...a modern and environmentally-friendly transport system is essential to enhance countries’ trade, tourism, and overall competitiveness, as well as raise the quality of life in the region...(PoA 2021-23)
Project partners, relevant stakeholders, and all participants interested in modalities for improving sustainable passenger transport in the Adriatic-Ionian Region gathered on 22 June, for the virtual Final Conference of the Inter-Connect PLUS (Intermodality Promotion and Rail Renaissance in Adriatic -Ionian Region PLUS) project, co-financed under the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
The Municipality of Igoumenitsa, who acted as project Lead Partner, opened the event. Representatives from the Interreg ADRION Programme as well as the EU Strategy for the Adriatic Ionian Region (EUSAIR) provided an overview on passenger transport in the Adriatic-Ionian Region, stating its importance also for the upcoming programming period.
Inter-Connect PLUS partners presented the work carried out over the past 6 months by sharing key project outputs: the impact of COVID-19, especially in terms of managing new norms and travel demands, led to an update of the Inter-Connect Roadmap and Toolkit. Moreover, two practical cases performed on a national level were presented to illustrate the effects of the pandemic on passenger flows between the nodes of Zagreb and the Adriatic coast in Croatia, and to identify measures for the development of public transport and intermodality on the Ljubljana airport-Ljubljana-Koper corridor in Slovenia.
The diverse speakers/stakeholders involved in the event shared their prolific experience and a vision of intermodality in the future.
Besides the need for improving the infrastructure and ICT tools, it was agreed that a truly changed behaviour of passengers towards sustainable modes of transport was of key value.
More info: canciani@cei.int