The Western Gates: West-Pannonian transport networks - conceptions, programs and possibilities

Fleischer, Tamás (2002) The Western Gates: West-Pannonian transport networks - conceptions, programs and possibilities. HUNGARIAN ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF SCIENCES. pp. 1-15. ISSN 1418-7108

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Abstract

The Hungarian infrastructure development arrived to a crossroad. Earlier the networks were built after different internal demands (although mostly lagging well behind them) while now there is a significant pressure on the country to develop the lines creating part of the European networks even setting a pace beyond its strength. The basic principle of the (1992) Common Transport Policy of the European Union was: single network to the single market. The Community generally didn’t deal with those transport issues of the internal relations of countries or regions. The plans of the Trans-European Networks (TENs) aimed at the interconnection of the existing, operating and supposedly properly developed intra-regional transport systems. It is important to underline, that in Central and Eastern Europe it is not enough to focus on the connection to the big European network, but parallely also has to be assured that the internal networks be able to serve properly the intra regional and in-country needs. The inter-regional networks may not substitute this internal links, what is more, the existence and the good operation of the supposed internal level is a condition of the useful and effective operation of the overlay networks. The paper survey how the transport axes proposed in the frame of the TINA networks appears on the road and rail net- work of Hungary, and especially on that of the West Hungarian region. A structural and a priority problem had to be under- lined. The structure of the Hungarian transport networks evolved in the last century, when there was a national aim of special importance to strengthen the position of Budapest within the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The action was successful, and created a uni-centred structure where the role of Budapest increased considerably. During the past decades all transport policy or regional development analyses and programs underlined, that it was an aim of great importance to change the over-centralised transport structure and to promote a more balanced territorial structure. In spite of that, the actual proposals continually support developments that not at all decrease, but definitely increase the Budapest-centeredness of the country. This paper considers as of first priority, improving the territorial structure of the country by the construction of east-west and north-south corridors, from which only one of each cross the area of the region of the capital, the others lead elsewhere. Four of these necessary axes cross the West-Pannon region. The other mistake of the existing Hungarian conceptions, that they - misinterpreting the aims of the CTP -deal almost exclusively with the development of the big through traffic axes while the development - even the maintenance - of the main and secondary roads that serve the domestic traffic are falling into the background. Finally the paper compares the Westpannon, and the other Euroregional co-operations at the Hungarian borders, and constates, that while in the eastern countryside the euroregions also involve the internal counties (that are not directly dispose with the country border). Following a similar system the Westpannon euroregion could be extended towards Veszprem county, and this extension could be supported both taking into consideration the once attraction of Vienna in the area and the traditional county distribution. This extension could also create a chance for the advantages of the co-operation to filtering towards the internal part of the country.

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