ECMT Round Tables Road Freight Transport for Own Account in Europe


Book Description

The scale of road freight transport for own account, the impact of regulatory changes and the future of the sector are the themes addressed in the introductory reports and the experts’ discussions outlined in this publication.










Report of the Hundred and Fourteenth Round Table on Transport Economics, Held in Paris on 11th-12th March 1999 on the Following Topic


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Although deregulation is well under way in the transport sector, regular coach services are still largely regulated. Governments see them as potentially competing with rail transport services. However, in countries that have had some experience with deregulation the outcome has clearly been positive (except for local short-distance services). The Round Table began with a review of regular interurban coach services based on case studies in countries which had adopted an original approach. This report shows the industry in a totally new light. One of its main findings is that there is a specific market for customers that have no other means of transport. Opening up this market would benefit the most economically disadvantaged sectors of the population. But that is not the only lesson to be learned from this Round Table.




New Departures


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North America faces a transportation crisis. Gas-guzzling SUVs clog the highways and air travelers face delays, cancellations, and uncertainty in the wake of unprecedented terrorist attacks. New Departures closely examines the options for improving intercity passenger trains' capacity to move North Americans where they want to go. While Amtrak and VIA Rail Canada face intense pressure to transform themselves into successful commercial enterprises, Anthony Perl demonstrates how public policy changes lie behind the triumphs of European and Japanese high-speed rail passenger innovations. Perl goes beyond merely describing these achievements, translating their implications into a North American institutional and political context and diagnosing the obstacles that have made renewing passenger trains so much more difficult in North America than elsewhere. New Departures links the lessons behind rail passenger revitalization abroad with the opportunity to recast the policies that constrain Amtrak and VIA Rail from providing efficient and effective intercity transportation.




Report of the Hundred and Twenty First Round Table on Transport Economics Held in Paris on 29-30th November 2001 on the Following Topic


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Encouraging wage earners to use public transport has a vital role to play in meeting environment objectives, particularly the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Changing people's behavior calls for action in the workplace and one option open to employers is to recruit mobility managers whose task is to help reduce employees' dependence on private car use. Governments can support such initiatives by running information campaigns, by publishing practical guides to incentive schemes and by harmonizing regulatory and fiscal frameworks. Round Table 121 was devoted to this topic and opened with a discussion of the provision of free parking facilities to company employees in the United States, a practice that has many knock-on effects and ramifications. One solution is for companies to replace free parking with cash-out schemes under which financial benefits are given to employees who choose not to make use of their free parking space. The Round Table then proceeded to consider several examples of employee mobility schemes in Europe--pilot project "Sanfte Mobilitäts-Partnershaft"--Company management of staff's travel choices [model establishments: BMLFUW, theFederal Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry ... ; UBA GmbH, the Federal Office for the Environment; the AVL List GmbH (research company); Tulln State Hospital; and the Medienhaus Vorarlberg (newspaper publisher)]--and ended by drawing conclusions of interest to local, regional and national authorities aiming to chart a course of action towards achieving the goal of sustainable transport.--Publisher's description.




Monthly Bibliography


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Report of the Hundred and Ninth Round Table on Transport Economics, Held in Paris, 11th-12th December 1997 on the Following Topic


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The aim of every politician is to transform the city into an environmentally sustainable entity. However, while the planning and organisation of passenger services within cities is commonly perceived as a major issue, freight transport is not given the full attention it deserves. As a general rule, the role which freight transport plays in the economy of cities is simply not understood. What invariably attracts attention, on the other hand, is the added pollution and congestion caused by freight transport. Europe has recently produced a host of new urban development schemes which place more or less severe restrictions on freight movements in cities. While some cities have introduced measures in line with the town planning objectives of territorial development plans, others have adopted short-term solutions to traffic management problems. Since we know that cities are living entities whose vital processes can be disrupted, how can we be sure that all of these measures are a step in the right direction? Our lack of experience makes this a question we would be well advised to consider. The Round Table reviewed the various aspects of freight transport by examining experiences in different countries and by discussing some of the more innovatory approaches adopted.




Bibliographie Mensuelle


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