Belgium

Interviewees

Agnès Grandjean, OSTC

Rik Jacobs, Nedlloyd Road Cargo

Steering Committee Representatives

Agnès Grandjean, OSTC

Links

Ministry of Research

Ministry for Communication and Infrastructure

LAMBIT

SMIS

Flemish Social-Economic Council

" >Pomotie Binnenvaart Vlaanderen

Intermodality has only in resent years become a part of the Belgian transport policy and research. Some of the main problems are, as in the rest of Europe, related to the difficult operational co-operation between operators of the different modes and the interoperability of systems.

The Belgian transport research is separated between the federal level with the Ministry for Communication and Infrastructure and the Office for Scientific, Technical and Cultural Affairs (OSTC) within the Ministry of Research and the regional level with Ministries of Wallonie, Vlaanderen and Brussels.

The federal research programme "Sustainable Mobility" extends the former programme "Transport and Mobility" and is co-ordinated by OSTC. The programme aims to develop a scientific basis for research into areas like socio-economic effects of transport, transport demands and the effectiveness of transport policy and systems. On the strategic level the programme aims at providing a consistent Belgian transport research environment and to consolidate the international position of Belgian research. Three projects cover the area of freight intermodality e.i. LAMBIT (A Tool for Achieving Sustainable Intermodal Transport in Belgium"), SMIS (Sustainable Mobility Information System), and "Towards Sustainable Mobility..."

LAMBIT is a location analysis model for Belgian intermodal terminals to be used by decision makers in both the public and the private sector. In addition LAMBIT will demonstrate the competitiveness of intermodal transport and allow calculation of the impact of intermodal transport e.g. on the environment. The project will collect data concerning intermodal transport and intermodal terminals and connect these data with a decision support system to identify optimal location and terminal efficiency. The Vrije Universiteit Brussels co-ordinates the project.

SMIS is an Internet based tool that can be used to obtain information on mobility on all levels in Belgium (federal, regional, provincial, municipal, and from universities, research institutes, libraries, etc.). Université Libre de Bruxelles and Kaholieke Universiteit Leuven co-ordinates SMIS.

The aim of "Towards Sustainable Mobility...." is to provide a set of policy tools that will assist in identification, quantification and valorisation of the external effects of increasing freight traffic. A user panel for each project in the programme monitors the progress and results. A steering Committee is created for the programme with federal and regional representatives and chaired by OSTC. The committee selects projects, first on the basis of the evaluation by international transport experts and after on the basis of the defined research needs. The programme received 10 MEURO for the period 1996 - 2001. The results of arriving from the programme are used to support the policy decision making. The Ministry for Communication and Infrastructure have no separate transport research programme but finance only small supportive studies.

OSTC only finance research projects and no demonstration projects in the field of transport. These are financed on a regional level. Furthermore, the regions undertake the policy and research on ports and inland waterways as it often relates to infrastructure investments. The regions have no dedicated programmes for transport research. The Belgian State co-finance construction of inland waterway terminals based on the restructuring of the sector toward further liberalisation, and in relation to the EU directive covering this process. OSTC arrange information days related to call for tenders and organise dissemination activities where results are presented within categories as Mobility, Environment and Safety. Belgian participants in European Commission launched transport research projects can not receive co-financing from OSTC.

FEBETRA (Belgian Federation of road hauliers) is part of the Belgian Road Transport Institute. A Committee for intermodal transport comprising 90% of the road/rail hauliers (ex. maritime) has been established within FEBETRA. The main objectives of the Committee are to enhance the flow of information between members and to improve the performance of the sector by solving common obstacles. The group has a close contact to e.g. B cargo/TRW. Till now there has been no clear contact between the Committee and the Belgian government or the European Commission.