The Development of International Freight Transport in Europe as a Result of Developments in International Trade and Logistics

The development of international trade is one of the main driving forces behind the international and transcontinental freight transport. Within Europe the European integration has given a significant impulse for the development of transborder freight transport. A third element, which is of significant influence on both the volume and the composition of international freight transport, concerns the (inter company) logistics organization. Where which activity takes place, is being determined by the logistics requirements of the actors in the supply chain, most importantly its final customers. This paper describes megatrends that are shaping international trade, logistics organization and (multi)modal transport in Europe. It focuses on impacts on the European context, both from the peculiarities arising from the European unification process and the European transport policies, but also taking into account the highly fragmented transport market that tries to cope with the increased level of congestion, the threat for increasing taxes and fuel prices as well as the ever increasing service requirements. On the one hand transport systems will need to adjust better to a globalizing economy, with a higher variation in different types of networks than ever before. The splintering of flows that occurs due to the demands of customization and increased responsiveness will force firms to look outside their company borders for co-operation and, in the end, for scale. Thus, transport systems will need to be more flexible and obtain a more hybrid nature; to accommodate both slow and large scale flows as well as small scale, just-in-time shipments.