Pro Danube - News

: 25 June 2020

COMPETING: release of updated project factsheet

COMPETING will pave the way towards a future-oriented EU-wide harmonised education system for inland navigation by introducing commonly accepted standards in both the evaluation process and the training of crew members.

Sustainable solutions, automation and digitalisation as well as communication on the European level will be the pillars of the education and training programmes. The ultimate goal of the project is to increase labour mobility in the inland shipping sector.

The latest version of Competing's factheet is available for download here.

: 25 June 2020

PhysICAL: establishing physical internet in transport logistics

Acknowledging the importance of physical internet in the development of future-oriented transport logistics, Pro Danube is happy to announce that it is a member of the PhysICAL project consortium, a partnership covering major Austrian logistics companies.

The continuous increase of goods transported and processed on a global level poses serious challenges for both environment and society. 17 partners are actively engaged in the PhysICAL project – “Physical Internet through Cooperative Austrian Logistics" - having the core objective to efficiently implement physical internet in cooperative logistics, using different types of smart technologies and applications. The project is lead by Fraunhofer Austria and funded in the framework of the National FTI-Program “Mobility of the Future” by the Austrian Ministry for Climate Protection (FTI Programm “Mobilität der Zukunft”, Bundesministerium für Klimaschutz).

The official press release is available for download here.

: 22 June 2020

Pro Danube contributes to the development of a minimum standard for resuming river cruises in Europe under COVID-19

Pro Danube – with the involvement of its member from the white fleet – has collaborated to the IG River Cruise´s and European Barge Union´s initiative to develop a guideline for a minimum standard for resuming river cruises in Europe under COVID-19. The guideline includes the minimum standards regarding issues such as safety distances, disinfection, hygiene in all rooms of the ship (including kitchen and crew rooms) and regulates the reporting in the event of any illnesses. The clear aim of the measures is that the ship remains a safe place to stay and work for both guests and crew. The measures are strongly geared towards the hotel industry. In our opinion, this guide offers the desired flexibility for all companies in the river cruise shipping sector.

These measures have also been discussed at the last online Steering Group meeting of the EUSDR PA1a in May 2020 where Pro Danube also gave an update from the industry perspective

: 03 April 2020

Request for action to support the change of the vessel crew during the COVID-19 crisis in each of the Danube Riparian Countries

Pro Danube International acted on behalf of the shipping industry and officially contacted the Secretariat of the Danube Commission for action to support the change of the vessel crew during the COVID-19 crisis. The past weeks with the COVID-19 crisis have shown how important solidarity, transparency and widely harmonised actions are. It is also being proven every day that transport and logistics are essential elements not only to ensure the flow of cargo, but to serve the citizens daily needs in these difficult times.

In respect of harmonised solutions for transport and logistics, Pro Danube International pointed out, that the most urgent action to be taken as soon as possible, is to ensure the free circulation of the crew members for river-vessel. In line with the EU’s Green Lane, PDI urged for a solution in order to allow the change of vessel crew members in each of the Danube Riparian Countries.

The full letter with detailed proposals is available here.