Overview - Transport
Which are the transport modes covered?
Eurostat data on transport cover five main types of transport modes:
- Air
- Inland waterway
- Rail
- Road
- Maritime (Sea)
In addition, specific data are collected for oil pipelines.
What is measured?
In general, transport statistics cover:
- Transport of goods
- Transport of people
- Traffic
- Transport safety
Other available data include aggregated statistics on businesses, employment, infrastructure and equipment.
Some data collections go back to 1980, while others start more recently.
Why are statistics on transport important?
Transport is fundamental to our economy and society. Through several strategies, the European Commission intends to ensure mobility in a single European transport area, while integrating all needs and minimising the environmental effects of transport.
Transport statistics are evolving to respond to policy needs, while maintaining the coverage and quality of existing data collections.
For more information on EU transport policies and recent development in transport statistics, read our Statistics Explained article 'Transport statistics introduced'.
Discover our thematic statistical book
Go through the latest edition of our publication which offers you a detailed and comprehensive approach of European indicators on transport, energy and environment.
Visualise transport in EU regions & cities
Try our tool 'Regions and cities illustrated' and display a range of transport indicators using maps and different type of charts.
Welcome on board of our playful tool and discover main routes and air traffic by airport in the EU.
A point of reference in transport statistics
The new edition of the Glossary comprises more than 740 definitions and is the result of the valuable cooperation between Eurostat, UNECE and ITF.
This tool from the General Directorate 'Mobility and Transport' compares Member States’ performances in 30 transport categories.
Browse this section of our website dedicated to statistics on tourism.