4th Steering Committee Meeting in Igoumenitsa - ADRIPASS

On 15–16 October 2019, the 4th Steering Committee meeting of the ADRIPASS project was held in Igoumenitsa. The meeting was hosted by the Regional Unit of Thesprotia / Region of Epirus, project partner, with the participation of the Greek Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and the Port Authority of Igoumenitsa (both associated partners of the project).

During the two working days, the progress of project activities was presented and discussed, in particular regarding the implementation of pilot actions using ICT tools to optimise and automate port logistics processes for inbound and outbound flows, with clear benefits in terms of efficiency and sustainability for the entire freight transport network of the Adriatic-Ionian region.

The Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Industry was also welcomed as a new project partner and presented its forthcoming activities linked to transnational institutional cooperation.

The CEI, as Lead Partner, opened the meeting by presenting to project partners an overview of the results achieved so far and the commitments ahead until the end of the project (extended to June 2020).

On the subject of intermodal transport, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki presented the final report on the results of data collection at border crossing points along the corridors in the Adriatic-Ionian region, from ports to the hinterland. The presentation highlighted the main challenges and possible solutions, also through the use of ICT tools. Special attention was given to the findings at road, rail and port border crossing points (BCPs). The final report, drafted with the support of project partners, will be updated in the coming months, as will the Final Transnational Action Plan prepared to facilitate freight transport in the region. The Institute for Transport and Logistics (ITL), author of the plan, will update the document once the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Industry provides new data.

The Port of Koper, leading partner for port pilot actions, opened the session dedicated to experimental activities. The ports of Koper (Slovenia), Ploče (Croatia) and Bar (Montenegro) presented the state of play of their pilot actions focused on enhancing their Port Community Systems (PCS). The Regional Unit of Thesprotia / Region of Epirus presented a platform for PCS flow analysis and a mobile app for virtual navigation/augmented reality (under testing until December 2019). The Port of Durrës presented its completed pre-investment analysis.

The first day concluded with the presentation of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which provided an overview of ADRION Transnational Institutional Cooperation. Partners had the opportunity to discuss the proposed concept of a transnational multimodal strategy.

The second day focused on administrative and financial issues, as well as on planning actions to better disseminate and promote the project at local, national and European levels. The CEI presented the state of play of project management, including expected content from local evaluation reports, before the EGTC Euregio Senza Confini provided a comprehensive overview of completed and forthcoming communication activities.

The next Steering Committee meeting will take place in Brussels in March, alongside a transnational seminar where ADRIPASS results will be shared with European policy makers.
The final ADRIPASS project conference will take place in Trieste in June 2020.