The aim of this contribution was to analyse the effects of travel measures taken in light of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Free Movement, specifically concerning cross-border regions. The report provided an in-depth examination of the principle of proportionality as well as case studies on several cross-border regions were conducted. Due to the specificalities of border regions and the great importance and habit of cross-border mobility within daily life, it was found that discoordination of national COVID-19 measures and (disproportionate) travel restrictions particularly impacted border regions.
The aim of the MMUST is to develop a decision support tool and to evaluate transport policies in favour of cross-border mobility in the Greater Region. This tool is being developed through a scientific partnership involving researchers working on mobility and transport from three of the countries in the Greater Region and through consultation with the main public actors that manage the mobility flows studied. The tool developed has the following features: a unified approach to all the mobility transport data available, a multimodal approach allowing the impact to be assessed of all types of transport existing or to be promoted and prospective approach through the evaluation by enquiry and modelling of different alternative mobility scenarios.
The EMR Connect project arose out of the difficulties encountered by operators in the field in establishing a cross-border public transport network. The governance of the project is provided by the main public transport operators in the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion. The project is intended to provide a practical service and plans to create a shared body of knowledge of the cross-border transport network, simple paperless resources for passengers and targeted projects to encourage intermodality.
Mobility is an essential element of the economic and social development of the cross-border regions. Nevertheless, there are many obstacles in introduction of a transport system. This article analyses the case of the train connection between Liège (Belgium) and Maastricht (the Netherlands). A comparative analysis of six areas is conducted: the economic context; the urban and regional infrastructures in Belgium and the Netherlands; the structure of the railway network; the obstacles when using trains; the current demand for train connections and the context of governance, public and political planning. Suggestions are made based on the results of this analysis.
Based on a wide-ranging survey carried out in 2010 and 2011 with a representative sample of cross-border workers in Luxembourg, the CEPS/INSTEAD has published, in conjunction with Forum EUROPA, the University of Strasbourg and the CNRS, a collection of articles devoted to the everyday lives of cross-border workers. It contains 13 sections on a range of complementary topics, which together form a synthesis of the main findings on the mobility of cross-border workers. One of the main findings of the survey is the significant increase in the use of public transport as a main means of commuting, even though car use continues to dominate. The quality of the public transport offer (journey time, services, reliability, comfort, etc.) plays a decisive role in cross-border workers' choice of transport mode, as do parking facilities at the place of work. Cross-border workers live an average of 44 km from their place of work and take 53 minutes to get to work. This distance from the place of work means that half of cross-border workers leave home before 7 am. 60% of car drivers say that they are satisfied or very satisfied with their commuting arrangements. Cross-border workers who take the train are generally more satisfied, with 74% saying they are satisfied or very satisfied. Furthermore, it is among those who take the train that fatigue makes itself felt the least compared to everyday perceptions in the different modes of transport. If 73% of cross-border households have at least two cars, generally opinions about cars are quite contrasted. But cross-border workers' mobility is not only limited to commuting for work, since one person in five crossing the border goes to Luxembourg for a non-work-related activity, mainly to eat out or to go shopping. On average, people crossing the border spend 2 hours a day and cover 100 km for all their movements.
