340 - Towards an intermodal transport network : lessons from history

The main objective of the Action was to provide a framework of analysis that could act as a decision aid in transport policies and a set of recommendations that would help, thanks to lessons learnt from history, to establish the priorities to be given to different projects involving trans-European connections and intermodal transport.

The Action brought together experts from countries covering all different geographical and political regions of Europe. Based on the experience gained during two centuries of the European transport development, they identified a number of barriers to the creation of efficient intermodal transport networks.

COST 340 organised its Final Conference with keynote speeches given by the transport policy experts of the European Commission and several national Ministries of Transport. Presented papers recognised the interaction between transport and economic development and impact of transport policy and infrastructure on development of different regions. This Conference allowed underlining the necessity for historic approach to dealing with European transport and European transport policy.

The Action established not only the European network of specialists, but led to the creation of T2M Association of scholars and practitioners linked to the history of transport and economics both from Europe and the USA.