The aim of the project:
DBS Gateway Region project aims at supporting the Danube-Black Sea region to become an attractive gateway region for maritime and inland waterway transport between Central Europe and the Black Sea, the Caspian region and the Far East by facilitating the cooperation within and with the region and its actors. The joint effort shall improve accessibility of both the ports and the regions and strengthen interoperability between maritime and inland waterways as well as with their hinterland.
Together with raising the awareness of the possibilities of intermodal transport, this will lead to shifting existing and attracting new cargo flows to environmentally friendly transport systems.
At present, aging infrastructure and inefficient, non-transparent intermodal services limit the potential of the water transport system. The project is built upon the belief that the cooperation of public authorities, ports and their related associations is the key success factor in order to raise quality, reliability and efficiency of the waterway transport system.
Cooperation in itself will not yet lead to the envisaged results. It needs to be
- elevated on a well-informed (Potential Analysis, Road Map),
- well-prepared (list of projects ready to be implemented,Funding Guideline),
- well-focused (Joint Vision, Joint Cooperation Strategy) and
- well-supported (Cooperation Platform beyond the lifetime of the project) level.
The specific objectives of the project accommodate this fact:
- The project aims at creating a basis for cooperation between the relevant stakeholders in order to be able to work together towards the development of the DBS Gateway Region.
- Through increased attractiveness of the waterway transport system, it aims at providing the preconditions for the region to take over the envisaged role as DBS Gateway Region.
- In order to be able to further develop and actively promote the DBS Gateway Region beyond the lifetime of the project, the project aims at facilitating long-term cooperation of all key actors within an institutionalised Cooperation Platform.
Methodology
The complex challenges of the project require a multidisciplinary approach. The project’s core workgroup is made up of partners who ensure the involvement of the public sector (cities, regions and ministries), the involvement of the ports and their associations, and the involvement of a scientific university in the development. They connect those key players who work together for a DBS Gateway Region with improved transport relations. In favour of a co-operation and for the commitment to a common vision, the project offers opportunities for the active involvement of stakeholders through various regional workshops and through forums providing feedback.
The methodology includes both a bottom-up and a top-down approach at the same time:
- The project is fundamentally built bottom-up, thus ensuring that all existing information is used and that the regional needs are met: the project utilizes all available sources of information, including researches, studies and statistics based on previous analyses, while placing a strong emphasis on intensively involving the stakeholders.
- The common vision – expressed in line with the common challenges and development requirements – places the importance of the entire DBS Gateway Region on an international level. The so-called “Roadmap" is a document of international importance (using existing plans and policies) which aims to identify the measures required to achieve the common vision.
- The third step follows the top-down approach and places the “roadmap" on a regional level, stimulating the local commitment by breaking down the measures of international level into specific local tasks (regional action plans).
A collaborative platform will be set up in parallel with the activities above, involving all the partners participating in the project. The approach applied in the project ensures that the platform has a clear common vision, a common strategy and a common implementation timetable, which are accepted and supported by all stakeholders.
Project partners
The partnership consists of 10 partners with budgets and of 20 associate strategic partners, covering all countries along the Danube.
The partnership involves not only the ports and their related organizations, but also national, regional and local authorities, who have an important role in integrating the project recommendations into their local, regional and international policies as well. The project considers the ports as dominant hubs for water and land transport within the region.
The innovative aim of the partnership is to act as an umbrella above all stakeholders. Each representative of the regions covered by the project is a project partner with a budget. Their role is to involve associate partners from the given region, to gather feedback from them and to make a report to the project’s core workgroup – thus ensuring the involvement of all stakeholders in the whole the project.
Other partners
Germany
- Bayernhafen GmbH & Co
Austria
- ecoplus, the Business Agency of Lower Austria
- Port of Vienna
- Vienna Department for Urban Development and Planning
- Association of Austrian Cities and Municipalities
- Federal Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology
- Danube Region Working Community
Slovakia
- Bratislava Region Municipality
Hungary
- Association of Hungarian Danube Ports
- Association of Hungarian Logistics Service Centres
- Ministry of National Development
Croatia
- Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure
- Port of Vukovar
Serbia
- Port of Novi Sad
- Autonomous Province of Vojvodina
Bulgaria
- Port of Varna
- Ministry of Transport, Information and Communication
Romania
- Galac River Directorate of the Lower Danube
Moldova
- Ministry of Transport and Road Infrastructure
- Ukrainian Seaports Authority (Izmail Seaports Authority)
Leader partner
Provincial Government of Lower Austria
Landhaus 1, Haus 16, 3109 St. Pölten, Ausztria
Contact
Mr Christian Popp
+43 2742 9005 900
christian.popp@noel.gv.at
Ms Christina Narval
+43 680 4066661
c.narval@verracon.at
Project parners on the map:
- Regional Government of Lower Austria (AT)
- TINA Vienna GmbH (AT)
- Public Ports (SK)
- Budapesti Szabadkikötő Logisztikai Zrt. (HU)
- Municipality of Galac (RO)
- Vukovar Port Authority (HR)
- University of Novi Sad (RS)
- Bulgarian Port Infrastructure Company (BG)
- Varna City Council (BG)
- Burgas City Council (BG)
Project co-funded by the European Union
The project is implemented with the support of the Danube Transnational Program, the European Regional Development Fund, and the co-financing of the European Union and the Hungarian State.