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Slovenia

The term “Karst topography” refers to that of southwestern Slovenia’s Karst Plateau, a limestone region of underground rivers, gorges, and caves, between Ljubljana and the Mediterranean Sea. On the Pannonian plain to the East and Northeast, toward the Croatian and Hungarian borders, the landscape is essentially flat. However, most of Slovenia is hilly or mountainous, with around 90% of its land surface 200 m (656 ft) or more above sea level.

More than half of Slovenia, which is 11,823 km2 or 4,565 sq mi, is forested; ranking it third in Europe, by percentage of area forested, after Finland and Sweden. The areas are covered mostly by beech, fir-beech and beech-oak forests and have a relatively high production capacity. Remnants of primeval forests are still to be found, the largest in the Kočevje area. Grassland covers 5,593 km2 (2,159 sq mi) and fields and gardens (954 km2 or 368 sq mi). There are 363 km2 (140 sq mi) of orchards and 216 km2 (83 sq mi) of vineyards.

Economy:

Slovenia has a developed economy and is the richest Slavic country by nominal GDP, and the second richest by GDP (PPP) behind the Czech Republic. There is a big difference in prosperity between the various regions. The economically wealthiest regions are the Central Slovenia region which includes the capital Ljubljana and the western Slovenian regions, as Goriška and Coastal–Karst, while the least wealthy regions are the Mura, the Central Sava and the Littoral–Inner Carniola.

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Slovenian Exports

Almost two-thirds of people are employed in services, and over one-third in industry and construction. Slovenia benefits from a well-educated workforce, well-developed infrastructure, and its location at the crossroads of major trade routes.

Transportation:

Since Antiquity, geography has dictated transport routes in Slovenia. Significant mountain ranges, major rivers and proximity to the Danube played roles in the development of the area’s transportation corridors. One recent particular advantage are the Pan-European transport corridors V (the fastest link between the North Adriatic, and Central and Eastern Europe) and X (linking Central Europe with the Balkans). This gives it a special position in the European social, economic and cultural integration and restructuring.

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Motorways in Slovenia

The road freight and passenger transport constitutes the largest part of transport in Slovenia at 80%. Personal cars are much more popular than public road passenger transport, which has significantly declined. Slovenia has a very high highway and motorway density compared to the European Union average. The highway system, the construction of which was accelerated after 1994, has slowly but steadily transformed Slovenia into a large conurbation. Other state roads have been rapidly deteriorating because of neglect and the overall increase in traffic.

The existing Slovenian railways are out-of-date and have difficulty competing with the motorway network; partially also as a result of dispersed population settlement. The railway passenger transport has been recovering after a large drop in the 1990s. The Pan-European railway corridors V and X, and several other major European rail lines intersect in Slovenia. All international transit trains in Slovenia serve the Ljubljana Railway Hub.

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