In the short term, says North Sea Port, the partners intend to focus on using the existing rail infrastructure as efficiently as possible. “The use of sensor data provides a better and up-to-date insight into track occupancy and usage.”

“In addition, we are jointly exploring new concepts to further stimulate cooperation and opportunities for consolidation between shippers and carriers, even in a challenging market environment.” Improving the safety at level crossings will be another priority in the coming period, North Sea Port adds.

740-metre trains

In the long term, North Sea Port and ProRail will work on “structural solutions to infrastructure issues”. These include a cross-border Ghent–Terneuzen rail project and an expansion of storage and shunting tracks in the Sloehaven in Vlissingen.

North Sea Port aims for a modal shift to rail. By 2030, it wants rail freight to take a 15% modal share, up from the current 10%. Some steps have been taken towards that end: The rail network in the Terneuzen area is now capable of handling freight trains of up to 740 metres in length. In particular, the Sas van Gent, the Terneuzen-Zuid and Axel Aansluiting marshalling yards have tracks available for 740-metre long trains.

The vessel

The vessel IVY is made up of two units, IVY 1 and IVY 2. For the longer elements (217 metres), “each end is securely attached to IVY 1 and 2, which provide buoyancy”, a note from the official website of the project explained.

For the shorter special components (39 metres), the two units are put together to form one vessel. IVY will also feature 23 kilometres of steel wire spread over 66 winches. This allows it to submerge elements 40 metres below the water with high precision. While the vessel was being tested, the bed of the sea was made ready to welcome the structures of the tunnel.

This month, IVY will be taken near the Danish entrance of the tunnel and the elements will be loaded with ballast to make sure they sink. “IVY 1 and 2 will then transport the element to the trench and immerse it in a controlled and precise operation”, the Femern note added.

The Fehmarnbelt tunnel

The project for a tunnel under the Fehmarn Strait was officially approved by the Danish government in 2011. Construction started in 2021 with initial estimates of 5,1 billion euros, but it has now increased to roughly 7,5 billion euros. Other than rising costs, the project also experienced delays. The commissioning of the tunnel was planned for 2029, but it is now postponed by two years.

The rail freight landscape in Europe looks much different from elsewhere. The lead of this article already mentioned Central Asia, where the overarching theme concerns trade route diversification. Building new railways and reaching new destinations is key for economic security and trade potential. RailFreight.com has reported extensively on the various agreements and studies being undertaken to work towards a trans-Afghan railway, for instance.

A similar situation is unfolding in southern Africa. The champion of rail in this region is Zambia: a similarly landlocked country. It will be the beneficiary of not one, not two, but three ongoing rail projects that originate in the country.

TAZARA and Lobito

The first two are the TAZARA (to Dar Es-Salaam, Tanzania) and the Lobito Corridor (to Angola). Both connect Zambia’s inland mines to ocean ports, creating or rehabilitating avenues for exports and economic growth. Whereas the TAZARA is a China-sponsored railway with national Zambian investments leading to Africa’s east coast, investment in the Lobito Corridor is the Western answer to the Chinese infrastructure ambitions in the region.

As a result, Zambia could soon have two functioning rail routes giving it access to the world’s oceans: one leading west, one leading east. Meanwhile, the country is gearing up for a third railway. The Mosetse–Kazungula–Livingstone (MKL) line will connect Zambia to its southern neighbour Botswana through a narrow 150-metre long shared border across the Zambezi river.

While this railway will not link to any coast, it will improve the country’s connectivity to its much richer neighbour. On 1 April, government representatives came together to reaffirm their commitment to building the MKL railway. A favourable situation for Zambia, considering Botswana is a relatively large importer of its copper wires.

A word of advice from Europe

The MKL project aims to enhance trade, connectivity, and regional integration, explains Zambia’s rail operator. MKL will span approximately 430 kilometres, comprising 365 kilometres from Mosetse (Botswana) to border town Kazungula. From Kazungula, it is another 65 kilometres to Livingstone (Zambia). MKL “is expected to improve cargo and passenger movement while reducing transport costs and easing pressure on road infrastructure.”

With rail-port connections to Durban (South Africa), Dar Es-Salaam and Lobito, Zambia looks set transport-wise for exports of valuable mining products. The MKL will improve trade with wealthy Botswana.

While Europe battles with its own rail maladies, the same sector is looking promising for Zambia. A word of advice from our continent: just make sure to keep those track access charges affordable and infrastructure reliable. In that aspect, Zambia may run into familiar problems, remaining dependent on the availability of rail infrastructure across borders.

The Heyford Park proposal carries added significance because of its proximity to the planned Oxfordshire Strategic Rail Freight Interchange (OxSRFI). The rail-linked logistics scheme, promoted by Oxfordshire Railfreight Limited, sits adjacent to the former Upper Heyford airbase. Together, the developments had the potential to create a combined housing and freight cluster, linking employment, supply chains and transport investment within the Oxford to Cambridge Growth Corridor.

A new town without designation

OxSRFI significantly predates any government ‘new town’ proposals. The government’s own assessment acknowledges Heyford Park as a “distinctive location” for a standalone new town. The 505-hectare site, largely in single ownership, offers scale and a degree of planning certainty uncommon in the south of England. Development is already underway, with thousands of homes consented or delivered, alongside commercial space and a growing cluster of technology-led businesses.

However, the absence of a formal new town designation may slow momentum. Government backing could have accelerated delivery timelines, coordinated infrastructure investment, and improved public transport provision. Connectivity remains a central challenge, with concerns about car dependency unless rail services are enhanced and new links, including potential station upgrades, are brought forward in parallel with housing growth. Nevertheless, the area does have infrastructure issues – there are more than bicycles in Oxford – and congestion is already an issue. The current redevelopment of Oxford Station is also proving a headache for residents.

Freight ambitions remain in play

Alongside the housing proposals, the OxSRFI scheme continues to progress through the planning system. The development would provide a rail-connected logistics hub on the Chiltern Main Line, serving Oxford, Bicester and the wider Midlands logistics market. Its promoters argue that such facilities are essential if the UK is to shift more freight from road to rail and meet decarbonisation targets.

The site’s location, close to the so-called “Golden Triangle” of UK distribution, adds to its strategic appeal. Earlier proposals highlighted links to the emerging East West Rail corridor, which could strengthen connections between Oxford and Cambridge while offering additional freight capacity. The interchange is intended to form part of a wider national network of SRFIs, long advocated by government policy.

Alignment or divergence?

The government’s report explicitly notes the adjacent SRFI proposal, suggesting it could bring employment and infrastructure benefits, while also requiring careful integration with any large-scale housing scheme. Shared infrastructure costs and coordinated planning could have strengthened the case for both developments, particularly in a region with acute housing shortages and strong economic growth.

Without a new town status, that alignment becomes less certain. The OxSRFI project appears to be proceeding independently, driven by national logistics demand and policy support. Whether Heyford Park evolves into a settlement of comparable scale without central backing remains to be seen. The question for planners and industry alike is whether a significant opportunity for integrated development has been merely deferred or missed the train entirely.

The part to be played by rail in developing England’s new towns was discussed in RailFreight.com’s Friday Forum.

With those 10 billion euros, Romania has managed to modernise 600 kilometres of railways. Another 900 kilometres of works are ongoing with an estimated value of 6 billion euros.

That is a lot of work that is still underway, but Staicu is happy about the point Romania is about to reach. After all these years, major investments are reaching their ‘delivery moment’.

“That’s quite an important milestone in our activity, because all of society, the European Union and so on only look at completed investments. No one is keen on hearing that you struggle, or you have issues, or you found out that you need to modify some laws internally or regulations. Everyone is looking for that missing connection or bottleneck that is making everyone spend days or weeks without moving their freight and passengers”, says Staicu.

TEN-T and Constanța

EU funding has primarily been directed towards the TEN-T network and associated corridors in Romania, specifically the Rhine-Danube corridor and the newly created Baltic-Black Sea-Aegean corridor. Over 80% of investments have gone toward completing these corridors, with a major focus on the Rhine-Danube corridor’s main axis, linking the west (Curtici) to Constanța.

Staicu highlights two projects on this axis that are close to completion. “We have works ongoing between Brașov and Sighișoara with two big tunnels now being drilled. The expectation is for it to be completed in 2028. In the meantime, the status is around 98-99% from Sighișoara to Simeria and further on.”

The overarching goal of these projects is to allow freight and passengers alike to move across Romania quickly. The Black Sea and Romania’s biggest asset, the Port of Constanța, play a central role in this idea. The latter has seen substantial investments in its links with the broader rail network.

As a result, it could serve as a more attractive entry point for goods into Europe. This holds especially true, considering that it is the largest and deepest container port in the Black Sea. It therefore also occupies a key position on the Middle Corridor from China to Europe.

An approach in stages

Multimodality (linking different transport modes) and energy efficiency (including extensive electrification and introducing new technologies) are current priorities to ensure the network supports economic growth, explains Staicu. The Danube river also offers opportunities for better multimodal connectivity to the European hinterland – which is why Romania is working on an extensive dredging programme to secure year-round navigability.

EU funding has greatly helped Romania to implement these projects. However, money does not grow on trees and is in limited supply. Budgetary constraints exert a restricting effect on infrastructure works. While Romania tries to comply with all TEN-T standards (160 kilometres per hour for passenger trains, 22.5-tonne axle load, 740-metre train length, electrification, and ERTMS), implementing all of this is not always financially feasible.

As a result, the approach has recently shifted to tackling TEN-T standards in different stages of implementation. By prioritising the most critical infrastructure works, like axle load and electrification, Romania aims to meet the minimum interoperability standards first. These factors are must-haves for a train to be able to enter the network from neighbouring countries and to make unhindered cross-border traffic possible.

The World Bank explains that its loan will help to pay for the construction of a 127-kilometer, electrified, high-capacity rail line across the Bosphorus strait. INRAIL will also bypass the Istanbul metropolitan area, significantly improving capacity along the route.

A transformative project for Türkiye

INRAIL will be a highly impactful project for transport and the broader economy of the area, says the World Bank. “This project is a strategic and transformative investment for Turkey. By eliminating the critical railway bottleneck in the Bosphorus strait, it will enhance the resilience and efficiency of railway infrastructure, increasing Turkey’s competitiveness and strengthening its role as a logistics hub”, the Bank quotes its Türkiye Country Director, J. Humberto Lopez, as saying.

“Indeed, the project will accelerate growth, create jobs, and contribute to more sustainable transportation. Furthermore, INRAIL will benefit the wider region by enabling the transport of goods between Europe and Central Asia, connecting to other international corridors such as the Middle Corridor and the Development Route, which provides traffic between Europe and the Gulf via Iraq. In fact, this is much more than just building a bridge; it’s about connecting continents.”

In total, rail freight capacity across the Bosphorus should grow from 3 million tonnes annually to 50 million tonnes.

Across the Pennines, the TRU has quietly evolved into one of the UK’s largest infrastructure projects. In industry terms, it rivals the Elizabeth Line in scope, while offering more immediate delivery certainty than High Speed 2. Its steady progress and its expanding freight dimension have led to it being described as Britain’s best-kept civil engineering secret.

Intensive West Yorkshire phase

Throughout this coming May and June, engineering teams will focus on the Huddersfield to Leeds corridor, deploying more than 120 engineering trains across multiple work phases. The activity includes renewing over eleven kilometres of track, installing thousands of sleepers, and laying close to 50,000 tonnes of ballast, alongside preparatory works for electrification.

From early May, 56 engineering trains will support 6.2 kilometres of track renewal and the installation of more than 21,000 tonnes of ballast. A further phase, extending into late June, will see an additional 66 engineering trains deliver more than five kilometres of track upgrades, alongside drainage works and the installation of 67 overhead line masts. The programme remains on schedule, despite a recent tunnel fire setback.

Freight plays a growing role in delivery

The scale of material movement highlights the central role of rail freight in delivering the programme. Moving tens of thousands of tonnes of ballast and construction materials by rail has reduced reliance on road haulage, while enabling continuous, high-volume supply directly to work sites across the route.

Measured mile for mile, the level of freight activity compares with that seen on High Speed 2, albeit with far less public attention. The use of engineering trains as a primary logistics tool has allowed the project to maintain momentum, demonstrating how freight can underpin major infrastructure delivery without the need for extensive parallel logistics networks.

Long-term freight benefits becoming clearer

While the TRU programme was initially presented as a passenger-focused upgrade, the benefits for freight are becoming more evident as designs are delivered. Electrification, longer platforms, and enhanced capacity between key centres will support more flexible pathing and improved network resilience.

Capacity enhancements, backed by significant investment, are also strengthening freight capability across the Pennines. The eventual outcome is still years away, but the provision being made for more consistent journey times and greater route availability, particularly during engineering works or disruption on core corridors, is a benefit that helps answer the government-promoted desire to increase rail freight traffic by 75% by 2050.

Wider social benefits

Alongside track and systems upgrades, the rail freight sector is facilitating station upgrades, including long-overlooked centres such as Batley and Dewsbury. Longer platforms and improved accessibility are the capital works, but a programme of ancillary works is built in too. Huddersfield station is undergoing extensive remodelling, including structural and passenger facility improvements, as part of a wider transformation due for completion in 2027.

“Significant progress has been made between Huddersfield and Leeds in recent months, and this next series of upgrades will allow us to take another step forward in what is a key stretch of the route and an important enabler for wider TRU plans across the North,” said Sophie Leishman, TRU sponsor. “Our teams will be working around the clock during these two months. I’d like to thank them as well as our local communities as we deliver these huge improvements to the railway.”

The programme also highlights the growing importance of rail in enabling the transition. By handling long-distance trunk haul movements, rail reduces the operational demands placed on electric trucks. This allows eHGVs to focus on shorter, more predictable journeys where range and charging constraints are less acute. Maritime’s approach reflects a broader industry trend, where intermodal logistics is emerging as a practical pathway towards lower emissions.

Rail increases fivefold

With the recent opening of the Strategic Rail Freight Interchange at SEGRO Logistics Park Northampton, Maritime has strengthened the backbone of its intermodal network. The Northampton Gateway facility provides direct access to the West Coast Main Line, enabling efficient north–south rail movements while anchoring shorter road legs for final delivery. It is a model that aligns closely with the operational needs of battery-electric trucks.

With Maritime’s Northampton Gateway now live, the company’s rail freight network is even more critical to the rollout of eHGVs by shortening the road leg to a manageable electric range. “Rail is crucial for increasing the viability of eHGVs,” explained Tom Williams, deputy CEO at Maritime Transport. “Since the launch of Maritime Intermodal in 2019, we have moved from railing six per cent of our volume to circa thirty per cent in 2026.”

Rail offers a range of solutions

Range anxiety, which remains an issue for private electric vehicle owners, is evident for commercial operators too. However, the regime is more predictable in the eHGV sector, where access to charging infrastructure can be planned in advance. Even so, questions remain around how far heavy electric trucks can travel under load across varied duty cycles.

“Two of the big criticisms of eHGVs are payload and range,” said Williams. “Focusing on range, technology will help improve this area as battery chemistry develops. Charging networks are also improving, which will support longer journeys. However, these changes will take time and investment before they fully address operational requirements across the sector.”

Intermodal model reduces cost

“If we focus on these alone, there is still a lot of time and money required to overcome the barrier,” Williams added. “By using rail, which is here and in use now, we are effectively removing range as a barrier for eHGVs. Take our Manchester operation [at Trafford Park]. A vehicle, on average, will do less than 1,000 miles per week, which is well-suited to electric operation.”

“What is more,” added Williams, “if the final mile is short enough, you can reduce the number of batteries required. That in turn gives you the ability to carry more payload.” This interplay between rail and road highlights a key advantage of intermodal logistics. By shifting energy-intensive trunk haul to rail, operators can deploy lighter, more efficient electric trucks for distribution, improving both economics and emissions performance.

Infrastructure investment supports wider adoption

Maritime’s rollout includes 56 eHGVs across 13 depots and rail-connected terminals during 2026, supported by a growing high-powered charging network. Once complete, the company expects to have more than 22MW of installed capacity, capable of charging over 100 vehicles simultaneously. Importantly, this infrastructure will also be accessible to third-party operators, potentially accelerating wider industry uptake.

The initiative is backed by the government’s Zero Emission HGV and Infrastructure Demonstrator programme, delivered with support from Innovate UK. Maritime is participating across multiple projects, testing electric, hydrogen, and diesel vehicles on live routes. However, the company’s operational model remains consistent. Rail handles the long-distance movement, while electric trucks complete the final mile, offering a pragmatic route to decarbonisation using existing assets.

80 weeks of paused operations is a lot, but the Dutch had to adapt. The work started in late 2024.

Since then, there have been diversions along other routes and a reduction in capacity. The Netherlands has had to run many thousands of trains less than previously. Naturally, last year’s announcement by Germany that the Third Track connection wouldn’t be completed in the coming decade came as a major disappointment and setback.

German unclarity hinders Dutch infrastructure planning

Germany does not have the capacity to work on the Third Track project. The country is working on a major overhaul of its entire rail network. Other projects are higher on the priority list.

RailFreight.com’s sister publication SpoorPro reported that the Dutch infrastructure manager ProRail still has no plan on how to cope with this situation. “It is still too early to say exactly what impact the works in Germany will have”, spokesperson Marcella Wesseling told SpoorPro. “Whether additional freight trains will be diverted depends on the nature, scale and schedule of the works in Germany. The German side has not yet provided this overview.”

Clearly, coordination between the Dutch and German infrastructure managers is lacking. This puts rail work in the Netherlands in question. ProRail and DB InfraGO had earlier agreed on a timeline that would allow the Dutch to work on ERTMS implementation and renovations in Eindhoven and Venlo.

Political games?

The head of the Dutch rail freight association, Hans-Willem Vroon, told SpoorPro about his suspicions that there are some political games going on. “Perhaps Germany is also sending a signal to The Hague that it believes the Venlo-Kaldenkirchen and Oldenzaal-Bad Bentheim border crossings should be used more frequently.” These are alternative border crossings that could facilitate diversions from the Third Track works.

“Moreover, I suspect that DB InfraGO is deliberately holding back the growth of rail traffic because their rail network simply cannot cope. It is striking, after all, that in Switzerland the complaints about the German feeder and outbound lines are even greater than here, and Switzerland does operate with multiple border crossings.” These include Basel, Schaffhausen and St. Margarethen.

On Wednesday (25 March) and into Thursday, core routes were blocked by fallen trees and damage to overhead wires. In some cases, the support masts were destroyed. High winds caused significant disruption across the North West rail network, with fallen trees damaging overhead line equipment on routes between Manchester and Preston. Other incidents further south knocked out services to Wolverhampton.

Fraught freight flows

The incident near Lostock, outside Bolton, blocked a key artery used by both passenger and freight services. That forced cancellations and halted traffic while repairs were carried out. Lostock is midway between Manchester and Preston, and the line feeds into the West Coast Main Line. Further south, damage on the West Coast Main Line itself compounded the problem. That was a real headache for all traffic, and restricted capacity on the UK’s most important freight corridor.

Images of stranded passenger trains have illustrated the immediate impact of the storm. However, the consequences extended well beyond the passenger timetable. Freight services operating through the region — including flows linking Trafford Park, the Port of Liverpool, and inland terminals — were also affected by the loss of available paths. In a network with limited diversionary capability, even short sections of blocked line can have disproportionate consequences.

Capacity constraints ripple across the system

On Wednesday, most of the UK woke up to a sunny – albeit cold and moderately windy day. It was a different story for those on the West Coast. “The disruption has been caused by severe winds overnight,” said Darren Miller, infrastructure director for Network Rail’s North West route, delivering a statement on the day. “Trees [have knocked] down overhead power lines, severing connections, knocking down masts entirely, which causes major disruption.”

Britain’s passenger-intensive network has meant freight trains are held at terminals or looped en route, paths were lost or rescheduled at short notice. Congestion built up on alternative routes, where available. Fortunately, a diversion does exist at Lostock and on routes westward out of Manchester, which connect with the West Coast Main Line. Ironically, another blockage, further south on the WCML near Wolverhampton, left some capacity available for diverted workings.

The infrastructure agency Network Rail and the official passenger information service, National Rail Enquiries, warned of disruption until at least the end of Wednesday. That was still the case by early Thursday morning.