13. Smart archipelago traffic

Topics: Cross-border l Green transition l Infrastructure

Author: Nordiska Skärgårdssamarbetet

The Nordic Archipelago Cooperation (NSS) serves as a partner in the EU’s Horizon Europe Regions4Climate project, contributing expertise through its own Smart Archipelago Traffic initiative. This pilot project forms part of the broader Regions4Climate framework, spans five years, and is scheduled to conclude in 2027. Accordingly, the outcomes of NSS’s work are not only processed internally but are routinely shared with other Regions4Climate participants to support collaborative learning and impact.

The project falls under the NSS’s ‘green transition’ activities, as part of the vision put forward by the Nordic Council of Ministers to achieve ’the world’s most sustainable and integrated region’ by 2030. Against this backdrop, Regions4Climate aims to address current and future climate change-related challenges, and so build resilient European societies. This is to be done by, among other things, building knowledge, reducing uncertainty and bridging gaps between the worlds of science, politics and stakeholders.

The NSS has carried out an investigation into how best to organise a green transition in archipelago traffic, with a particular focus on the role of cross-border cooperation. In this study, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) was responsible for modelling routes and energy consumption to support the development of more sustainable archipelago transport. The findings will be presented to regional authorities, including the Åland County Government. The results—published under the title ‘Can Cross-border Business Models Enable the Green Transition of Ferry Traffic in the Nordic Archipelago?’—were shared at an inspirational seminar held in Stockholm in December 2024, attended by leading politicians and officials.

The work going forward will encompass assessing inter-island transport, renewing transport connections and choosing renewable energy solutions. Throughout, the guiding objective is to develop a vision and action plan in conjunction with stakeholders. Workshops involving NSS members will continue to provide input towards this end.