The central aims of the project were to improve the accessibility between rural areas/hinterlands and gateways around the North Sea and secondly to develop the integration of hinterland areas in national and international transport networks. Emphasising an increased use of more sustainable modes of transport, the project covered both goods and passenger transport.The overall aim of the project was to put the Hinterland - Gateway concept into political attention. Achievements: The SustAccess project achieved an increased knowledge and awareness about the public transport interchanges, promotion of biking and lastly methods of user and stakeholder involvement particularly with a focus on peripheral areas.Partner activities and pilot projects included a wide variety of activities such as supporting the development of different gateway cities and their connection to their hinterland as well improving public transport and making it more accessible.As one example the SustAccess project has established the concept of an EmsAchse transport corridor in Emsland, G. This concept was so successful that it rapidly developed from a mere transport-zone thinking into an EmsAchse development zone with mere amounts of economic impacts on overall development in the area. As a result a formal cross-sectoral and cross-authority association, EmsAchse was established by various Landkreise and municipalities and even private sector clients.The main task was to promote the concept of development zone thinking. In turn this development zone has had sufficient impact to secure a major (165 Mill. Euros) upgrade in the Dortmund-Ems canal, one of the backbones of the EmsAchse corridor. The way of organisation can be exemplify itself as a good practising example where it can also be easily be transferable to other regions.