More cross-border road transport carried out by CEECs

© ANP
In 2015, foreign lorries carried more than 40 million tonnes of goods from the Netherlands to other countries, a 5.7 percent growth compared to 2014. New figures released by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and Eurostat show that lorries from Central and Eastern European countries (CEECs) entirely accounted for the increase.
The overall weight of goods carried by lorries from CEE countries grew by 21 percent, whereas the overall weight of goods carried by lorries from non-CEE countries in fact fell by 4 percent. The share of total international road transport from the Netherlands by foreign hauliers was 42 percent in 2015, versus 32 percent in 2006.

Compared to 2014, the total weight of goods carried by Slovenian (+59%) and Bulgarian (+57%) lorries grew most rapidly. The weight of goods carried by Slovakian lorry drivers declined marginally (-5 percent). In the period 2006-2015 road transport from the Netherlands carried out by lorries registered in CEE countries soared by an average of 177 percent. Polish lorries occupied first place accounting for a 56 percent share of goods transport from the Netherlands in 2015, followed by Czech lorries with a share of 9 percent. Bulgarian and Slovenian lorries accounted for 5 and 2 percent respectively of goods transported by CEE countries.

Lorries from CEECs carry fewer goods to their own countries

Proportionally, hauliers from other European countries carry a lot of goods to their home countries, unlike hauliers from CEE countries who carry more goods from the Netherlands to countries outside Central and Eastern Europe. In 2006, 59 percent of goods were destined for the home market; by 2015 this share had been reduced by half.
The share carried by lorries from other European countries remained fairly stable at more than 80 percent during the period 2006-2015.

CEE transports mainly to countries around the Netherlands

Nine out of the ten nationalities most often involved in road transport to countries other than their own are from Central and Eastern Europe. Nearly three-quarters of all goods carried by lorries from CEE countries which were loaded in the Netherlands had destinations including Germany, Belgium and France. These countries are also the main destinations for Dutch hauliers (92%). On the other hand, lorries registered in France, Italy and Germany mostly carry goods from the Netherlands to their own country; 7 percent on average had a different destination.

Sources