1、www.theicct.org communicationstheicct.orgtheicct.org RESEARCH BRIEFAUGUST 2024Toward greener freight:Overview of inland waterway transport for freight in the European Union Tianlin Niu,Zhenying Shao,Geyi ZhuINTRODUCTIONInland waterway transport(IWT)is recognized as an environmentally friendly and en

2、ergy-efficient shipping option among the three main inland transport modes,which also include road and railway.IWT systems allow ships and barges to travel on canals,rivers,and lakes between inland ports and wharfs.According to a European Court of Auditors analysis,IWT generated 33 gCO2 per tonne-km

3、(t-km)of greenhouse gas(GHG)emissions in 2018,slightly more than railway transport and far below road transport(Table 1).1 The European Parliamentary Research Service(EPRS)has assessed that IWT uses 17%of the energy used by road transport and 50%that of rail transport.2 Past research has also indica

4、ted that IWT is the cheapest shipping option,on average,among the three modes:a 2007 study found that IWT cost 0.0273/t-km for short distances(200 km)and 0.0195/t-km for long distances(1,000 km),both far lower than road and railway freight.3 1 European Court of Auditors,Intermodal Freight Transport:

5、EU Still Far from Getting Freight off the Road(August 2023),https:/op.europa.eu/webpub/eca/special-reports/intermodal-freight-transport-08-2023/en/.2 Karin Jacobs,Briefing:Inland Waterway Transport in the EU(European Parliamentary Research Service,February 2022),https:/www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData

6、/etudes/BRIE/2022/698918/EPRS_BRI(2022)698918_EN.pdf.3 PLANCO Consulting GmbH,Economical and Ecological Comparison of Transport Modes:Road,Railways and Inland Waterways(2007),https:/www.eca.europa.eu/lists/ecadocuments/sr15_01/sr15_01_en.pdf.2024 INTERNATIONAL COUNCIL ON CLEAN TRANSPORTATION(ID 152)