Modern researchers have long recognized that inland navigation is a relatively environmentally friendly option for
freight transport compared to other modes of transportation such as
air carriage and
road transport, and similar to
rail freight transport. Therefore, policy makers have been aiming to shift the volume of cargo transported by more pollutive means towards inland navigation in order to reduce the overall
environmental impact of transport, for example, as part of the
European Green Deal (2019). To accomplish this, however, various challenges need to be tackled, including making inland navigation itself less pollutive than it has been, building larger barges and tows to increase their efficiency, and constructing or improving inland waterways
navigable enough for the projected volume and size of ships (deep and wide enough, with mega-locks for differences in elevation) to avoid bottlenecks. The environmental effects of constructing, operating and maintaining inland navigation also need to be mitigated. ==See also==