The Danube connects central and eastern European economies to the Black Sea along a course of roughly 2,850 kilometres. Its traffic carries goods into and out of the countries along the river. Watching tankers and barges pass on the Danube or Thames offers a way to appreciate how many lorry loads would be needed to replace that capacity. Everyday familiarity with road transport can obscure how much freight still moves by river.
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The Danube as a commercial artery
The Danube connects much of central and eastern Europe, making river traffic a practical measure of the freight that would otherwise need to move by road.