DEVELOPMENT OF CROATIAN ECONOMY FROM THE POINT OF VIEW TRAFFIC

Development of Croatian economy considerably depends upon adequate transport net of all kinds of traffic. Realization of expected development assumes appropriate technical basis which can be realized by construction and maintenance of transport net and means,and control of measures in regard to their exploitation. Special basis can be given by Adriatic orientation which creates real assumption, as well as possibility for fast development of Croatian economy. The most important transits of traffic corridors between Central Danube region and Pannonian, and Adriatic, are placed on the territory of Croatia. Natural lines of these transits directed to the Kvarnerski bay and central and south Adriatic, are especially important for Croatia as well as for Europe, because they enable the easiest and the shortest linkage of central territory of Europe with the Adriatic sea, and opening of Adriatic territory towards Europe. One of the most important traffic-geographical advantages of Croatia lies in its geo-traffic position with the exit to the Adriatic sea. Such position enables Croatia to be a tie in inter-continental linkage of Europe with the rest of the world. But in traffic quantity, according to European criteria, the Adriatic traffic line isnot expressed enough, because most of traffic goes through harbours of the North sea, French harbours, harbours of the Genova bay and the Baltic sea. During the last seventy years the traffic policy of Croatia was subordinated to the interests of former Yugoslavia. The advantage was given to longitudinal linking in direction north-west and south-east,and transversal ties which would enable connecting of Panonian and coastal parts of Croatia were neglected. The paper deals with the problems of road, railway, air and post-tele-communications traffic, and there are given proposals how to integrate as better as possible Croatian economy into European and world commodity flows.