The ReNEW consortium has published a white paper outlining a capacity-building roadmap and key policy recommendations to make Europe’s inland waterways more resilient, smart and green.
The paper Capacity Building Strategy Roadmap and Key Policy Recommendations produced by our partner VIL outlines a capacity-building roadmap and key policy recommendations to make Europe’s inland waterways more resilient, smart and green. The paper synthesises a broad stakeholder survey on solution uptake, implementation rates and acceptance; a review of technical deliverables (D1.3, D4.7, D4.10, D4.13, D4.16); and interviews with living-lab leads, hazard/vulnerability assessors and developers of ReNEW’s digital-twin tools. It also assesses the societal impacts of innovations such as autonomous barges (WP2) and the implications for workforce reorganisation. To ensure policy coherence, the recommendations are benchmarked against the European Green Deal , the EU Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy, Fit for 55, and NAIADES III .
A companion white paper ReNEW Solutions – Survey Report also produced by VIL details the survey findings. The survey focused on four solution lines developed within the project: modular pontoons for resilient logistics hubs; a waterway infrastructure resilience management approach; a digital transport planning tool; and resilience-promoting autonomous barges. Respondents were asked to rate the relevance and acceptance of each solution, identify barriers to adoption, and highlight drivers that could accelerate deployment, from policy incentives and market demand to cost, safety and reliability benefits.
With this survey, ReNEW targeted a broad cross-section of stakeholders—waterway and port authorities, barge operators and logistics firms, technology providers, training bodies and public authorities—to capture perspectives across the IWT value chain. Findings fed a set of “necessary actions” and tailored recommendations that aligned with EU priorities mentioned above and positioned inland waterways as a more reliable, future-proof transport option amid increasingly disrupted operating conditions across Europe.
