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Cohesion policy is one of the European Union’s policies, which provides Member States with the possibility of financial support under the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESI Funds) as well as with the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), to reduce disparities and encourage the development of less developed Member States. By funding through Cohesion policy funds, the European Union seeks to accomplish a prosperous economy by achieving appropriate European standards in the individual Member States. Cohesion policy emphasizes the development of transport and mobility, and in particular, the investment in key transport links and sections of international importance through the revitalization of railway infrastructure in line with European Union standards. The railway system of the Republic of Croatia has been under-invested for many years, which is why it has not followed the requirements and needs of the development of the transport market. Membership in the European Union has provided the Republic of Croatia with co-financing for the development of the railway system. This paper will analyse the current investments in the railway system and the development potentials that are planned to be achieved in the next programming period. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to analyse the importance of the Cohesion Policy of the European Union for the development of the railway system of the Republic of Croatia in the Programming period 2021-2027. The analysis aims to identify opportunities for further development of the railway system as the ‘cleanest’ transport industry, guided by the need to reduce harmful emissions following the European Green Deal by using funds from the European Structural and Investment Funds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Early in the spring of 2020, the COVID-19 disease pandemic occurred, and European Union members made the decision to restrict their borders to protect the public's health. Demand for travel and transportation services has decreased as a result of the epidemiological scenario brought on by the movement restriction. The research focuses on how mobility affects traffic safety in the Republic of Croatia, considering the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the aim of limiting human movement and contact in order to safeguard human health. In this paper, relevant traffic indicators and their effects on road traffic safety are analysed with the aim of analysing the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on mobility and traffic safety. The study compares safety indicators during different time periods, including before, during, and after the removal of restrictions prompted by a pandemic. The research aims to assess the impact of the pandemic on traffic safety and mobility patterns, providing valuable insights for future planning practices that incorporate emerging knowledge. The research aims to promote pedestrian and bicycle traffic, reduce air pollution, and contribute to global initiatives aimed at achieving road safety goals. Moreover, it offers a potential solution to help achieve the European policy targets for road mobility and safety by 2030. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The port service quality research methods from the users' point of view are presented in this paper. The purpose of this research is to select and reduce a large number of the port service quality attributes to a smaller number of attributes, grouped in common factors according to certain criteria. By analyzing the structure of the grouped attributes, the users' expectation of the service quality provided according to their requirements is determined and evaluated. The determination of interdependence among more variables has been carried out by using the multivariate analysis or, specifically, by using the method of the principal component factor analysis. The presented methodology has been applied to the real data obtained from the questionnaire of the sample of students attending the Faculty of Maritime Studies in Rijeka, Croatia. The data collected have been processed by using the SPSS 16.0. statistical package. Based on the factor matrix and after having carried out the Oblimin rotation, it has been determined that five latent groups of attributes grouped in factors have been indicated by the attributes. Five factors singled out considering the associated port service quality attributes have been called: the port functionality factor, the port responsibility factor, the port adaptability factor, the port availability factor and the port information capacity factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The methods of choosing the possible attributes affecting the perception of the port service quality are presented in this paper. The purpose of the study is to reduce a great number of the port service quality attributes to a smaller number of attributes, grouped in common factors. Thus, a structural model, much easier to be explained and tested on the concrete example, has been obtained. The hypothesis is put forward stating that the two dimensions of the port service quality: reliability and competence are best explained by the attributes presented. An optimal selection of attributes has been made by the principal component analysis, while the attribute distribution has been obtained by the exploratory factor analysis. The confirmative factor analysis has been used to define the structural model, adaptable to the results of the questionnaire submitted to the sample of students of the Faculty of Maritime Studies in Rijeka, Croatia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid changes induced by technological improvements and the intensified use of ports as logistics centers in the whole transport and logistics service chain have initiated an increasing port service competition. The port service quality, together with the costs of, has become the key factor in the functioning of ports and in maintaining their position on the demanding and fluctuating port services market. Researches into the port service quality and aiming at measuring the service quality according to the needs and demands of the port users are very rarely carried out, the evidence of which is based on the existing Croatian and foreign scientific literature. The paper aims at pointing out the importance of determining the port service quality, being a prerequisite for a successful development of the port industry and the transport system as a whole, and to begin with the quality dimension needs to be clearly defined. The complexities of a port, as regards the large number of port users interested in such a port and of the services offered, make the identification of a unique set of dimensions more difficult. Although quality can be analyzed from various aspects, the paper aims at identifying the suggested set of port service quality dimensions according to the needs and demands of the port users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Positioning of large energy facilities is, as a rule, accompanied by a strong rejection of local and regional communities, without which it is not possible to determine the location and construction conditions for the facility in spatial plans. However, a synergy of three components may enable a successful project realization. Firstly, the application of verified and objective scientific methods for the selection of the most appropriate LNG terminal location. Secondly, the consideration of the best world practices in project documentation preparation for such terminal construction. And lastly, the continuous involvement of the local community into the entire process. The paper presents an approach aimed at solving the problem of choice by applying the methodology of choosing the “best compromise location” based on system characteristics, available data, set criteria, and limitations. The key “dimension” of such a problem is “space”, i.e. the spatial aspects of location selection. The paper provides an overview of the activities, procedures, and methods used to define the optimal location of the receiving LNG terminal in the Republic of Croatia as part of the analysis and research carried out by EKONERG and in the function of creating the Spatial Plan of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County. Accordingly, the main objective of this paper was to highlight the specifics of LNG terminal site selection as well as the possibility of objectively defining the optimal location using the multi-criteria decision-making method that simultaneously takes into account all infl uential factors and criteria in defining it. The paper uses the methodology of multi-attribute decision process and multicriteria analysis of the selection of the optimal location of the LNG terminal on the territory of PrimorjeGorski Kotar County. It systematically and scientifically analyses, consistently formulates, and proposes elimination and comparative criteria necessary to determine the optimal location of the LNG terminal for the purpose of drafting regional level spatial planning documents. The presented methodology was carried out using the process of multicriteria ranking of variants. The method of weighted sum values was used. Weighting factors are determined partly in an exact way (where possible) and partly based on the application of Delphi group decision-making methods. The methodology was tested on a concrete example of variant analysis for the location of LNG terminals in the Republic of Croatia. By implementing the presented methodology, the location of the northern part of the island of Krk was determined as optimal for the location of the LNG terminal. The aforementioned was implemented in the Spatial Plan of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County, and the first phase of the receiving LNG terminal was built and put into full operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper aims at analyzing the basic features of inland waterways transport and the current condition of the European inland waterways network for the purpose of determining the potential opportunities for their better integration into the Trans -- European transport network. The comparative advantages of the inland waterways transport in relation to other transport modes appearprimarly in terms of safety and environmental acceptability and that is why the European transport policy gives to the improvement of this way of transport, beside the rail transport, priority within the whole transport system. An adequate development of the inland waterways network in accordance with the development strategy is a necessary precondition set for the improvement of inland navigation in the Republic of Croatia, which, despite its natural potential, is of minor importance in the structure of the realised transport. The implemented SWOT analysis provides a good basis for defining the potential strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the inland navigation system in the Republic of Croatia so important for setting up intermodal transport chains in Europe. Therefore, the goal of this paper is to indicate the possibilities, advantages and importance of inland waterways transport in order to integrate different transport sectors aiming at achieving the development and sustainability of the European transport system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]