Around two-thirds of all freight transport within the EU in 2024 was carried by sea, while just over a quarter moved by road.
Freight transport is measured in tonne-kilometres — one tonne of goods moved over one kilometre — to reflect both the weight of cargo and how far it travels, Eurostat said in a release on Thursday.
Maritime transport accounted for 67.0% of freight transport performed within EU territory in 2024, compared with 25.7% for road and 5.4% for rail. Inland waterways made up 1.7% and air transport 0.2%.
Compared with 2014, the share moved by sea fell by 2.5 percentage points, while road was the only mode to increase, rising by 3.3 percentage points.
Over the same period, rail fell by 0.3 percentage points and inland waterways by 0.5 percentage points, while air was unchanged.
Road freight grows across most EU countries
Sea was the main mode of freight transport for 15 of the 22 EU countries with a coastline in 2024, and in nine of those it accounted for more than 70% of freight transport, Eurostat said.
Fourteen countries recorded a decline in the maritime share over the past decade, with the biggest drops in Finland (down 12.4 percentage points), Sweden (down 11.2) and Romania (down 7.2).
Road freight was the main mode in 11 EU countries in 2024, and 21 countries reported an increase in the road share compared with 2014.
The largest rises were recorded in Lithuania (up 22.4 percentage points), Latvia (up 22.0) and Romania (up 14.8).
