Spatial Planning and Multinational Implementation of European Mega Transport Infrastructure—The Case of the European Strategy for the Danube Region

Abstract

Dealing with the implementation challenges of Corridor 5 within the Poly5 project, it become evident that a multinational spatial strategy for the involved regions was missing. Planning for this mega transport infrastructure (MTI) was elaborated in sector-based planning approaches, where effects on the environment, economic and regional settlement structure have not (or lately) been considered. Thus, a series of difficulties appeared while building this important piece of the Trans-European Networks (TEN). Would the implementation have not been so conflicting if the interests of regions and local communities and the effects of this MTI were considered in a common spatial strategy? This question could not be answered, since the implementation of this MTI already started and no one can say if things would have been done better with such a spatial strategy. However, the idea came up on the possibility to get some answers from another strategy which is just about to be implemented—the European Union Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR). This chapter will investigate whether the EUSDR could contribute to the implementation of MTI in the Danube region.