ASECAP Conference - Introduction to the plenum session

Ladies and gentlemen, dear participants!

A good transportation system is an important nerve centre in any country.

Good transport veins provide people with better mobility and promote greater participation in society – and business and industry gain the opportunity to transport their goods to and from national and international markets.

As minister of transport and communications, I am very interested in making our country smaller, safer and more environmentally friendly.

The Government has established superior goals for this as laid down in Norway's National Transport Plan:

To offer an effective, accessible, safe and environmentally friendly transport system that covers society's needs for transport and promoting regional development.

This sounds easy – but it is not.

Unfortunately, there will never be enough money to accomplish all our goals. Careful prioritisation will always be necessary.

Some measures that seem valuable for one goal may not be valuable for a different goal. An effective and highly accessible transport network is the ultimate goal of any transport policy. We also need to balance the negative effects on the environment with the benefits of traffic safety.

We also need to balance the negative effects on the environment with the benefits of traffic safety.

High mobility does not necessarily need to be a threat to the environment, but it often is. Simply increasing mobility without considering the environment can be fatal.

Everything depends on whether we are able to make the right choices and do the right things or not. To do this we need knowledge. Research will be an important factor in this regard in years to come.

As council of state, I am pleased to be able to participate in the development of more roads and railway lines.

Our country seems to get smaller every time a new tunnel, bridge or two-lane road is finished, and our country becomes a better place to live.

Our national infrastructure is not finished – neither roads nor rails. There is still much to gain by improving capacity, accessibility and traffic safety.

Still, the climate crisis may be the greatest challenge we are now facing. In Norway, transport accounts for 29 % of greenhouse gas emissions on a national basis.

This number is even higher in the cities. This is not sustainable development.

Norway's Climate Report presents the Government's goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the transport sector of between 2.5 and 4 million CO2 equivalents by 2020 – compared with what would have happened if no measures had been implemented.

If we are to be able to meet our climate goals for the transport sector, we must apply measures to a wide range of areas.

We need to invest in improving our railways and public transport systems, we must learn to walk and use bicycles more and we must reduce energy consumption for every vehicle.

I also believe that much of the solution lies in thinking in the direction of differentiation. We live in a complex country.

This is why we need to find a solution for each problem that can be adapted to specific challenges and needs of the different regions.

This Government leads an active urban policy. We will increase accessibility and improve the environment in our cities!

To do this we will invest more in railways and public transport, and use a more active system for rewarding better usage behaviour. We have also carried out a successful reorganisation of our one-time fee for new cars.

The automobile is often the only means of transportation available for people living in rural areas. Investments in transport in the districts can expand a region and create better regional centres – and make these areas more attractive for new inhabitants.

Road construction strengthens local business and industry and brings employment into the districts! Good road maintenance is decisive here – in addition to good winter care and avalanche control.

In a country like ours, the car will always be a necessary part of society, but we must move toward much more emission-free fuels like electrical cars, hydrogen and bio-fuel.

The Norwegian Government presented an ambitious transport plan last year. More than 321 billion kroner (about 38 billion Euro) will be used for the transport sector and communications the next ten years.

We have now started work on the new National Transport Plan, which will be presented in the spring of 2013.

One of its main focus areas in coming years will be to see how we can use funds more effectively and get more out money invested.

We will be putting great emphasis on how resources are used in the sector, and we will be inviting many important operators to discuss this with us.

I am now finished presenting my thoughts about the future of Norway's transport policy and our plan to make our transport system safer, more effective and environmentally friendly.

I now look forward to hearing your opinions and I am excited about the coming debate.

Thank you!