PLANNING FOR A SUSTAINABLE EUROPE? - TU Berlin

343
moderate increase in private vehicle ownership in Hungary during the 1980s. The other
decisive trend – similar to other transition economies, albeit somewhat earlier than
elsewhere – was the continued changeover from rail-based to road-based, increasingly
small trucking-dominated transport in the freight sector. Figure 8.3 illustrates this
development, which together with the continued parallel rise in private vehicle
ownership, led to increasing political pressure for highway expansion.
As early as 1992, the Hungarian government adopted the so-called “principles of
the Hungarian transport policy.” From these, four strategic directions were developed,
which are considered “of equal importance” and elaborated further in the official
Hungarian Transport Policy adopted in 1996 (KÖVIM 1996):
- Promotion of integration into the European Union
- Enhancement of the conditions of co-operation with the neighboring
countries, and of a more balanced regional development of the country,
- Protection of human life and of the environment, and
- Effective, market-oriented transport regulations
Figure 8.3 The Rise of Road-Based Freight Transport in Hungary (1980-1994)
Change in Modal Split
for Hungarian Freight Transport
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
1980 1985 1990 1994
Road (including Small Truckers)
Small Truckers
Rail
Inland Waterways*
Pipelines
* From 1993 numbers are inconsistent
due to exclusion of deep sea shipping
Data Source: Ministry of Transport (1996, Appendix, Table 4)