Baltic Adriatic Corridor

CEF support to Baltic-Adriatic Corridor - May 2020

CEF support to Baltic-Adriatic Corridor - April 2018

Overview

The Baltic-Adriatic Corridor is one of the most important trans-European-road and railway axes in Central Europe. It runs from the Baltic seaports of Gdansk, Gdynia, Szczecin and Świnoujście in the north, to the Adriatic ports of Koper, Trieste, Venice and Ravenna in the south, taking in the industrial regions of Central and Southern Poland, before straddling the Czech, Slovakian and Austrian/Slovenian boarders on its way south to Italy and Slovenia. The corridor features key railway projects including the Semmering Base Tunnel and Koralm Railway Line in Austria, as well as important cross-border connections between the six corridor countries.

Main bottlenecks and missing links

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. In other words, only by investing in the cross-border sections can the development of long-distance international traffic flows across the corridor countries be encouraged. The Baltic-Adriatic Corridor still faces important bottlenecks on six railway and two road cross-border sections in terms of their compliance with the TEN-T requirements (i.e. PL-CZ, PL-SK, CZ-AT, AT-SK, AT-SI and SI-IT). These are therefore rightly at the center of Baltic-Adriatic Corridor implementation strategies. There are also two missing links located at the alpine crossings in Austria; the Semmering Base Tunnel and the Koralm Railway line and tunnel. Moreover, appropriate last mile connections to the core ports as well as sound interconnections within urban nodes are to be developed and strengthened on the corridor.

Success stories

In recent years huge efforts have been made on all sides to bring this corridor to fruition and to turn it into a competitive development area for growth and jobs in Central Europe. 250 initiatives and investments to improve the corridor infrastructure and ensure compliance with the technical requirements of TEN-T regulations are currently ongoing, totaling EUR 36 billion.

A further 53 projects have been completed since the inception of the new TEN-T policy for a total budget of EUR 4.7 billion. Significant progress has also been made in removing bottlenecks at the cross-border sections, due in large part to the implementation of sound cooperation frameworks and the cultivation of bilateral agreements between Member States and infrastructure managers on each side of the relevant borders.

Works to eliminate bottlenecks and missing links in Austria include the construction of the new Vienna railway station and ongoing works on the 30 km long Koralm Tunnel, due to come into operation in 2023, and on all three sections of the Semmering Base Tunnel, due to come into operation in 2026.

CEF: Pre-identified projects

Hearing of the European Coordinators in the TRAN Committee of the European Parliament, 24 September 2019, Brussels

On 24 September 2019, Coordinator Jensen, joined by Coordinators Wojciechowski (Rhine Alpine), Radičová (Mediterranean) and Cox (Scandinavian-Mediterranean) briefed the TRAN Committee of the European Parliament on the state of affairs of the implementation of the TEN-T Core Network Corridors.

Visit to Slovenia, 2-4 July 2019

On 2-4 July 2019, the European Coordinator, Mrs Anne E. Jensen, visited Slovenia. The European Coordinator held meetings with the Ministry of Infrastructure, the SŽ Infrastructura and 2TDK, the company responsible for the construction of the second railway track Koper – Divača. The European Coordinator met with the Slovenian Minister of Infrastructure, Mrs. Alenka Bratušek, and carried out working level meetings with directors of the ministry. The European Coordinator went on a site visit to the BA Core Network Corridor section Celje - Zidani Most. The Coordinator carried out exchanges on the state of play of the Slovenian BAC project portfolio, in particular, with regard to the cross-border sections towards Austria and Italy. The Coordinator discussed the foreseen investments on the Corridor and the status of the timely completion of projects by 2030.

Visit to Slovakia, 10-11 June 2019

On 10-11 June 2019, the European Coordinator, Mrs Anne E. Jensen, visited Slovakia. The European Coordinator held meetings with the Ministry of Transport and Construction and representatives of the Ministry. The European Coordinator met with the Slovakian Minister of Transport and Construction, Mr. Arpád Érsek, and carried out working level meetings with directors of the ministry. The European Coordinator went on site visits to the former railway station Bratislava Filiálka and the Starý Most bridge for trams and pedestrians. The Coordinator carried out exchanges on the state of play of the Slovakian BAC project portfolio, in particular, with regard to the cross-border sections towards Austria and Poland. The Coordinator discussed the foreseen investments on the Corridor and the status of the timely completion of projects by 2030.

Visit to Austria, 13-16 May 2019

On 13-16 May 2019, the European Coordinator, Mrs Anne E. Jensen, paid visit to Austria. The European Coordinator held meetings with the Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology, the ÖBB and the Regional Government of Styria. The European Coordinator also took part in a bilateral meeting between Austria and Slovenia on cross-border connectivity. The European Coordinator met with the Austrian Minister of Transport, Innovation and Technology, Mr. Hofer, and the High Representative of Styria. The European Coordinator went on site visits to the two Alpine Crossings, the Semmering Basis Tunnel and the Koralm railway line and tunnel. The Coordinator carried out exchanges on the state of play of the Austrian BAC project portfolio, in particular, with regard to the cross-border sections towards Slovenia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Coordinator discussed the foreseen investments on the Corridor and the status of the timely completion of projects by 2030.

Seminar of the European Coordinators, 9-10 April 2019, Luxembourg

European Coordinators gathered in Luxembourg on 9-10 April 2019 to discuss topics of common concern. The European Coordinators also met with the European Court of Auditors and representatives of the European Investment Bank.

Visit to the Czech Republic, 12-13 March 2019

On 12-13 March 2019, the European Coordinator, Mrs Anne E. Jensen, paid visit to the Czech Republic. The European Coordinator held meetings with the Ministry of Transport, the SŽDC (the CZ railway infrastructure administration), the ŘSD (the CZ Road and Motorway Directorate) and the Municipality of Brno. The European Coordinator met with the CZ Minister of Transport, Mr. Dan Ťok, and carried out working level meetings with directors of the ministry. The European Coordinator went on a site visit to the planned railway station of Brno and met with representatives of the Brno Municipality. The Coordinator carried out exchanges on the state of play of the CZ BAC project portfolio, in particular, with regard to the cross-border sections towards Austria and Poland. The Coordinator discussed the foreseen investments on the Corridor and the status of the timely completion of projects by 2030.

Joint Final Conference – Interreg projects NSB CoRe, Scandria2Act and TENTacle, 6 March 2019, Brussels

On 6 March 2019, the European Coordinators of the North Sea-Baltic, the Scandinavian-Mediterranean and the Baltic-Adriatic Core Network Corridors took part in the Joint Final Conference – Interreg projects NSB CoRe, Scandria2Act and TENTacle. The European Coordinators, Mrs. Trautmann, Mr. Cox and Mrs. Jensen joined forces as moderators on a series of panel discussions.

12th Forum of the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor, 26 November 2018

On 26 November 2018, the new European Coordinator, Mrs. Jensen, chaired the 12th Forum of the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor. The Coordinator outlined her initial view of how to carry out her mandate. The main agenda item was the presentation and subsequent discussion of the third phase of the Core Network Corridor study. The study will form the basis for the 4th Baltic-Adriatic Corridor Work Plan to be published in 2020.

Visit to Poland, 5-6 November 2018

In a series of missions to Member States on the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor, the newly appointed European Coordinator, Ms Anne E. Jensen, paid visit to Poland on 5-6 November 2018. The European Coordinator held meetings with the Ministry of Investment and Economic Development, the Ministry of Infrastructure, the Ministry of Maritime Economy and Polskie Linie Kolejowe. The European Coordinator carried out exchanges on the state of play of the Polish project portfolio on the Corridor, in particular, with regard to the cross-border projects. The Coordinator discussed the foreseen investments on the Corridor and the status of the timely completion of projects by 2030.

Seminar of the European Coordinators, 5 October 2018, Brussels

European Coordinators gathered in Brussels on 5 October 2018 to discuss topics of common concern, such as the further evolution of the TEN-T and the state of play of the Commission proposal on a Connecting Europe Facility 2. Horizontal priorities (ERTMS and Motorways of the Sea), cross-border cooperation, military mobility were also on the agenda. Coordinators welcomed Ms Jensen, Ms Radicova and Mr Ruete as new members of the team and expressed their gratitude to Mr Brinkhorst and Mr Simpson whose mandate as Coordinator ended on 15 September 2018.

Baltic Adriatic Corridor

Information Note

Maps

Workplans

Studies

Baltic Adriatic Corridor

About the corridor

Biography

Activities

Contacts

CNC forum

Workplan

Resources

Information Note

Maps

Workplans

Studies