Filenews 3 July 2025
The European Commission has selected 94 projects in the transport sector that will receive EU grants of almost €2.8 billion. under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).
The projects include the modernisation of railways, inland waterways and maritime routes through the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T).
Among the projects, funding is also included in Cyprus, for the upgrading of ports with shore-based electricity projects to reduce emissions from docked ships.
A European Commission communication states that the projects will not only help to better connect Europe's regions and cities from north to south and from east to west, but will also make the European Union's internal market more competitive and more resilient.
The green transition is based on rail transport
Rail transport will receive the largest share of funding (77% of the total) with investments for major infrastructure upgrades across the TEN-T core network and the comprehensive network, especially in cohesion countries. These include the construction of Rail Baltica in the Baltic region and Poland, as well as improvements in Greece and Slovakia. High-speed rail lines will also be developed in the Czech Republic and Poland.
In addition, 46 projects in 11 Member States, including Austria, Germany, Italy, Hungary and Sweden, will deploy the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) on trains and tracks, improving rail safety and interoperability across borders.
Greener ports, more resilience
As stated in the Commission's communication, the EU is investing in a number of projects to reduce the environmental impact of maritime and inland waterway transport. These include upgrading ports in Ireland, Cyprus, Malta, Croatia and Poland, with shore-based electrification projects to reduce emissions from ships at berth.
Support will be given to the construction and upgrade of multi-purpose icebreakers in Estonia, Finland and Sweden to enhance the safety and resilience of submarine cables, in line with the recent EU Action Plan.
In France and Spain, digital traffic management systems will also be developed to improve the safety and efficiency of short sea shipping and reduce congestion.
As far as inland waterways are concerned, upgrades will be made along the Rhine in France, while in Belgium the digitalisation of waterborne transport will proceed.
Smarter and safer transport networks
In the road transport sector, safe and secure car parks will be built or upgraded in 10 Member States, including Germany, France, Italy and Romania. The projects will also support the development of cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS), improving road safety and traffic flow, especially in urban areas.
Air traffic management projects will continue to promote the development of the Single European Sky, in order to create a safer, more efficient and sustainable air transport system. This will reduce congestion, reduce emissions and improve the overall aviation experience, the Commission points out.
Urban mobility will also be improved, with funding to prepare for the construction or upgrade of multimodal passenger hubs in cities such as Leuven (Belgium), Norrköping (Sweden), Nice and Marseille (France) and Bolzano (Italy). These hubs will enable uninterrupted connections between the different modes of transport, facilitating the mobility of citizens in cities.
Strategic investments and solidarity investments
In addition, the European Commission says that the EU is using its efforts to strengthen the EU-Ukraine solidarity lanes, with projects to improve rail connectivity and border crossing points between Slovakia and Ukraine, as well as between Romania and Moldova. "EU support will help Ukraine adopt the EU standard gauge, facilitating seamless cross-border rail traffic and boosting regional trade," it said.
In addition, the EU will support a project to strengthen the accessibility and resilience of infrastructure in the Arctic region for the security of supply routes and the development of dual-use infrastructure capable of coping with climate change.
Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, said that by providing almost €2.8 billion in EU funding. "We are delivering on Europe's promise of a modern, sustainable and resilient transport network. These 94 projects will not only improve cross-border connectivity and efficiency, but will also boost competitiveness across the continent. From Rail Baltica in the north to shore-based electricity to southern ports, and from safe road networks to a smarter Single European Sky, this investment is a cornerstone of the Green Deal and our geopolitical resilience," he said.
The CEF Committee approved the list of 94 selected projects on Wednesday. The European Commission will now formally adopt the selection decision and CINEA will start drawing up grant agreements for the selected projects. The agreements are expected to be finalized by October 2025. The results are currently provisional and will become official as soon as the Commission adopts the corresponding award decision.
As noted, the 94 projects were selected from a total of 258 applications submitted under the recent call for proposals that closed on 21 January 2025.
EU funding for projects will be provided in the form of grants, which will co-finance the total eligible costs of the projects.
The CEF transport programme for the period 2021-2027 has a total budget of €25.8 billion. It is available to finance projects in all EU Member States, as well as Ukraine and Moldova, two CEF associated countries. With this last option, 95% of this budget has now been allocated.
Since its launch in 2014, the Connecting Europe Facility has supported 1,861 projects in the transport sector (including the last 94 projects selected), totalling €47.34 billion.
