part of the conference is dealing with them.

Aim of the conference

The conference should raise awareness about the sensitivity of mountainous regions and the impact of transport in sensitive areas as the Pyrenees. It should provide an overview of potential instruments for sustainable freight transport in sensitive areas. Examples of good practices from the Pyrenees and the Alps should explain realistic instruments to decision makers on regional, national and European level. A main focus will be on the opportunities and limits of infrastructure building to solve transport problems in sensitive areas. The potential conflicts between scarce financial resources, different interests on regional, national and European level will be examined.

Audience

• decision makers and stake holders on EU level
• national and regional governments from Alpine and Pyrenean countries
• NGOs and interest groups promoting sustainable transport