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Support for Sustainable Transport Research in Slovakia (SURFTRAN)

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Sustainable transport reaches Slovakia

European networking initiatives and exchanges have strongly supported Slovakia's evolution in sustainable road transport.

Climate Change and Environment icon Climate Change and Environment

The EU-funded project 'Support for sustainable transport research in Slovakia' (Surftran) aimed to ensure smooth integration of Slovakian transport research capabilities into the EU. It analysed and evaluated human resources and infrastructure in the research transport field to facilitate this integration and strengthen the European Research Area (ERA). The project worked on increasing participation of Slovakian stakeholders in European research projects by networking with researchers, policymakers, industry and academia countrywide. Scientific workshops and a dedicated project website facilitated information flow and encouraged exchanges with other states that have had similar experiences. Surftran also evaluated policies on surface transport with respect to sustainability, environment and energy consumption. It produced studies on rail, road and waterborne transport, as well as intelligent transport systems, to further EU exchanges on the topic. In parallel, the project established an online database of researchers, institutions and developers to encourage business partnerships on a regional scale. With this in mind, the project organised two brokerage events and workshops for Slovak researchers to meet others from EU Associate Candidate Countries in order to initiate integrated projects and networks of excellence (NoE). This coincided with a call for proposals by the EU on sustainable surface transport research which was coordinated through the University of Zilina, Slovakia, under the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). On a more local level, networking activities also brought key centres that investigate research on sustainable transport within Slovakia itself much closer together. Overall, Surftran improved Slovakia's ability to participate in EU projects related to surface transport, contributing to the eventual improvement of the socioeconomic needs of the country's population. European values such as sustainability, environment and energy savings played an important role in the prospect of upgrading the country's road transport network.

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