CHAMPIONS - Description

Accessibility is an essential factor for improving competiveness and a necessary precondition for growth and an economic development. Free movement of people, goods and information increases efficiency and improves the development prospects for the regions. However, compared to Western Europe the majority of Central Europe suffers from significant accessibility deficits. This accessibility gap is reflected by significantly higher travel times as well as poor intramodal and intermodal links - with detrimental effects on business settlements, regional-economic development, and tourist attractiveness.

The idea for the CHAMPIONS project was born about two years ago due to the decision to have the UEFA Football Championship 2012 organised in the Ukraine and in Poland. This decision put a focus on the weak accessibility of many airport regions in the Central Europe Programme area by means of air transport. CHAMPIONS' aim is to strengthen the cohesion of regions in Central Europe through a better accessibility by air transport on the one hand and innovative and sustainable solutions for public transport on the other hand. Missing interconnectivity between air and public transport can be a reason for the lack of accessibility of regions or cities and a low share of sustainable public transport.

12 participating regions, airports and institutes from 6 countries, including the Ukraine, which face similar challenges in terms of accessibility, interconnectivity and public transport services, have therefore joined to find accessibility solutions to foster business and tourism activities in their regions.

Total budget: 1,979,799 €                                    ERDF contribution: 1,632,375 €