River Information Services for commercial users in the Inland Waterway sector

The Inland Navigation sector offers free capacities for the European transport market by providing a considerable network of waterways and inland ports across Europe and therefore a very environmentally friendly transport service. During the last decades the information and communication technologies (ICT) did also influence this transport mode significantly resulting in the realisation and implementation of so-called river information services (RIS): information services to support traffic and transport management in inland navigation. Based on the EU RIS Directive (2005/44/EC) basic RIS (traffic information, traffic management, information for law enforcement support, etc.) have been adopted into regulations of the European Commission. River Information Services can provide benefits both for public authorities and for commercial enterprises in the transport and logistics sector (shippers, carriers, logistics operators, ports and others). While until today merely selected services for the traffic side have been specified and developed, the transport-logistics side has not been consistently addressed yet. Nevertheless, in order to promote the integration of inland waterway transport (IWT) into multi-and intermodal transport-logistics chains, innovative approaches and systems are needed. Based on the needs and requirements established by the IWT-industry actors, additional River Information Services have been identified and are under development, which support planning and management operations for commercial actors working in the IWT and intermodal market.