UN commission details proposal for highway network from Europe through Asia

A draft proposal for a highway network expected to improve trade links between Asia and Europe has been finalized, the Bangkok-based United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and the Pacific (UNESCAP) said today.

Spanning 130,000 kilometres from the Pacific Ocean to the borders of Europe, the proposal for the Asian Highway network is expected to be adopted in 2004.

“Globalization has accentuated the need for greater efficiency and integration of all transport modes throughout the Asian and Pacific region,” ESCAP Executive Secretary Kim Hak-Su told a meeting of the Committee on Transport, Communications, Tourism and Infrastructure Development.

The Committee is proposing further intra-regional cooperation, widely considered essential to cope with increased the transit of goods and vehicles. The next phase of planning will involve coordinating ports and railways into the overall transport network and promoting tourist destinations along the Asian Highway.