During the 20th to 22nd of June the TEN-T Days 2016 were held in Rotterdam at the Van Nelle Factory. This event was sponsured by the European Commissioner for Transport Violeta Bulc, in cooperation with the Dutch Presidency of the Council of the European Union, Minister for Infrastructure and the Environment Melanie Schultz van Haegen, which invited Ministers, Members of the European Parliament and key stakeholders to Rotterdam to discuss the development of the Trans-European Transport Network, with a special focus on the Core Network Corridors, ERTMS and Motorways of the Sea (MoS), their implementation and financing.
The TEN-T Days Exhibition featured an indoor showcase at the Van Nelle Factory of over 100 different TEN-T, CEF, H2020 and Shift-to-Rail projects and initiatives, all contributing to European transport research and infrastructure. An outdoor display featuring innovative hardware will also provide you with the opportunity to test and drive electric, hydrogen and natural gas vehicles. The Van Nelle Factory is on the UNESCO World Heritage list. (Exhibition Guide)
The Netherlands took the opportunity of their Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2016 to co-organize with the European Commission a Business conference on Rail Freight Corridors and the development of rail freight in Europe, in the margins of the TEN-T Days in Rotterdam.
Representatives from the sector, international rail organisations and Member States were actively involved in the preparation of this international conference.
The conference took place on 21 June 2016, from 10.00-17.00. The Dutch Secretary of State of Infrastructure and Environment opened the conference, organized around thematic workshops and two plenary sessions, with active involvement of relevant stakeholders.
Both government and business sector representatives were welcome to participate.
All nine Rail Freight Corridors are now operational. Thus are expected to enter into a new and permanent phase characterized by an ambitious and continuous development in terms of standards, capacity and service quality. In this respect, there is need for a renewed dynamism. Taking stock of the significant progress made so far, the conference was an opportunity to identify quick wins which can be achieved through the active involvement of all the relevant stakeholders and to discuss how to improve the processes in order to make the rail freight corridors realize their full potential to support and develop European rail freight.
The side event addressed the mid to long term strategy for rail freight and the Rail Freight Corridors. Moreover, broader issues linked to the daily work of the rail freight corridors, such as capacity allocation, railway noise, the logistic supply chain, operational efficiency, governance, and innovation were on the agenda. The conference focused on the exchange of best practice in order to create a true network of corridors.
This event fits well into the timing foreseen by the European Commission for its evaluation of Regulation 913/2010/EU concerning a European Rail Network for competitive freight, which establishes the rail freight corridors. Hence, the outcome of the conference will feed into the European Commission's work.
In particular the Atlantic Corridor was represented at the joint RFC stand, organized by RNE along with the other 8 operating Corridors which in time will comprise the European Rail Freight Network. On the 21st of June at 4:30 pm the Atlantic Corridor participate in the above mentioned conference: CORE NETWORK CORRIDORS IN PROGRESS where it presented the latest activities developed by the corridor, with the results and numbers to sustain it, this presentation also introduced the future goals establish by the Atlantic Corridor for the upcoming years. At the presentation the Atlantic Corridor was represented by Mr. Jacques COUTOU, Managing Director of the Atlantic Corridor and Mr. Sellnick Oliver, Vice President of the European Corridor Management from DB Netz AG (Atlantic Corridor presentation).
For a beautiful closure of the TENT-Days Exhibition, on Tuesday evening the participants were invited aboard the legendary SS Rotterdam, the stately “Grand Dame” of the Holland America Line, which overlooks the river Maas and Rotterdam’s remarkable modern skyline.
These are the partners that make the Atlantic Corridor flow.
