‘Motorways of the Sea’ (MoS) and Related European Policies

Within the framework of the European transport policy, a cornerstone of the EU supporting the efficient integration and cohesion of its internal market, the ‘Motorways of the Sea’ (MoS) concept was introduced as an effective means to alleviate congestion from road transport infrastructure. MoS comprise sea-based transport services integrated into door-to-door logistics chains aiming to concentrate freight flows on viable, regular, frequent, high-quality, and reliable short sea shipping links. MoS became one of the 30 priority projects for the development of the trans-European transport network efficiently complementing the core hinterland corridors and supporting, in that way, the provision of multimodal transport services. Four maritime corridors were designated as MoS with their development being supported by a series of projects funded under two main programmes.