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The Tomášov Summit: when political co-ordination becomes routine
Improving accessibility and making the most of the upcoming EU programme period are the key messages of the second meeting of the Political Board held on 5 December 2011 in Tomášov/Bratislava. The representatives of the CENTROPE partner cities and regions discussed key challenges and agreed on common action for improved infrastructure as well as on the cornerstones of a tightly integrated cross-border public transport system.
These decisions underline the necessity to improve the accessibility of the region within Europe as well as to foster greater interregional mobility. The economic integration of the region is slowed down by the low quality and quantity of high-level infrastructure of CENTROPE’s transport nodes and inadequate public transport connections at its peripheries. The incompatibility of tariff systems and schedules within CENTROPE significantly reduces the attractiveness of public transport for cross-border mobility. For this reason, the partners agreed to adopt, within the period of one year, a Transport and Infrastructure Strategy for CENTROPE that will identify key projects to mitigate the most pressing infrastructure problems. A list of concrete priority projects will facilitate lobbying for investment vis-à-vis national governments and the EU. In addition, the partners will intensify their efforts to improve public transport in cross-border relations.
These conclusions follow logically from the first Summit held in Győr earlier this year, where the political partners agreed on the necessity to work on the region’s infrastructure and public transport compatibility. With the second Summit in Tomášov hosted by the Slovak CENTROPE presidency, concrete steps and long-term strategies have now been agreed in a high-level agenda. The efforts will lead to the improvement of international accessibility as well as to interconnectivity within the region and will eventually enhance the region’s competitiveness. The regular, semi-annual CENTROPE Summits have thus become a decisive instrument to advance the CENTROPE co-operation agenda for the benefit of all citizens. Under the upcoming Czech CENTROPE presidency, the next summit will take place in Brno in late spring 2012.
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