Study on the marine continuity with the Sardinia of the DICAAR of the University of Cagliari



A pool of engineers of the Department civil engineering, environmental and architecture (DICAAR) of the University of Cagliari) has realized a study on "the marine continuity from and for the Sardinia" that it proposes a mixed model in order to guarantee the territorial continuity with the island that integral the aspects of greater relief of the main models of marine territorial continuity presents in Europe, that is that French that regulated the relations between continental France and the Corsica and that Spanish present in the context of the connections between continental Spain and the archipelago of the Balearic ones.

The objective of the study - the investigators explain - is that to supply, according to the model chosen, an indication with respect to the quantification of the burden financial that must be place at the expense of the subject public in order to support the model of territorial continuity chosen.

The engineers of the DICAAR specify moreover that in the study it is not made some appraisal on the lines to subject to burdens of public service and to leave free market, as such choice must be made on the base of two elements: detailed to acquaintance of the origins and the final destinations of the fleeting flows and goods, from and for the Sardinia, that he allows to characterize the marine corridors of greater relief; political-stategica choice of location of the marine corridors that are considered to be priority for the development of the Sardinia, independently from the amount of satisfied question.

The investigators of the team of the DICAAR, composed by Gianfranco Fancello, technical-scientific responsible, Daniel Mark Vitiello, technical coordinator analysis, Valentina Aramu and Patrizia Serra, remember that currently the marine territorial continuity of the Sardinia is disciplined by the "Convention for the exercise of services of marine connection in regime of public service with the greater islands and smaller", stipulated on July 18, 2012 from the Ministry of Infrastructures and the Transports with the CIN (Italian Company of Navigation), convention in vigor until on 18 July that is postponed to next 28 February, date from which the connections between Sardinia and peninsula will return on the free market. The lines covered from the convention are Genoa-Port Torres and Civitavecchia-Olbia (both single from October to May), Genoa-Olbia-Arbatax, Civitavecchia-Arbatax-Cagliari, Naples-Cagliari, Palermo-Cagliari and Livorno-Cagliari (only goods). The fee for the development of these services of annual marine territorial continuity piles to 72,6 million euros, of which about 50 for the single connections ro-ro and passengers.

The study examines the French model in the first place, that it covers only the lines in convention with the burdens of public service, based on which the Territorial Collectivity of Corsica (CTC) has the assignment to define the modalities of organization of the marine transports and airplane between the island and all the destinations of continental France, in particular in matter of services and rates. The CTC entrusts these connections through a contract of delegation of service public (CDSP) to the marine companies, which can participate to the ban with an only offer or offers for single line. By the 2013 burdens of public service on the lines between the ports of Nice, Tolone are instituted and Marseilles and the isolani ports.

The main characteristics of the CDSP - the study of the DICAAR explains - are: annual flat-rate contribution; reduction of the contribution poured for every crosswalk not carried out; it prices maximum for the single passengers with the main residence in Corsica; adaptation automatic rifle of the rates (and not of the contribution) on the base of the evolution of the cost of the fuel. The navigation companies are therefore obliged to respect the maximum rates for the residents, to guarantee determined levels of service and to assure minimal frequencies in the periods of smaller asks.

From October 2017 to june 2019 (18 months) the equipment financial institution for the CDSP has been of 150,2 million euros (with a population of the Corsica of 339.178 residents).

The Spagnolo model instead previews that the facilities in favour of the territorial continuity between the Balearic islands and Spain are put into effect through a system of bonus on the rates for the purchase, by the residents in the Balearic ones, of the title of travel, guaranteeing a discounted rate of 75%. It is in vigor also a system of tariff facilities for the great families, independently from their residence. Regulations for the bonus on the rates of the regular services of marine transport for the residents of the independent Community of the Balearic Islands discipline a regime of subsidies for the residents of the Balearic islands that use the regular transport. The program of subsidies defines the compensation financial institution for the public and private companies of navigation that supply the services of public interest, which will receive from the administration of the Balearic Islands the amount of the carried out reductions in price, successively to the distribution of the service.

The study precise that in reality is the companies that apply the bonus on the navigation rate to establish the rates base and to verify that the users satisfy requirement of the law for being able to obtain the specific subsidy from residents moreover and that such model is applied on lines of marine connection that operate in free market, therefore without to make resorted to aids of State.

The equipment financial institution for the traffic fleeting of 2018 has been of 110 million euros (1.107.220 residents in the Balearic ones).

The study proposes a new mixed model at last, synthesis of the models French and Spanish: "we have studied - professor Fancello clarifies - a new model that includes the elements of greater relief previously analyzed. We head to satisfy the characteristics of the Sardinian system, structured so as to guarantee cover at all the lines, service minimum wages also during the periods of smaller asks and marks fixed a ceiling price for the residents on all the lines and for all the year".

The mixed model previews: reduction in price (with possible options of cover pairs to 75%, 50% and 35%) on the rates of the residents for the sun drawn in free market; compensation of the service obligations public (total option pairs to 35 or 50 million euros) for the drafts to insert in convention.

To warning of the investigators, the implementation of the mixed model would involve for the companies of navigation the performance of political times to the improvement of the offer, therefore to better conditions than travel for the users. Moreover, the partial reimbursement on the price of the ticket of the residents on the connections in free market, would economically return the accessible displacements during all the year. At the same time, the imposition of the obligations of public service to the lines in convention (characterized after a careful analysis of market) would guarantee services minimums and rates facilitated during all the year.

"The mixed model, simulated regarding the lines currently in convention and to those to free market - the Vitiello explains ingegner - would demand a equipment financial institution comprised between 58 and 99 million euros in order to cover all the lines currently you anticipate between the Sardinia and the continent". The minimal equipment of 58 million euros would be composed from 23 million useful to the satisfaction of the reduction in price residents pairs to 35% and from 35 million cover for it obligation of public service. The maximum equipment of 99 million euros would be composed from 49 million actions to guarantee a reduction in price of 75% to the residents and from 50 million cover for it service obligation public (same currently allocated figure).

The investigators evidence that the annual equipment of 99 million euros appears more convenient regarding that allocated in order to guarantee the continuity with the Corsica (about 100 million/year) and with Balearic (about 110 million/the year). "A convenience - the Greenhouse emphasizes ingegner - marked if rapportata to the number of residents: the mixed model, if of maximum cover pairs to 99 million euros, turns out in fact pairs to 60,32 euros/clearly inferior resident and therefore regarding the same ones calculated for the Corsica (295,24 euros/resident) and for the Balearic islands (99,35 euros/resident)".