News from Europe
Towards integration of electronic ticketing in The Netherlands
Five main Dutch operators are undertaking a huge e-ticketing integration project. To achieve this goal, the national railway company (NS), local urban transport operators GVB for Amsterdam, HTM for the Hague, RET for Rotterdam and the bus company Connexxion have established a company called TLS (Trans Link Systems) that is commissioned to initiate e-payment in
First track for “LGV Est”
On 19th October, the first track of the new East-European high speed line has been laid in France. This new track measures 300 kilometers and commercial trains will run at 320 km/h. However, the track design is compatible with a maximum commercial speed of 350 km/h. With 1200 meters laid every day, the line will
Norway experiments competition in national rail services
In April 2004, Norwegian Ministry of Transport opened to competition a 123 km rail service linking Oslo, the capital city to Gjovik. This profitable route carries 1.4 million passengers per year. The objectives of the government are to increase quality of service, to develop a more cost effective rail services and to increase the use
European Union Sustainable Development Strategy to be updated
In June 2001, the European Council at Göteborg discussed a strategy for Sustainable Development proposed by the European Commission : “a Sustainable Europe for a better world : A European strategy for Sustainable Development”. This strategy proposed measures to deal with important threats to our well being, such as climate change, poverty, and emerging health
New BEI funding agreement for urban transport in France
European Investment Bank, French Ministry of State for Transport and Caisse d’Epargne Group signed on September 23rd a protocol on public transport funding. This protocol, marking the installation of the Sustainable Urban Transport Program, consists in a €500 mio funding, intermediated by Caisse d’Epargne Group and dedicated to exclusive lanes projects about to be completed
The Council of Ministers welcomes the Commission’s strategy on urban environment
During the Council Meeting on October 14th, European Ministers of Environment adopted several conclusions on the strategy proposed by the Commission (see EMTA News n° 16). The Council supports the four priority themes (management, transport, construction and urban design), stresses the need to address also strategic environmental issues to reduce cities’ impact on environment. As
New European Commissioner for Transport
The new Commissioner for Transport, Mr Jacques Barrot (France) is replacing Ms Loyola de Palacio. Hearings of new commissioners by European MEP’s took place on September 29th in order to receive Parliament approval, initially expected on October 27th but postponed to November 18th. Mr Barrot exposed his priorities for the next five years: – Take
New European Transport Research Knowledge Centre available on the Internet
A new website, featuring summaries of 206 international, European and national research programmes in the field of transport, was launched in June. This site also contains a list of national government departments and state agencies involved in transport research, as well as a list of programmes sponsored by these bodies. TRKC web portal
New European Commissioner for Transport
José Manuel Barroso, the new president of the European Commission, announced on 12th August the composition of his team. Mr Jacques Barrot (France), who has been European Commissioner for regional policy since April 2004, will be in charge of transport issues, replacing Ms Loyola de Palacio who held the transport portfolio in the previous Commission.
EU and US sign an agreement on interoperability between GALILEO and GPS
After more than 4 years of intensive talks, the European Union and the United States concluded an agreement on GALILEO and GPS on 26 June. The agreement confirms GALILEO and GPS will be fully compatible and interoperable, making GALILEO the de facto world standard of open signals in the GNSS mass market. All users of
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