All together now

Huw Thomas | 20 Jul 2009

Why building better networks could revolutionise Europe’s infrastructure future

I’m sure I’m not the only person who emits an audible sigh of displeasure when a TV advert, most often for a mobile phone network, starts banging on about how great it is to be ‘connected’. Backed by an irritatingly cute soundtrack, these ads tend to feature gangs of impossibly good-looking people having their already wonderful lives improved immeasurably by the ability to say in uninterrupted contact with one another. Living in the age of the social network and the omnipresent mobile phone, being connected is presented as aspirational. Curmudgeon that I am, I find it all quite nauseating.

Regardless of my personal antipathy, the concept of connectedness could be key to the next leap forward in European infrastructure development. Building better networks across the continent has the potential to safeguard both our environmental and economic future. High-speed rail lines are flourishing across much of continental Europe. As these networks improve, the train is becoming a truly viable alternative to short haul flights. The opening of the Madrid to Barcelona line allows travel between the two cities in under three hours. The train is taking an increasing share of passenger numbers on the route, as travellers opt to avoid the many onerous features of air transit for a comfortable service that deposits them in the heart of their destination city.

There is no reason why such services should be constrained by national borders. There are already international connections on certain high-speed routes, so a future where people are able to travel the length of the continent by fast train isn’t so outlandish.

In energy too, making new connections could be of tremendous benefit. The huge drive towards renewable sources of power presents opportunities as well as challenges. To exploit Europe’s massive capacity for offshore and onshore wind power, new transmission infrastructure will have to be built. If we are starting from scratch anyway, why not think ahead to construct a truly pan-European network? Tackling such a project in a concerted way could help resolve the reliability issues that can dog renewable energy. The wind will always be blowing somewhere, so it makes sense to be able to funnel energy from the source to where it is most needed.

But to make this work will require a far more concerted approach than we have seen previously. Governments and planners will need to cast off their tribal tendencies and embrace a common future. These are exactly the kind of projects that the European Union was designed to facilitate, but which have traditionally been far too slow to get moving. Things need to change and we need to start working together. Forget the TV ads – that’s the kind of connectedness I could really get behind.