robert nowak, unece, transport division

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Robert Nowak, UNECE, Transport Division

Addis Ababa, 19 September 2011

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe

Road infrastructure standards in the UNECE region

High level expert group meeting to validate the report on harmonization of road norms and standards in Africa and the draft Intergovernmental Agreement

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A regional - and increasingly global – centre for international legal instruments

• 57 UNECE international transport conventions and agreements - Road, rail, inland waterways and combined transport

• 5 environmental conventions

• 35 UNECE trade facilitation recommendations

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Source: http://live.unece.org/trans/maps/number-of-un-transport-conventions-and-agreements-per-country.html

UNECE legal instruments applied on all continents

http://live.unece.org/trans/maps/number-of-un-transport-conventions-and-agreements-per-country.html

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Source: http://live.unece.org/trans/conventn/agreem_cp.html

http://live.unece.org/trans/conventn/agreem_cp.html

http://live.unece.org/trans/conventn/agreem_cp.html

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Inland transport infrastructure agreements

at UNECE

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ROAD

RAIL

COMBINED/INTERMODAL

WATERWAYS

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Source: http://live.unece.org/trans/maps/un-transport-agreements-and-conventions-01.html

Declaration - 27 Contracting Parties

http://live.unece.org/trans/maps/un-transport-agreements-and-conventions-01.html

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Predecessor of the 1975 AGR Agreement (Article 6.3)

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AGR - 37 Contracting Parties

http://live.unece.org/trans/maps/un-transport-agreements-and-conventions-01.html

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Source: http://live.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/trans/conventn/ECE-TRANS-SC1-384e.pdf

http://live.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/trans/conventn/ECE-TRANS-SC1-384e.pdf

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E-road network

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West-East

Nor

th-S

outh

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Class-A roads

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Class-A roads

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Class-B roads

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1. Motorways2. Express roads3. Ordinary roads (X)

Emphasis on safety and traffic flow conditions (min. congestion)

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- In accordance with the principles set out in international conventions and agreements

- Non-literal messages to make them comprehensible to road users of any country

- Latin characters to be used with other alphabets

In accordance with the principles set out in international conventions and agreements

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Draft Annex III, TAH network:

In Africa, there are few Contracting Parties to the 1968 Convention

In Africa, there are also few Contracting Parties to the 1949 Protocol on Road Signs and Signals

Road sign, signals and road markings should be consistent along the TAH routes

Also, they should be consistent within a country

UNECE may provide capacity building concerning accession to relevant conventions and agreements to make TAH a success

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Tauern, 12 dead, 1999Mont Blanc, 39 dead, 1999

St. Gotthard, 11 dead, 2001

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Process:

AGR Agreement deposited with the UN Secretary General (Article 17)

Amendments considered by the ECE’s Working Party on Road Transport (Articles 7, 8 and 9)

SC.1 meets typically once a year

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Need to periodically describe and monitor the AGR network

E-road census

Process:

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E-road censuses

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A system/network approach

Need to develop/apply complementary – to road infrastructure - legal instruments

1968 Conventions on Road Traffic and on Road Signs and Signals

Harmonization Convention/TIR – border crossing facilitation; ADR – transport of dangerous goods; CMR – legal liability; Harmonization of Vehicle Regulations; Periodic Inspections

Road infrastructure agreement alone is not enough:

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Source: http://live.unece.org/transport/resources/publications.html

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Borders are important in inter’l transport

Declaration (1950)

AGR (1975)

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The unpredictability at borders and/or waiting for goods to be released/cleared may be very costly

Source: NELTI Final Report, www.iru.org

Bishkek – Warsaw route

Min. border time: 0.4 day

Max. border time: 4.5 daysMin.: 5

Avg.: 11 Max.: 26 hrs

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Inefficient borders may nullify investment in road infrastructure

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AGR (1975) Agreement - benefits?

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Road:

High and early interest in integrating and standardizing

The 1950 Declaration; substantive revision in 1975 (AGR Agreement)

High standards: comprehensive and technically demanding

Complemented by other “operational” legal instruments (road traffic, signs and signals, transport of dangerous goods, vehicle harmonization, border crossing facilitation)

Complemented by the legal liability regime (CMR Agreement)

Ongoing interest and amendments (road safety audits)

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Road:

Dominant and highly competitive transport mode in Europe (80-90% share in passenger/goods transport)

Dominant and growing share

Interest in Euro-Asian transport; est. 50% trips > 500km

New vehicle fleets; EURO environmental standards

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Rail:

AGC developed in 1985; “feasible” standardsRail infrastructure and operations set up on a national basisGauge width, vehicle loading gauge, electric current differencesDifferent infrastructure, operational/performance and legal standardsTwo legal (liability) regimes Recently, infrastructure and operations separated

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Conclusions:

E-road network a successful and highly integrated international system - rail transport still fragmented, integration costly and challenging

Be ambitious and forward looking – do not set the lowest common denominator standards

To assist, avoid deadlines for implementation

Start early – the “window of opportunity” may not be available for long

Public and private sectors – excellent co-operation when working towards a common objective

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www.unece.org


robert nowak, unece, transport division

Documents

unece legal instruments

international conventions

agreements road

combined transport

environmental conventions

transport divisionaddis

road users

harmonization of road