Source: https://www.intermodale24-rail.net/POLITICA/intro_politica.html#0260316
Energy crisis: Combined transport is the way out, says the UIRR
"We are in a critical situation, and door-to-door combined transport, as the backbone of the European transport system, could significantly contribute to achieving the European objectives of energy efficiency and decoupling from oil imports. In terms of resilience and competitiveness, the solution is also obvious. The prerequisites are fully in the hands of the EU co-legislators: the European Parliament and the Council, currently chaired by Cyprus," wrote Ralf-Charley Schultze, Director General of UIRR, in a press release on March 12.
Today, Europe is gripped by an energy crisis. In the 1970s, the same questions were being asked:
• How can European supply chains be reliably supported on a continent without oil?
• How can we keep the European economy moving?
The answer is the same as in 1975, when the first Combined Transport Directive was adopted: a drastic improvement in energy efficiency and a significant decoupling of land transport can be achieved through door-to-door combined transport.
Following the decisive vote in the European Parliament in January, European Union member states face an important decision today: should they continue with legislative work to modernise the Combined Transport Directive?
The answer is clearly YES!
The unrivaled capabilities of door-to-door combined transport:
- Requires 70% less energy per tonne-kilometre, with significant potential for improvement
- Possibility of fully electrified industrial-scale heavy goods transport, without an excessive number of batteries, thanks to the use of Made in Europe technologies.
- Compatible with the load volumes of any type of goods transported by truck today.
What do EU co-legislators need today to fully unlock the potential of door-to-door combined transport?
• A modernised Directive on Combined Transport , in line with the sector's roadmap.
• The Weights and Dimensions Directive , which ensures the full interoperability and compatibility of road transport with other modes of transport.
The European intermodal rail network for combined transport already has 1,000 daily departures , offering connections between 1,300 terminals across the continent. Electric intermodal freight trains could quickly double their capacity if they were given priority, as was the case with energy trains during the 2022 energy crisis.
This would eliminate the burden of oil imports for as many as 50,000 diesel trucks, each of which consumes about 300 liters of diesel per day, or nearly 3 billion liters of diesel per year. This alone could save Europe approximately 10 million tons of crude oil each year!
The doubling of combined transport performance could then be repeated by 2030 and once again by 2040, preventing Europe from becoming overly dependent on imported crude oil and thus strengthening the competitiveness and resilience of our economy.