EURET programme, European research on transport. Final report

OBJECTIVE: the Commission report analyzes the results of the EURET programme, the specific research programme in the transport sector launched in 1991 under the second RDT framework programme. EURET allocated a total of 26.8 million ecus to 10 research projects which were completed in 1994. CONTENT: the report notes that, because of its modest budget, EURET had to focus on just one section of research in the transport sector, although it considers that the 10 projects were well chosen. - in the aviation and railway sectors, EURET succeeded in mobilizing the major operators and the action undertaken under the auspices of Eurocontrol and the Community of European Railways was particularly useful for research into control systems for high speed trains; - in the maritime transport sector, the report notes that work under EURET may have useful fallout for future safety standards and the protection of sensitive marine areas. The report sets out a number of recommendations on the subject of the future of Community research in the transport sector: - as research in the transport sector is financed under various programmes, the Commission should ensure that R&D policy and transport policy are given joint, coherent objectives; - priority should be given to problems which definitely come within the jurisdiction of the EU and the Community alone has the powers to resolve (mainly research into control systems for high speed trains and combined transport); - EURET has produced preliminary studies, databases, studies of systems and an inventory of methods used. Continuing research should result in demonstration projects and even the finalization of prototypes. This next step is already possible in combined transport and maritime transport; - stop-gap solutions or long gaps between initial research and subsequent development stages should be avoided; - the Commission should continue and step up cooperation with organizations such as EUROCONTROL and the research institute of the Community of European Railways.�