EUROPEAN REGIONAL POLICY, TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Improvement to transport infrastructure has been a major component of both UK Government and European Commission regional policy, particularly through funding programmes such as the European Regional Development Fund and Integrated Development Operations. This paper first considers the role of such European regional policy support for transport infrastructure in the economic development of a specific peripheral region. The paper then analyses survey evidence concerning the importance of transport upon the inter- and intra-regional location of industrial and commercial firms and land use in that region. The paper concludes with a discussion of the wider issues regarding the identification of the nature and importance of links between transport infrastructure provision, regional policy and economic development. (A) For the covering abstract of the seminar see IRRD 863417.