The Project

LINK - The European Forum on Intermodal Passenger Travel is a project which is funded by the European Commission (DG Energy and Transport within the 6. Framework Programme) for 3 years and has been launched in April 2007.

Intermodality: challenge - principle - vision

Enhanced intermodality in passenger transport is one key to a higher efficiency on side of the transport system, improves the ease of travelling on side of the travellers and minimises impacts on side of the environment. The mobility trends and forecasts like the growth of long distance travel and air traffic or partially a loss of significance of rail and local public transport would increase the imbalance of more sustainable modes.

The European Commission (DG TREN) has involved the co-modality policy, in other words the use of transport modes according to their relative advantages, an objective met by the LINK approach.

Background

The current status in Europe is heterogeneous and multifaceted; to travel across Europe on a single ticket and provided with door-to-door information is a splendid vision but in reality often very difficult. One major challenge that must be met, if we are to achieve this vision, is to align cooperation with competition.

The preceding study “Towards Passenger Intermodality in the EU” (2004), commissioned by the European Commission, which has been carried out by some of the LINK partners provides a good starting point with an overview on the state-of-the-art in passenger intermodality across Europe. It proposed amongst others the creation of a Forum to bring together the stakeholders to overcome market and policy fragmentation. The main tasks of this Forum are to provide a platform for exchange, knowledge transfer and the promotion of intermodal solutions and strategies.

For further information contact Lola Sanchez or visit the LINK web page www.linkforum.eu