infrastructure networks in central europe and the eu enlargement fleischer tamás institute for...

Infrastructure Networks in Central Europe

and the EU enlargement

Fleischer Tamás

Institute for World Economics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

<[email protected]>

POLISH-HUNGARIAN WORKSHOPWarsaw, 2002 October 7-8.

Infrastructure Networks in Central Europe and the EU enlargement

- About the spatial dimension of sustainability - Critical remarks on the planned development

of the interregional corridors - Suggestions for a possible structural

improvement of the interregional corridors - Summary of the general findings

About the spatial dimension of sustainability (1)

The general sustainability approach focus on the time dimension of sustainability; taking care on the environmental conditions of the future generations (inter-generational solidarity)

Also important approach is the requirement of the intra-generational solidarity - (touched rather its social, security, political, cultural, globalisation components ) Can also be mentioned as spatial solidarity and spatial interdependence.

Inter-generational connection is a one-way relation: it is our responsibility for future generations, - they can’t do anything for us..

Intra-generational relation is a two-ways relation: the activity of others can also effect our circumstances and possibilities. We have to count on their solidarity, but this is not enough, we must also do for defending our environment. Sustaining our activity in a changing environment out of the solidarity we need also a kind of self-defence.


Manuel Castells: sustainability is also a fight for control over space out of control over time. “Space of places must retain its autonomy and its meaning independently from the evolution and dynamics of the space of flows”

Space of place is our physical environment that has meaning and importance for us, with its order, culture, rules, and internal structures. Space of flows is the field of force of the effects arriving from outside. This latter is not a continuous space, but space of individual effects. Castells do not want to exclude external impacts and do not deny the possibility of internal changes, just underlines that too rapid and too sudden external effects not serve, but rather disintegrate internal relations and structures. - defence is needed against.


Above terms can be translated to economic and transport relations using terms as provision, (connections of the ‘space of places’) and. accessibility, through traffic and by-passing. (trajectories of the ‘space of flows’)

Different network relations relative to a region

Source: After Plogmann (1980), with own additions.

Source: Ray, Violette: (1991) Borders versus Networks in Eastern Central Europe. Flux, Vol.1. No.3.


The different network patterns of the western and the eastern side of the Polish railway network

Source: Gorzelak G – Jalowiecki B (2002) European Boundaries: Unity or Division of the Continent? Regional Studies, Vol.36. No.4.


The 20% of Polish gminas with lowest own income per capita, 1998

Critical remarks on the planned development of the interregional corridors (1)

“Single network to the single market”– The main target of the 1992 EU Common Transport Policy (CTP) was to interconnect the existing national networks. The CTP didn’t deal with the internal problems of individual national networks, but with the “common” level.

Trans-European Networks (TEN) – (overlapping level) the structure more-or-less has been formed by 1989, the collapse of the iron-curtain hardly influenced the plans (1992, 1996)

Pan-European Corridors: the extension of the TEN, with dominating east-west relations. Only one (No IX ) corridor offers extensive north-south connection, the others are incidental and imperfect (1991, 1994, 1997)


Source: http://www.khvm.hu/EU-integracio/A_magyarorszagi_TINA_halozat/Image11.gif

The Helsinki-, or pan-European transport corridors


“Single network to the single market”– The main target of the 1992 EU Common Transport Policy (CTP) was to interconnect the existing national networks. The CTP didn’t deal with the internal problems of individual national networks, but with the “common” level.

Trans-European Networks (TEN) – (overlapping level) the structure more-or-less has been formed by 1989, the collapse of the iron-curtain hardly influenced the plans (1992, 1996)

Pan-European Corridors: the extension of the TEN, with dominating east-west relations. Only one (No IX ) corridor offers extensive north-south connection, the others are incidental and imperfect (1991, 1994, 1997)

TINA (Transport Infrastructure Needs Assessment) The backbone network is identical with the pan-European network, the concerned countries might recommend additional elements of secondary priority to the network. (1995-1999)


Hungarian Transport Policy (1996): in spite of the balanced five strategic pillars, the “promotion of the integration to the EU” got a dominant role and in such an understanding that it needs the urgent construction of the corridors. By that way the inter-regional level of relations (the carrier of the ‘space of flows’) had been emphasised at an unjustified extent at the expense of the inter-city and inter-village relations (that is the background of the ‘space of places’) within the whole transport system

Functions to be balanced from the point of view of the transport: inter-village relations, inter-city relations, inter-regional relations.

Functions to be balanced from the point of view of the region: provision, accessibility, transition (and by-pass).

What is more, in Hungary we plan the transit-corridors in a mistaken structure (1)

Hungarian interpretation of pan-European corridors 1998 (and since)

Source: Útgazdálkodás 1994-1998 Min. of Transport, Communication etc.

Source: OTAB Database


The secondary road network of Hungary

Source: OTAB Database


The main road network of Hungary

Source: Homepage of the Hungarian Ministry of Economic and Transport Affairs


The existing motorway network of Hungary

Source: Útgazdálkodás 1994-1998 Min. of Transport, Communication etc.


The under-standing of the pan-European corridors in Hungary


Helsinki corridors and additional elements of the TINA network

Source: A 8. sz. főút fejlesztési feladatai... UKIG Hálózatfejlesztési Főosztálya 2000. szept. 13

Suggestions for a possible structural improvement of the inter-regional corridors (1)

Three theses for the model of the interregional corridors in Hungary:

The interregional network, in compliance with its function, should be created with a structure separated from the secondary and main road

networks, as one of the levels of the multi-layered transport structure. Instead of the earlier suggested single-centred. radial-orbital system,

today, in an open country, the development of an open grid structure should be set as the target..

Due to Hungary’s location, ( partly as an advantage but partly as disadvantage), the transit traffic of the busiest Pan-European Corridors has to be reckoned with. The aim is that the through-traffic should disturb the life of the country as little as possible. (cross the country with the minimum total length, avoid ecologically sensitive or densely populated areas and those with heavy traffic loads, encourage the use of vehicles and transport modes that pollute the environment less etc.)

The suggested crossing of Pan-European Corridors IV and V are marked by the thick line .

The model also demonstrates two sensitive areas (the resort area of Lake Balaton and the conurbation of Budapest) through which it would not be practical to force transit traffic.


Main elements: three east-west corridors, four north-south corridors and additional diagonal elements.


Source: Fleischer Tamás – Magyar Emőke – Tombácz Endre – Zsikla György (2001): A Széchenyi Terv autópálya-fejlesztési programjának stratégiai környezeti hatásvizsgálata. 109 p. A Budapesti Közgazdaságtudományi és Államigazgatási Egyetem Környezettudományi Intézetének tanulmányai, 6. szám. Sorozatszerkesztő Kerekes Sándor és Kiss Károly. Budapest, 2001 december

Summary of the general findings

(1) Requirement of a multi-layer transport network. We admit the importance of interregional corridors, but consider them as one layer of the whole system of transport networks. The (economic, social, cultural etc.) development and the sustainability of the different regions equally need the well functioning operation of each layers of the transport system.

(2) Necessity of the isotropity of the transport network. (Equal importance to each direction) For the Central and Eastern part of Europe a greater priority was given in the nineties to the directions ended in the EU while secondary importance to the internal interregional relations.

(3) Avoiding to reinforce the over-centralised national structure. (4) These models and principles has to be debated first and accept a

consolidated form of them. The next step would be - based on a set of adopted principles, - a revision of the old desires; studying to what extent they serve the present targets and objectives - or they give answers on the questions of the past.

Infrastructure Networks in Central Europe and the EU enlargement

Fleischer Tamás

Institute for World Economics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

<[email protected]>

POLISH HUNGARIAN WORKSHOPWarsaw, 2002 October 7-8.

THANK YOU FOR

YOUR ATTENTION !

infrastructure networks in central europe and the eu enlargement fleischer tamás institute for...

Documents

spatial solidarity

space of places

continuous space

spatial interdependence

space of individual

intragenerational solidarity

generational relation

polish railway network