Brussels, 17/11/2014 (Agence Europe) - According to a study commissioned by the Community of European Railways (CER), abandoning the railways would be the equivalent of losing 2% of European GDP or the equivalent of creating a major economic recession. The study was published on Saturday 15 November and in addition to the economic aspects, it also paints a rather flattering picture of the social and environmental aspects of rail transport.
Carried out by Ecorys consultants, the report indicates that the European rail sector directly and indirectly created €143 billion in gross added value in 2011, the equivalent of 1.1% of European GDP. The sector therefore accounts for more than air transport (€53 billion) or maritime and inland waterways (€32 billion), excluding comparisons with road transport. This mode of transport is also important at a social level because the study reveals that one job created in the rail sector generates another in other peripheral sectors. 1.06 million Europeans are employed in the railway sector, which also generates 1.21 million jobs indirectly. Under a theoretical scenario, and allowing for the further inclusion of induced effects, if all the economic effects attributable to the rail transport sector were removed without being replaced by other economic activities, the economy could lose more than 2 % of GDP. Such a value is comparable to the impact of a major economic recession.
On the basis of 2011 figures, the report concludes that rail is now in pride of place with regard to environmental performance and CO2 emissions per passenger and kilometre, and accounts for 2.6 times fewer emissions than road transport. (MD)