INTERCONNECT first study visit Nykøbing Falster (Denmark) and Rostock (Deutschland)
First study visit as part of the Interconnect project
During the study visit in Nykøbing Falster (Denmark) and Rostock (Deutschland) members of Interconnect project got to know and tested local, regional systems of public transport.
Study visit took place on December 10-12. Hosts of the event were representatives of Guldborgsund Municipality, Hanseatic City of Rostock and HIE-RO (Hanseatic Institute for Entrepreneurship and Regional Development). For the meetings and testing arrived guests from Sweden, Estonia, Lithuania and Poland.
10 December (Sunday) was a day for arriving and individual testing of public transport in Rostock or in Nykøbing (depending on the place accommodation).
First official point of the program (11 December) was workshops in Danish Guldborgsund Town Hall with the presentation of earlier transport in Guldborgsund by Frede Danborg. He told about traffic projects realised in the region with special emphasis on cross-border traffic with the participation of ferry service. The ferry terminal is located in Gedser. Frede Danborg presented system architecture control and passenger information technology in Verkehrsverbund Warnow (VVW) with the European Union project “Interface Plus”.
After that presentation took place little structural meeting. Agnieszka Wojtach from Innobaltica Ltd. (Poland) proposed general guidance for preparing the content of the study reports. Participants approved proposed solutions.
One of the most important parts of the visit was sightseeing of the Nykøbing communication node with the bus station. Guests tested ticket machines, they were watching solutions for disabled people, tried to use passenger information. From bus station participants departure by regular bus to Gedser Ferry Harbour.
In the old building of ferry station members of the study visit talked with representatives of this building object about the possibility of development ferry and public transport connection for so-called pedestrian passengers.
During cruise through the Baltic Sea (Mecklenburg Bay), arranged a meeting with diligent man of Scandlines (operator of the ferry line). The subject of the meeting was, among others, proportions between pedestrian passengers and car or tracks on the ferry and possibilities to increase the number of foot passengers. People from Interconnect were interested also in capabilities of hybrid drive that is installed on Scandlines ferries.
Next one important part of the tour was travelling by communication in Rostock – from the terminal in the suburban area to the centre of the city (by bus and tram), where was organized meeting with Andreas Schubert (Hanseatic City of Rostock) and Jan Bleis from Rostocker Stassenbahn AG about public transport in Rostock. Guests shared their travel impressions and asked about solutions implemented in local transport.
Last day of the study visit was Tuesday, December 12. In the time of morning assembly was time for discussions and conclusions. Except for Interconnect members, in debate took part people from Rostocker Stassenbahn AG (Janette Heidenreich and Jan Bleis), Planning Association Region Rostock (Lena Fischer), Verkehrsverbund Warnow VVW (Andrea Doliva) and Hanseatic City of Rostock (Andreas Schubert).
In the organizational part of meeting members detailed plan of the next activities, particularly a seminar report.
The event was finished by a press conference. Wiktor Szydarowski from Region Blekinge (leader of the project) described briefly for journalists main topics of Interconnect cooperation and summed up experiences of members during Rostock- Nykøbing visit. After individual interviews participants went in various directions to their homes.
Very meaning component of study visit is the questionnaire. Each partaker has got a sheet to complete until December 15. The goal of the survey is to assess passenger point of view following transport topics:
- Variety and quality of passenger information, timetables, ticketing systems, tariffs and infrastructure;
- Quality of transport services;
- Integration level of various means of public transport.
Summary of the survey will be done to the end of the December by Innobaltica employees.
