Baltic Press - Baltic Transport Journal

Shortsea Shipping on the Baltic
by Willy De Decker, Shortsea Promotion Centre Flanders

In the mid-1990s the European Commission launched the term “shortsea shipping” (SSS), being the transport of cargo and passengers, using the coastal waters throughout Europe, including the Mediterranean Sea (North Africa), the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea. This meant a much wider geographical spectrum than the previous “coastal navigation”.

Also, the limitation of “small” vessels was abandoned. In certain countries sea-river vessels deliver cargo directly to the customer’s premises on rivers and canals. The European Commission’s aim is that shortsea shipping contributes to solving the congestion problem on European roads.

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