Case Study: Central And Eastern Europe's Logistics Infrastructure: Connecting The Dots

When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, the CEE's transport infrastructure was in disrepair. During their 40-plus years under communist rule, the CEE countries had underinvested woefully in their motorways, railways, ports, and airports. The best infrastructure — that is, the least inadequate — was found in and around the major cities.

Major improvements have been made in recent years. Bolstered by sizable EU subsidies, the CEE countries have already spent billions of euros to improve their logistics infrastructure — and are planning to spend billions more to complete the task. Some countries have made more progress than others, but new regional distribution corridors are emerging to accommodate the growing trade volumes between and among the CEE countries as well as between CEE and the rest of the world.