The Development of European Waterways, Road and Rail Infrastructures: A Geographical Information System for the History of European Integration (1825-2005)

This project documents and assesses the contribution of new transport technologies and infrastructures to the process of European integration from 1825 to 2005. The results of the CRP will provide an empirical basis for multidisciplinary studies on the relationship between terrestrial infrastructures and the European integration. We develop a comprehensive historical pan-European digital geographical information system (GIS) comprising the inland waterways, road and rail networks of Europe. The area covered by the project is all of Europe except the former USSR plus the Baltic states and former Yugoslavia. This coverage is dictated by limitations in data availability