Transport statistics introduced

Latest update of text: August 2020

An eﬃcient and well-functioning passenger and freight transport system is vital for European Union (EU) enterprises and inhabitants. The EU’s transport policy aims to foster clean, safe and eﬃcient travel throughout Europe, underpinning the internal market for the carriage of goods and passengers by road and the right of citizens to travel freely throughout the EU (for both work and pleasure).

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Broad transport policies

The European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport is responsible for developing transport policy within the EU. Its remit is to ensure mobility in a single European transport area, integrating the needs of the population, environmental policy and competitiveness. The Directorate-General seeks to pursue an efficient and effective EU transport policy, including:

an efficient, sustainable, safe and secure single European transport area — improving regulation, ensuring a high degree of implementation of EU legislation in the transport area and open and fair competition both in the EU and in relations with key partner countries;
a modern European transport infrastructure — ensuring the effective implementation of funding for the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) within the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and using innovative financial instruments (such as the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI));
an innovative transport sector — ensuring the effective implementation of funding for research and innovation activities in the transport area within the Horizon 2020 programme.

A roadmap to a single European transport area

In March 2011, the European Commission adopted a white paper Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area — Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport system (COM(2011) 144 final). This strategy contains 40 specific initiatives to build a competitive transport system that aims to increase mobility, remove major barriers, and stimulate growth and employment.

The overall aim of the strategy is to reduce CO2 emissions from transport by 60 % (compared with 1990 levels) by 2050 and to reduce dependence on imported oil. To accomplish this, there are a range of different goals, which include:

halving the use of conventionally-fuelled cars in urban transport by 2030; phasing them out in cities by 2050; achieving essentially CO₂-free city logistics in major urban centres by 2030;
moving to 40 % use of low-carbon sustainable fuels in aviation; cutting EU CO2 emissions from maritime bunker fuels by at least 40 % by 2050;
a majority of medium-distance inter-city passengers travelling by rail by 2050;
achieving a 50 % shift in freight journeys of more than 300 km from road to other transport modes by 2050.

The strategy also has a range of targets that relate to criteria other than sustainability, for example:

moving closer to zero fatalities from road transport accidents by 2050; or
tripling the length of the EU’s high-speed rail network by 2050.

An implementation report on the White Paper, taking stock of the progress made, was published in 2016. In 2019, an evaluation of the White Paper was launched, which is planned to be completed in the last quarter of 2020. By the end of 2020, the Commission will also present its strategy for sustainable and smart mobility, as first announced in the European Green Deal.

Transport infrastructure

In December 2013, the EU Member States and the European Parliament agreed upon a new framework for transport infrastructure, setting guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) and the Connecting Europe Facility. These form an ambitious package that aims to provide businesses and individuals with a fully functional transport network, combining different transport modes through swift services, uniting Europe from north to south and from east to west and creating a network infrastructure that may act as a backbone for developing economic growth and prosperity.

The TEN-T guidelines envisage the development of a multimodal and intelligent core transport network by 2030. In addition, a comprehensive network ensuring accessibility of all regions is to be developed by 2050. The strategic focus of TEN-T is nine core network corridors and two horizontal priorities, namely, the European rail traffic management system (ERTMS) and the motorways of the sea (MoS).

The TEN-T policy aims to develop a more efficient transport network, streamline cross-border transport operations for passengers and businesses, improve connections between different modes of transport, and contribute to the EU’s climate change objectives. For the 2014-2020 funding period, a budget of EUR 24 billion has been allocated for the transport sector under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).

Strategy for low-emission mobility

In July 2016, the European Commission proposed a European strategy for low-emission mobility (COM(2016) 501 final). The main elements of the strategy include:

increasing the efficiency of the transport system by making the most of digital technologies, smart pricing and further encouraging the shift to lower emission transport modes;
speeding-up the deployment of low-emission alternative energy for transport, such as advanced biofuels, electricity, hydrogen and renewable synthetic fuels, and removing obstacles to the electrification of transport;
moving towards zero-emission vehicles — while further improvements to the internal combustion engine will be needed, the strategy argues that Europe needs to accelerate the transition towards low- and zero-emission vehicles.

Cities and local authorities are considered crucial for the delivery of the low-emission mobility strategy. They are already implementing incentives for low-emission alternative energies and vehicles, encouraging a modal shift to active travel (cycling and walking), public transport and/or shared mobility schemes, such as bike or car-sharing and car-pooling, with the goal of reducing congestion and pollution.

Finally, the strategy also reiterates the EU’s commitment in pursuing global efforts to control emissions from international aviation and maritime transport.

The Strategy framed the initiatives that the Commission proposed in the three Mobility Packages of 2017-2018: Mobility package I (May 2017), Mobility package II (November 2017) and Mobility package III (May 2018).

In November 2018, the Commission adopted the Communication 'A Clean Planet for all: A European strategic long-term vision for a prosperous, modern, competitive and climate neutral economy'. It provides a vision for reducing EU greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero level through a positive long-term transformation, leading to a smarter, more circular and resource efficient economy, increasing EU competitiveness and protecting the health of EU citizens. The long-term vision reinforces the message of the European Strategy for Low-Emission Mobility that achieving such emission reductions in transport will require an integrated system approach.

In December 2019, the Commission adopted the European Green Deal (COM(2019) 640 final). It sets a strategic framework for a climate-neutral EU economy by 2050. To this end, it calls for a 90 % reduction in transport emissions by 2050. Priority actions of the Green Deal for a shift to sustainable and smart mobility include boosting multimodal transport, support the deployment of automated and connected mobility solutions across modes, better addressing external costs of transport activities through pricing, ramping up the production and deployment of sustainable alternative transport fuels and reducing pollution from transport, especially in cities.

Recent developments

Road transport

In July 2020, the European Parliament and the Council adopted some important elements of the so-called “Mobility Package I”, a set of legislative proposals that the European Commission had presented in May 2017 to modernise and improve the legislative framework governing the European road transport market. After three years of intense negotiations, the new rules now provide for better working conditions of drivers and for fairer competition between hauliers:

The new rules on driving times and rest periods (Regulation (EU) 1054/2020) for instance clarify some existing provisions, give drivers more flexibility and ensure that drivers active in international transport return home every three to four weeks. A new generation of the smart tachograph will be introduced in 2023 that is more tamper-proof and that records additional information which will improve the enforcement of the applicable rules.
Among the new rules which can then be better enforced are those of Directive (EU) 2020/1057 which notably contains specific provisions on the application of the posting of workers rules (Directive 96/71/EC) to drivers in international road transport.
The rules on access to the profession of road transport operator and on access to the international road haulage market in the EU have also been modernised (by Regulation (EU) 2020/1055). Stricter provisions related to the establishment of road transport undertakings should help reduce the number of so-called ‘letterbox companies’. The new rules also introduce a compulsory cooling-off period of four days for cabotage.
The use of vehicles with a maximum mass up to 3.5 tonnes has so far been outside the scope of EU road transport rules. In the future, the use of such vehicles with a maximum mass of more than 2.5 tonnes for international transport operations will be governed by EU rules; for enforcement purposes, these vehicles will have to be equipped with a smart tachograph from mid-2026 onwards.

Other elements of Mobility Package I, notably the revision of the rules on the charging of heavy goods vehicles for the use of certain infrastructure (the so-called ‘Eurovignette Directive’) and a proposal providing more flexibility for road transport undertakings to hire trucks outside their Member State of establishment are still being negotiated.

Rail transport

Adopted in 2016, the 4th railway package is a set of six legislative texts designed to complete the single market for rail services (single European rail area). The package comprises two ‘pillars’:

a ‘technical pillar’, related to the EU’s Agency for Railways (Regulation (EU) No 2016/796), the interoperability of the rail system within the EU (Directive (EU) No 2016/797) and rail safety (Directive (EU) No 2016/798), each adopted in April 2016; and
a ‘market pillar’, dealing with the award of public service contracts for domestic passenger transport services by rail (Regulation (EU) No 2016/2338), the opening of the domestic passenger market and the governance of railway infrastructure (Directive (EU) No 2016/2370) and the normalisation of the accounts of railway undertakings (Regulation (EU) No 2016/2337); each adopted in December 2016.

The 4th railway package aims to contribute towards creating a more efficient and customer-responsive rail industry, improving the relative attractiveness of the rail sector with respect to other transport modes through the opening-up of the rail transport market to competition, improving the interoperability and safety of national rail networks, and developing rail transport infrastructure.

Air transport

The Single European Sky initiative, launched in 2004, is designed to respond to the challenges raised by airspace congestion and the increased strain on airport and airspace capacity as the volume of air traffic is expected to continue to grow through to 2030. The initiative was followed in 2009 by a second package of measures, Single European Sky II, which placed greater emphasis on the environment and cost efficiency. However, the pace of change was considered slow and in June 2013 the European Commission made further proposals to accelerate implementation, Single European Sky 2+ (COM(2013) 408 final). This included a range of further initiatives in relation to better safety and oversight, as well as greater customer focus, with the aim of making more ambitious performance targets. The ultimate objective of these initiatives is to increase the economic, financial and environmental performance of air navigation services, while removing the fragmentation of the European air traffic management system.

In December 2015, the European Commission adopted an Aviation Strategy for Europe (COM(2015) 598 final) with the aim to ensure that the European aviation sector remains competitive and reaps the benefits of a fast-changing and developing global economy. The three priorities are:

tapping into growth markets, by improving services, market access and investment opportunities with non-member countries, while guaranteeing a level playing field;
tackling limits to growth in the air and on the ground, by reducing capacity constraints and improving efficiency and connectivity;
maintaining high EU safety and security standards, by shifting to a risk and performance based approach.

Inland waterways

The EU policy related to inland navigation is embedded in the Naiades programmes. Naiades II started in 2014 and will end in 2020 .The programme includes a set of initiatives to:

improve infrastructure;
enhance innovation and market functioning;
promote green initiatives;
encourage training and professional qualifications in the sector;
improve its integration in the multimodal logistic chain.

Signiﬁcant progress was achieved in the implementation of the NAIADESII action programme through the adoption of Directive (EU) 2016/1629 laying down technical requirements for inland waterway vessels, and of Directive (EU) 2017/2397 on the recognition of professional qualiﬁcations in inland navigation.

The Green Deal adopted by the European Commission in November 2019 calls for an increase in the capacity of inland navigation from 2021. Both the EP and the Council also call for a follow up to the Naiades II programme from 2021 (in Council conclusions of 4 December 2018 and in a resolution of the European Parliament of 14 February 2019 respectively).

There is great potential to increase the modal share of inland navigation, especially in the light of other transport modes often being confronted with congestion and capacity problems. By contrast, inland navigation is often viewed as being reliable, while it has a low environmental impact and offers additional capacity for its use.

The Commission is financially supporting the Central Commission for the Navigation of the Rhine (CCNR) secretariat to make a comprehensive EU market observation of IWT and to operate the European Committee for Inland Navigation Standards (CESNI).

Maritime transport

EU maritime policy addresses the competitiveness of maritime transport, the implementation of safety and security rules, the reduction of the risk of serious maritime accidents, and the environmental impact of maritime transport. The European Commission also works to ensure the protection of citizens as users of maritime transport services, ensuring safe and secure conditions, looking after their rights as passengers, examining the adequacy of the public service maritime transport connections, and reducing administrative burden through the simplification of procedures.

Yet, as the EU strives to move towards a climate-neutral economy, the sector must play its part in this transition. According to the 3rd IMO GHG study, CO2 shipping emissions may still increase between 50 % and 250 % by 2050, thus undermining the objectives of the Paris Agreement. Therefore, steps have been taken at international and at EU level to reduce GHG emissions from ships, notably by the adoption of the initial IMO greenhouse gas strategy in April 2018 and of the European Green Deal by the European Commission in December 2019. To help achieve these environmental objectives, the European shipping sector is expected to make a rapid transition towards zero-carbon, zero polluting technologies and vessels.

One of the key actions for the transport policy area is the new FuelEU Maritime initiative, to facilitate the adoption of sustainable alternative fuels and electrification in the maritime sector, continuing the approach already promoted by the European Strategy for Low-Emission Mobility of 2016.

In June 2019, Regulation (EU) 2019/1239 was adopted which will establish a “European Maritime Single Window environment” by August 2025 and which will then also replace the currently existing framework provided in Directive 2010/65/EU on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and/or departing from ports in the EU. The main aim of the new Regulation is the harmonisation of the various National Single Windows run by the Member States, through the adoption of a common data set, harmonised interfaces and the application of the “once-only” principle, through new mechanisms for the re-use of data. The Regulation will contribute to reducing the administrative burden for ship operators. It will also enhance the competitiveness and the attractiveness of the maritime sector.

This new digital environment should also improve the public availability of more reliable and near real time data for ships arriving in and/or departing ports of the Member States, including the information required by Directive 2014/100/EU establishing a Community vessel traﬃc monitoring and information system (VTMIS) that could be used for statistical purposes, for example, on routes, type of goods, passengers as well as type of vessels and port calls.

Moreover, in February 2017, Regulation (EU) No 2017/352 establishing a framework for the provision of port services and common rules on the ﬁnancial transparency of ports was adopted. Its implementation should contribute to the promotion of short-sea shipping and a better integration of maritime transport with rail, inland waterway and road transport.

Transport statistics

Transport is an important sector of the European Union (EU) economy and plays a vital role in today’s mobile society. Transportation and mobility are also central to sustainable development. Sustainable transportation can enhance economic growth and improve accessibility while respecting the environment and improving resilience of cities, urban-rural linkages and productivity of rural areas. The transport policy of the EU aims to foster clean, safe and eﬃcient transport, underpinning the internal market for goods and the right of citizens to travel freely throughout the EU.

The main aspects of the EU transport policy are laid down in the White Paper ’Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area’. Its objective is to establish a sustainable transport sector that continues to serve the needs of the economy and the citizens while meeting future constraints: oil scarcity, growing congestion and the need to cut CO2 and pollutant emissions in order to improve air quality particularly in cities. By 2050, transport will have to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 60 % compared to 1990 and to reduce dependence on imported oil.

Moreover, the Commission adopted the European Green Deal setting a strategic framework for a climate-neutral EU economy by 2050. To this end, it calls for a 90 % reduction in transport emissions by 2050. Priority actions of the Green Deal for a shift to sustainable and smart mobility include boosting multimodal transport, support the deployment of automated and connected mobility solutions across modes, better addressing external costs of transport activities through pricing, ramping up the production and deployment of sustainable alternative transport fuels and reducing pollution from transport, especially in cities.

In order to monitor the developments and policies and to plan future strategies, the European Commission analyses a range of transport statistics. Eurostat’s statistics in this field describe the most important features of transport, thus the quantities of freight and numbers of passengers that are moved each year, the number of vehicles and infrastructure that are used, but also the contribution of transport services to the economy as a whole. Data collection is supported by several legal acts obliging the EU Member States to report statistical data, as well as voluntary agreements to supply additional data. Eurostat transport statistics are used for policy making, to support legislative proposals and for modelling exercises.

Transport statistics introduced

Full article

Broad transport policies

Recent developments

Transport statistics

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