Om inloppet ifrån Östersjön : till SöderTelje eller Egelsta wiken

Author: Nathanael Gerhard af Schultén.

Siirtymätalouksien tutkimuslaitoksen (BOFIT) kokoelma

Suomen Pankin kirjastolla on erilliskokoelma Siirtymätalouksien tutkimuslaitoksessa, BOFITissa. Kokoelma on painottunut siirtymätalouksia käsittelevään tieteelliseen kirjallisuuteen, tilasto- ja kausijulkaisuihin. Kokoelmaa on kartutettu 1980-luvulta lähtien ja siihen sisältyy merkittävä määrä nimekkeitä, joita ei ole hankittu muihin suomalaisiin kirjastoihin. Kokoelmaa on rajattu sekä aihepiireiltään että maantieteellisesti kulloistenkin tutkimuspainopisteiden mukaisesti. Kokoelman keskeinen aihealue on makrotalous ja erityisinä painopisteinä ovat rahatalous, talouspolitiikka ja talousuudistukset. Paljon kirjallisuutta löytyy myös raha- ja valuuttapolitiikasta, pankkitoiminnasta ja kansainvälisistä taloussuhteista. Maantieteellisinä painopisteinä ovat tällä hetkellä erityisesti Venäjä ja Kiina. Vanhempaa aineistoa löytyy myös Baltian sekä Itä-Euroopan maista, Neuvostoliitosta sekä Suomen idänkaupasta. Kirjakokoelma sisältää n. 5300 nimekettä, lehtikokoelma n. 150 nimekettä. Artikkeliviitteitä löytyy n. 2300 vuodesta 1990 lähtien. Kokoelma sisältää tiedot myös kaikesta BOFITin omasta julkaisutuotannosta. Suurin osa kokoelmasta on englanninkielistä.

Päättymätön modernin tutkiminen

Kirjallisuusarvostelu

Pikkulinnut kuolevat nuorina

Kirjallisuusarvostelu

Information exchange and disruption risk in multimodal maritime supply chains

Supply chains are becoming increasingly dependent on information ex-change in today’s world, and any disruption can cause severe repercus-sions to the flow of materials in the chain. The speed, accuracy and amount of information are key factors. The aim in this thesis is to address a gap in the research by focusing on information exchange and the risks related to it in a multimodal wood supply chain operating between the Baltic States and Finland. The study involved interviewing people engaged in logistics management in the supply chain in question. The main risk the interviewees identified arose from the sea logistics system, which held a lot of different kinds of information. The threat of breakdown in the Internet connection was also found to hinder the operations significantly. A vulnerability analysis was carried out in order to identify the main actors and channels of infor-mation flow in the supply chain. The analysis revealed that the most important and therefore most vulnerable information-exchange channels were those linking the terminal superintendent, the operative managers and the mill managers. The study gives a holistic picture of the investigated supply chain. Information-exchange-related risks varied greatly. One of the most frequently mentioned was the risk of information inaccuracy, which was usually due to the fact that those in charge of the various functions did not fully understand the consequences for the entire chain.

Undervattensmiljön i norra Östersjön : Viktigt att tänka på vid havsnära planering

Undervattensmiljön i skärgårdarna och de kustnära områdena i norra Östersjön är mångformiga och produktiva. Arternas levnadsmil-jöer styrs bl.a. av bottentyp, exponeringsgrad och ljustillgång. Kunskap och information om undervattensarterna är av stor vikt för en hållbar planering av kust- och havsmiljön. Denna rapport beskriver indelningen av de viktigaste undervattenshabitaten i norra Östersjöns kustvatten samt hur ett naturvärde på dessa miljöer kan uppskattas på basen av de olika ekologiska funktioner som habitatet uppfyller. De mest inflytelserika mänskliga hoten, både små- och storskaliga, som allvarligt kan hota habitatens fortbestånd behandlas också. Habitaten som beskrivs är både av typen hårdbotten och mjukbotten. Hårdbottenssamhällena bildar distinkta bälten från ytan mot bott-nen: trådalgszonen, zonen med stora fleråriga brunalger (Fucus vesiculosus, F. radicans), rödalgszonen och blåmusselzonen (Mytilus edulis/trossulus). Mjukbottensamhällena är uppbyggda kring ålgräs (Zostera marina), andra vattenlevande kärlväxter eller kransalger. En stor del av både de grunda och djupa mjukbottnarna saknar vegetation och samhällena struktureras då av ryggradslösa djur i och på sedi-mentytan. Habitaten har klassificerats och värderats enligt en tvåstegsmodell. Först har habitaten namngivits efter den dominerande arten eller artgruppen som bestämts enligt täckningsgrad. Därefter har varje habitat getts ett värde enligt sin ekologiska betydelse. Naturvärdet är indelat i skalan 1-5. Projektet NANNUT – The Nature and Nurture in the Northern Baltic Sea – har gjort inventeringar av undervattensmiljön på olika håll av kusterna och skärgårdarna i Finland 2010-2011. Målsättningen har varit att utveckla enkla och kostnadseffektiva metoder både för kartering och värdering av undervattenshabitat. Det huvudsakliga undersökningsområdet var förlagt till Raseborgsstad i södra Finland.

Pohjois-Itämeren vedenalainen luonto : Huomioon otettavaa merenläheisten alueiden suunnittelussa

Saaristojen ja rannikkoalueiden vedenalainen luonto pohjoisella Itämerellä on monimuotoista ja tuottavaa. Lajien elinympäristöjen erilaisuutta säätelee mm. pohjan laatu, avoimuus ja valonsaanti. Vedenalaislajiston tuntemus on hyvin tärkeää kestävässä rannikko- ja merialueiden suunnittelussa. Tämä raportti kuvailee tärkeimpien pohjoisen Itämeren rannikkovesien vedenalaiselinympäristöjen jaottelun sekä miten näiden ympäristöjen luontoarvoa voidaan luokitella kyseisen ympäristön ekologisten toimintojen perusteella. Myös elinympäristöjen säilymistä uhkaavat ihmisen aiheuttamat laajat ja pienemmät uhat esitellään raportissa. Kuvaillut elinympäristöt edustavat sekä pehmeän että kovan pohjan vedenalaisluontoa. Kovan pohjan elinympäristöt muodostavat erillisiä vyöhykkeitä mentäessä meren pinnasta pohjaan: rihmalevävyöhyke, monivuotisten, suurien ruskolevien vyöhyke (Fucus vesiculosus, F. radicans), punalevävyöhyke ja sinisimpukkavyöhyke (Mytilus edulis/trossulus). Kuvaillut pehmeän pohjan elinympäristöt rakentuvat meriajokkaan (Zostera marina),muiden vedessä elävien putkilokasvien tai näkinpartaislevien ympärille. Suuressa osassa sekä matalista että syvistä pehmeistä pohjista ei ole ollenkaan kasvillisuutta ja silloin eliöyhteiskunnan muodostaa hienoaineksen päällä ja sisällä elävät selkärangattomat eläimet. Elinympäristöt on luokiteltu ja arvotettu kaksiportaisen mallin mukaan. Ensin elinympäristö on nimetty peittävyyden perusteella vallitsevan lajin tai lajiryhmän mukaan. Tämän jälkeen jokaisella elinympäristölle annettiin arvo sen ekologisen tärkeyden perusteella. Luontoarvot on luokiteltu asteikoilla 1-5. NANNUT-hanke (The Nature and Nurture in the Northern Baltic Sea) on tehnyt vedenalaiskartoituksia eri puolilla Suomen rannikkoa ja saaristossa vuosina 2010 – 2011. Tavoitteena on ollut kehittää yksinkertaisia ja kustannustehokkaita menetelmiä sekä vedenalaisluonnon kartoittamiseen että sen arvottamiseen. Pääasiallinen tutkimus alue sijaitsi Raaseporin kunnan alueella Etelä-Suomessa.

Climate driven changes in temperature, pH and food quality : effects on copepod reproduction

Increased emissions of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere are causing an anthropogenic climate change. The resulting global warming challenges the ability of organisms to adapt to the new temperature conditions. However, warming is not the only major threat. In marine environments, dissolution of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere causes a decrease in surface water pH, the so called ocean acidification. The temperature and acidification effects can interact, and create even larger problems for the marine flora and fauna than either of the effects would cause alone. I have used Baltic calanoid copepods (crustacean zooplankton) as my research object and studied their growth and stress responses using climate predictions projected for the next century. I have studied both direct temperature and pH effects on copepods, and indirect effects via their food: the changing phytoplankton spring bloom composition and toxic cyanobacterium. The main aims of my thesis were: 1) to find out how warming and acidification combined with a toxic cyanobacterium affect copepod reproductive success (egg production, egg viability, egg hatching success, offspring development) and oxidative balance (antioxidant capacity, oxidative damage), and 2) to reveal the possible food quality effects of spring phytoplankton bloom composition dominated by diatoms or dinoflagellates on reproducing copepods (egg production, egg hatching, RNA:DNA ratio). The two copepod genera used, Acartia sp. and Eurytemora affinis are the dominating mesozooplankton taxa (0.2 – 2 mm) in my study area the Gulf of Finland. The 20°C temperature seems to be within the tolerance limits of Acartia spp., because copepods can adapt to the temperature phenotypically by adjusting their body size. Copepods are also able to tolerate a pH decrease of 0.4 from present values, but the combination of warm water and decreased pH causes problems for them. In my studies, the copepod oxidative balance was negatively influenced by the interaction of these two environmental factors, and egg and nauplii production were lower at 20°C and lower pH, than at 20°C and ambient pH. However, presence of toxic cyanobacterium Nodularia spumigena improved the copepod oxidative balance and helped to resist the environmental stress, in question. In addition, adaptive maternal effects seem to be an important adaptation mechanism in a changing environment, but it depends on the condition of the female copepod and her diet how much she can invest in her offspring. I did not find systematic food quality difference between diatoms and dinoflagellates. There are both good and bad diatom and dinoflagellate species. Instead, the dominating species in the phytoplankton bloom composition has a central role in determining the food quality, although copepods aim at obtaining as a balanced diet as possible by foraging on several species. If the dominating species is of poor quality it can cause stress when ingested, or lead to non-optimal foraging if rejected. My thesis demonstrates that climate change induced water temperature and pH changes can cause problems to Baltic Sea copepod communities. However, their resilience depends substantially on their diet, and therefore the response of phytoplankton to the environmental changes. As copepods are an important link in pelagic food webs, their future success can have far reaching consequences, for example on fish stocks.

E-PORT. Improving efficiency of Finnish port community by intelligent systems Final report of the Mobile Port project

The management of port-related supply chains is challenging due to the complex and heterogeneous operations of the ports with several actors and processes. That is why the importance of information sharing is emphasised in the ports. However, the information exchange between different port-related actors is often cumbersome and it still involves a lot of manual work and paper. Major ports and port-related actors usually have advanced information systems in daily use but these systems are seldom interoperable with each other, which prevents economies of scale to be reached. Smaller ports and companies might not be equipped with electronic data transmission at all. This is the final report of the Mobile port (MOPO) project, which has sought ways to improve the management and control of port-related sea and inland traffic with the aid of ICT technologies. The project has studied port community systems (PCS) used worldwide, evaluated the suitability of a PCS for the Finnish port operating environment and created a pilot solution of a Finnish PCS in the port of HaminaKotka. Further, the dry port concept and its influences on the transportation system have been explored. The Mobile Port project comprised of several literature reviews, interviews of over 50 port-related logistics and/or ICT professionals, two different kinds of simulation models as well as designing and implementing of the pilot solution of the Finnish PCS. The results of these multiple studies are summarised in this report. Furthermore, recommendations for future actions and the topics for further studies are addressed in the report. The study revealed that the information sharing in a typical Finnish port-related supply chain contains several bottlenecks that cause delays in shipments and waste resources. The study showed that many of these bottlenecks could be solved by building a port community system for the Finnish port community. Almost 30 different kinds of potential services or service entities of a Finnish PCS were found out during the study. The basic requirements, structure, interfaces and operation model of the Finnish PCS were also defined in the study. On the basis of the results of the study, a pilot solution of the Finnish PCS was implemented in the port of HaminaKotka. The pilot solution includes a Portconnect portal for the Finnish port community system (available at https://www.portconnect.fi) and two pilot applications, which are a service for handling the information flows concerning the movements of railway wagons and a service for handling the information flows between Finnish ports and Finland-Russian border. The study also showed that port community systems can be used to improve the environmental aspects of logistics in two different ways: 1) PCSs can bring direct environmental benefits and 2) PCSs can be used as an environmental tool in a port community. On the basis of the study, the development of the Finnish port community system should be continued by surveying other potential applications for the Finnish PCS. It is also important to study if there is need and resources to extend the Finnish PCS to operate in several ports or even on a national level. In the long run, it could be reasonable to clarify whether there would be possibilities to connect the Finnish PCS as a part of Baltic Sea wide, European-wide or even worldwide maritime and port-related network in order to get the best benefit from the system

Kirkkaasta sameaan : Meren kuormitus ja tila Saaristomerellä ja Ahvenanmaalla

Tässä raportissa tarkastellaan Saaristomeren ja Ahvenmaan merialueen kuormitusta ja tilaa ja niissä viime vuosikymmeninä tapahtuneita muutoksia vuosiin 2008 ja 2009 saakka. Pääpaino on ravinnekuormituksessa ja veden laadussa, mutta mukana on taustatietoa ja muun muassa katsaus kalakannoista. Saaristomeren ja Ahvenanmaan merialueen tila on heikentynyt huomattavasti viimeisten vuosikymmenten aikana. Erityisesti fosforin ja a-klorofyllin määrät ovat kasvaneet ja näkösyvyys pienenentynyt. Viimeisen kymmenen vuoden aikana pintaveden fosforipitoisuuden kasvu on laantunut suurimmassa osassa aluetta, mutta pohjanläheisessä vesikerroksessa ja talvella fosforipitoisuus on jatkanut kasvuaan monin paikoin viime vuosiin asti. Myös a-klorofyllin määrä on lisääntynyt ulko- ja välisaaristossa 2000-luvullakin. Viime vuosina klorofyllipitoisuuden kasvu on kuitenkin laantunut tai pitoisuus laskenut varsinkin rannikonläheisissä vesissä. Merialueen suurin paikallinen ravinnekuormittaja on maatalous, mutta varsinkin typpeä tulee runsaasti myös ilmalaskeumana. Sisäinen kuormitus ja virtausten mukana Suomenlahdelta ja muualta Itämereltä tulevat ravinteet heikentävät niin ikään merialueen tilaa. Muita ravinnelähteitä ovat mm. haja-asutus, jätevedenpuhdistamot ja kalankasvatus. Ahvenanmaan merialueelle ravinteita tulee enemmän muualta kuin Ahvenanmaalta. Hajakuormituksessa on tapahtunut viime vuosikymmeninä selviä vuodenaikaisia muutoksia. Vuosina 1990 – 2009 jokien mereen tuoma ravinne- ja kiintoainekuormitus on ollut talvisin ja syksyisin selvästi suurempaa kuin vuosina 1970 – 1989. Talviaikaisen kuormituksen lisääntyminen johtuu aiempaa lauhemmista talvista, ja antaa viitteitä ilmastonmuutoksen mukanaan tuomista muutoksista. Vaikka Saaristomeren ja Ahvenanmaan merialueen tilassa on ollut viime aikoina nähtävissä myönteisiäkin merkkejä, on niiden tila edelleen huolestuttava. Ainoa keino merialueen tilan parantamiseksi on kuormituksen huomattava vähentäminen. Vähentäminen koskee niin paikallisia ravinnelähteitä, erityisesti maataloutta, kuin muualta Itämereltä virtausten mukana tulevia ravinteita ja ilmalaskeumaa.

Kokemäenjoen suiston kehitys, maaperämuodostumat ja niiden kemialliset piirteet

Suurelta osin Natura-alueeseen kuuluvan Kokemäenjoen suistoalueen kuivan maan ja suiston edustan vesialueen erityyppisten maaperäkerrostumien kerrosjärjestys ja alueellinen jakautuminen selvitettiin pintamaaperän kartoituksella, tutkimuskaivannoilla ja kairauksella. Suiston kerrostumat luokiteltiin viiteen maaperämuodostumaan. Vanhimmasta nuorimpaan, Toukari, Vainio-Mattila, Hevosluoto, Lanajuopa ja Säikkä muodostumaan. Nämä edustavat vanhoja Itämeren altaan ja nuorempia merelle päin etenevän suiston eri osien kerrostumisympäristöjä. Eri muodostumien fysikaaliset ja kemialliset ominaisuudet kuvattiin ja ne eroavat luonteeltaan ratkaisevasti toisistaan. Suiston etenemistä edustavat Hevosluoto- ja Säikkä-muodostumat ovat kontaminoituneet 1900-luvun alkupuolelta lähtien yhä voimakkaammin ihmistoiminnasta kertyvistä raskasmetallipitoisuuksista ja orgaanisista haitta-aineista. Tämä näkyy erityisesti elohopean, kadmiumin, arseenin, lyijyn, sinkin, nikkelin, dioksiinien ja furaanien kokonaispitoisuuksien kasvuna näissä muodostumissa. Pitoisuudet ovat suurimpia muodostumien nuorimmissa osissa. Kuivalla maalla raskasmetallipitoisuudet ylittävät paikoin valtioneuvoston pilaantuneelle maaperälle asettamat kynnysarvot, jolloin säädökset on huomioitava suiston maaperää muokattaessa. Vesialueella nämä kynnysarvot ylittyvät myös orgaanisten haitta-aineiden osalta. Tietyin osin ovat esimerkiksi arseenin ja nikkelin osalta taustapitoisuudet suistoalueen vanhimmassa Toukari muodostumassa jo luontaisesti kynnysarvoja suuremmat. Tämä pitää osata ottaa huomioon maansiirtotoimenpiteitä suunniteltaessa. Suistoon kerrostuvan maa-aineksen ja nopean maankohoamisen vuoksi suisto etenee nykyisin 30-40 m vuodessa merialueelle päin. Tämä mataloittaa vääjäämättömästi suiston edustan vesialueita kerrostumisen siirtyessä merelle päin. Näin myös Natura-alueen ainutlaatuiset biotoopit vähitellen siirtyvät merelle päin.

Oil Transportation in the Gulf of Finland in 2020 and 2030

This study is part of the Minimizing risks of maritime oil transport by holistic safety strategies (MIMIC) project. The purpose of this study is to provide a current state analysis of oil transportation volumes in the Baltic Sea and to create scenarios for oil transportation in the Gulf of Finland for the years 2020 and 2030. Future scenarios and information about oil transportation will be utilized in the modelling of oil transportation risks, which will be carried out as part of the MIMIC project. Approximately 290 million tons of oil and oil products were transported in the Baltic Sea in 2009, of which 55% (160 million tons) via the Gulf of Finland. Oil transportation volumes in the Gulf of Finland have increased from 40 million to almost 160 million tonnes over the last ten years. In Russia and Estonia, oil transportation mainly consists of export transports of the Russian oil industry. In Finnish ports in the Gulf of Finland, the majority of oil traffic is concentrated to the port of Sköldvik, while the remainder mainly consists of different oil products for domestic use. Transit transports to/from Russia make up small volumes of oil transportation. The largest oil ports in the Gulf of Finland are Primorsk, Tallinn, St. Petersburg and Sköldvik. The basis for the scenarios for the years 2020 and 2030 is formed by national energy strategies, the EU`s climate and energy strategies as well other energy and transportation forecasts for the years 2020 and 2030. Three alternative scenarios were produced for both 2020 and 2030. The oil volumes are based on the expert estimates of nine specialists. The specialists gave three volumes for each scenario: the expected oil transport volumes, and the minimum and maximum volumes. Variations in the volumes between the scenarios are not large, but each scenario tends to have rather a large difference between the figures for minimum and maximum volumes. This variation between the minimum and maximum volumes ranges around 30 to 40 million tonnes depending on the scenario. On the basis of this study, no a dramatic increase in oil transportation volumes in the Gulf of Finland is to be expected. Most of the scenarios only forecasted a moderate growth in maritime oil transportation compared to the current levels. The effects of the European energy policy favouring renewable energy sources can be seen in the 2030 scenarios, in which the transported oil volumes are smaller than in the 2020 scenarios. In the Slow development 2020 scenario, oil transport volumes for 2020 are expected to be 170.6 Mt (million tonnes), in the Average development 2020 187.1 Mt and in the Strong development 2020 201.5 Mt. The corresponding oil volumes for the 2030 scenarios were 165 Mt for the Stagnating development 2030 scenario, 177.5 Mt for the Towards a greener society 2030 scenario and 169.5 Mt in the Decarbonising society 2030 scenario.

Driver of Demand in Cargo and Passenger Traffic Between Penta Ports

Maritime transport moves around 6 billion tonnes of freight every year. The freight consists of liquid bulks (45%), dry bulks (23%) and general cargo (32%). Freight traffic and transports chains vary according to region, commodity and the origin and the destination of freight. In the European Union the ports sector handles over 90% of the trade with third countries. The share of intra-EU trade is approximately 30% of the total transportation and the number of passengers is over 200 million every year. The Baltic Sea has more than 50,000 vessels a year pass the Skaw at the northernmost tip of Denmark on their way into or out of the Baltic. Roughly 60% to 70% of these vessels are cargo vessels and 17% to 25% tankers. Ports and maritime transport play a crucial role in global commerce today. Today’s business environment is changing rapidly, and the constant changes create challenges for the transport industry and maritime traffic. Ports have to adapt to continuous changes in economic structures, logistics demands, and people’s travel and leisure patterns. In order to ensure the competitiveness of sea connections, the ports need to fully enhance multilateral cross-border understanding and cooperation. In this report the focus is on liner traffic between five ports in the Central Baltic Region: Stockholm, Tallinn, Helsinki Turku and Naantali. The report defines the drivers of the demand for cargo and passenger traffic and highlights the most important factors. The economic situation and foreign trade of each county are elaborated on with detailed information about the flows of traffic between the five ports. Based on expert interviews, the main characteristics of each port, including strengths and weaknesses, are presented. The report is based on primary and secondary data. Primary data was received through interviews and mail surveys. Secondary data was attained through a literature research, statistics, data given by the PENTA ports and webpages. The report is divided into two main parts: the drivers creating the demand for transport and the results of current cargo and passenger flows between PENTA ports.

Dispersal and metacommunity dynamics in a soft-sediment benthic system : how well is the seafloor connected?

Connectivity depends on rates of dispersal between communities. For marine soft-sediment communities continued small-scale dispersal as post-larvae and as adults can be equally important in maintaining community composition, as initial recruitment of substrate by pelagic larvae. In this thesis post-larval dispersal strategies of benthic invertebrates, as well as mechanisms by which communities are connected were investigated. Such knowledge on dispersal is scarce, due to the difficulties in actually measuring dispersal directly in nature, and dispersal has not previously been quantified in the Baltic Sea. Different trap-types were used underwater to capture dispersing invertebrates at different sites, while in parallel measuring waves and currents. Local community composition was found to change predictably under varying rates of dispersal and physical connectivity (waves and currents). This response was, however, dependent on dispersal-related traits of taxa. Actively dispersing taxa will be relatively better at maintaining their position, as they are not as dependent on hydrodynamic conditions for dispersal and will be less prone to be passively transported by currents. Taxa also dispersed in relative proportions that were distinctly different from resident community composition and a significant proportion (40 %) of taxa were found to lack a planktonic larval life-stage. Community assembly was re-started in a large-scale manipulative field experiment over one year across several sites, which revealed how patterns of community composition (α-, β- and λ-diversity) change depending on rates of dispersal. Results also demonstrated that in response to small-scale disturbance, initial recruitment was by nearby-dominant species after which other species arrived from successively further away. At later assembly time, the number of coexisting species increased beyond what was expected purely by local niche requirements (species sorting), transferring regional differences in community composition (β-diversity) to the local scale (α-diversity, mass effect). Findings of this thesis complement more theoretical studies in metacommunity ecology by demonstrating that understanding how and when individuals disperse relative to underlying environmental heterogeneity is key to interpreting how patterns of diversity change across different spatial scales. Such information from nature is critical when predicting responses to, for example, different types of disturbances or management actions in conservation.

Public and Private Sector Decision Makers Within the Rail Baltica Growth Corridor

Transport volumes have increased and will continue to increase in European Union. Even though the growth has not been equal between different transport modes. Most of the growth has been faced on road transport. European Union aims to balance the unbalanced market shares between the modes by gaining and supporting the competitiveness of railway and waterway transport. In EU railway transportation is seen as solution to increase safety in traffic and decrease the environmental impacts of transportation. The aim of this research is to figure out how it is possible to decrease the environmental impacts by the technology already in use. Main focus of this research is in intermodality and combining the road and railway transportation. This study aims also to figure out demands and expectations towards new Rail Baltica railway route connecting Tallinn and Berlin. The research is conducted by performing a literature review about decreasing environmental impacts and combining road and rail transport. Another viewpoint is taken from the possible effects of tourism to the passenger transport on rails. Knowledge gained by literature review is deepened by additional internet questionnaire study and expert interview study. In decreasing the environmental impacts of transportation electric trains are definitely the best option providing that the electricity is generated from renewable or carbon dioxide free sources. Decrease of environmental impacts has been reached also with acceptance of larger road transport vehicles. According to interviewed passenger transport experts, the whole route from Tallinn to Berlin may not be convenient to be used in passenger transport, just because the route is too long.. In EU freight is transported mainly with semi-trailer combinations, and that is why it could be logical if huckepack trains would be used on Rail Baltica. Huckepack train allows semi-trailers to be transported on rails with time efficient loading-unloading process. Overall, Rail Baltica project is experienced as a future-oriented one and new railway alignment is seen as great alternative option for transport modes using fossil fuels.