New Transport Infrastructure and Regional Development of Central and Eastern Europe

Abstract

The discussion about the impact of the construction of new transport infrastructure on economic growth has been going on in scientific journals for decades. The objective of the article is to assess the importance of the development of transport infrastructure for regional development in Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC). The analysis mainly concerns investments made with the support of European Union structural funds. Particular attention was paid to transport relations between the major metropolises. It is assumed that they perform the functions of growth poles and generate the diffusion of development processes also into the peripheral area. In addition, a study of changes in potential accessibility in road transport was carried out. The temporal scope of the study covers a period of 12 years, when the scale of new investment was greatest. The results thus obtained are set against a backdrop of economic development indices (changes in GDP over the period under study). The study confirmed that the impact on economic development mainly takes place at the beginning of the development of the transport infrastructure. On this basis, a dynamic spatial sequence proposal was formulated regarding the dependence between investments in infrastructure and the development of regions and metropolises.