Trans-European Network and the Connecting Europe Facility: European grand design of transport sector to boost economic growth.

The Reports on the European Union's guidelines for the development of the Trans-European Network and the Connecting Europe Facility were adopted today in a joint meeting of the Transport and Tourism Committee and the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy of the European Parliament.

The two Reports provide a new important economic tool, especially in times of economic crisis, which concentrates resources on projects with European added value in the field of transport, energy and telecommunications infrastructure. They also create integrated European networks that ensure the uniform high performance of the infrastructure throughout the Union.

The Co-Rapporteur on behalf of the EPP Group on the development of the Trans-European Network, Georgios Koumoutsakos MEP, said after the votes that this was a decision of strategic importance: "We opted to move to a real network; to transform the patchwork of roads, railways, ports, airports and canals into a unified European transport network. We do hope that the absence of links between the different modes of transport and the missing cross-border sections due to a lack of interoperability will soon belong to the past and that we will be able to further develop the potential of the motorways of the sea. A strong push towards the completion of the Trans-European Network can be especially beneficial for Europe and each Member State in order to achieve sustainable growth in Europe, which is at the core of our concerns."

On the Connecting Europe Facility, Dominique Riquet MEP, Co-Rapporteur of the EPP Group, said after the votes: "This Report is the most performant tool we have to stimulate growth, employment and competitiveness of our economy, while optimising public spending. I now call on the Member States to provide it with a decent budget during the negotiations on the next financial framework."

The key objective of both legislative proposals is the targeted use of financial resources with the aim of facilitating and upgrading EU citizens' mobility and freight transport, contributing to economic, social and territorial cohesion, and triggering economic growth and jobs, all of them so vital during today's predicament of a serious economic crisis. European added value has been the main concept and the guiding principle of the two Rapporteurs in their effort to achieve the best possible outcome that is a solid, pragmatic and forward-looking piece of legislation.