Infrastructure costs are too high

When it comes to infrastructure charges, one of the risks highlighted by Vroon is that shunting costs are likely to significantly increase in 2024 and 2025. More specifically, RailGood calculated that these costs could rise by four to seven million euros in 2024 and four additional million in the following year. The association is asking the IenW to “freeze infrastructure charges” by not allowing inflation-adjusted increases and by removing surcharges. Moreover, the association is claiming that the price increase for the use of sidings and marshalling tracks, active as of 1 January 2023, should be abolished.

The issue of track access charges and surcharges in the Netherlands is still quite relevant for two reasons. First, the Dutch infrastructure manager ProRail said in May that track access charges in the country will increase by 10.5 per cent in 2024. For a comparison, these costs in Germany will raise by 2,3 per cent, as RailGood mentioned. Moreover, last week, The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Market, the Dutch body regulating market competition, rejected ProRail’s plan to implement a track access surcharge.

‘Get rid of the current rail nationalism’

For the deployment of ERTMS in the Netherlands, RailGood said that the main problem is that there is no cooperation with neighbouring countries such as Belgium and Germany. The Netherlands are in fact implementing a different ERTMS version than these countries, as Vroon pointed out. “The only solution to boost interoperability on a European level is to get rid of the current rail nationalism and embrace a truly European rail network”, Vroon commented.

The Dutch government, according to him, should put more effort in reduce these costs and coordinate these operations with Germany both for ERTMS as well as for 740-metre-long trains. “The obvious way to do this is to start with the Maasvlakte-Kijfhoek-Brabantroute-Venlo-Viersen and Maasvlakte-Betuweroute- Emmerich-Oberhausen railroad lines”, RailGood added.

Moreover, rail freight operators will not be compensated for the implementation costs, unlike passengers ones. The current system, as the association mentioned, will cost the rail freight industry roughly 270 million euros over the next years. RailGood is underlining that the promises made by the IenW on ERTMS implementation for rail freight are not being delivered.

ProRail agrees too

Similar opinions to the ones expressed by Vroon and RailGood are shared also by ProRail. The company’s CEO John Voppen took to LinkedIn to highlight the three main aspects of the rail freight industry that still need to be addressed. First, infrastructure for rail freight must be reliable. For this, Voppen claimed that ProRail will renew 35 switches, 25 level crossings, and 10 kilometres of track throughout 2023. In addition, sufficient capacity needs to be available to facilitate the shift to rail. Moreover, Voppen is also advocating for a level playing field with the other modalities.

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• The Netherlands and Belgium are neighbours yet so far in ERTMS rollout

In view of the upcoming budget debate of the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and the multi-annual program Infrastructure, Spatial Planning and Transport (MIRT) committee debate that will take place at the end of November/beginning of December, RailGood and DB Cargo Netherlands did not hold back and highlighted that these billions could also be used in other projects just like enabling the use of 740 metre long trains in the Netherlands.

‘Lack of sustainable vision’

Hans-Willem Vroon, RailGood’s director, spoke of an “incomprehensible approach” of the Dutch cabinet that excludes investments for longer freight trains in the Netherlands and does not facilitate rail freight around urban areas. As he underlined, “the government is missing an opportunity to strengthen the rail freight potential of the Netherlands with targeted investments and to give substance to the EU Green Deal by creating more space for sustainable rail freight transport”.

On her behalf, Nanouke van ‘t Riet, CEO/COO of DB Cargo Netherlands, was also critical to the cabinet’s decisions stressing that they “lack a vision on the sustainable development of the Netherlands by investing unilaterally in public transport”. For Van ‘t Riet, rail freight is left out of governmental plans since the same billions could be used to benefit port and industrial hubs’ rail freight connections which are an integral part of the Dutch economy in contrast to the still unconstructed houses.

Also read:

• These German lines will be renovated over the next 20 months

• Port of Moerdijk completes rail investment for operational efficiency

• Not enough funds for TEN-T implementation in the Netherlands

What are the requirements?

What is new in the revision, is that the ‘740-metre requirement’ must apply not only to runway lines and yards, but also to terminals. Also, 50 per cent of the capacity must be suitable for 740-metre trains.

Moreover, the core network has been extended with stricter requirements, as well as the requirements for the comprehensive network, which is one grade lower in priority from the core network. This network must also be suitable for 740-metre trains and the international security system ERTMS must be rolled out faster than previously planned.

Although ProRail sees that implementing the TEN-T requirements brings great benefits for interoperability, the economy and CO2 emissions, the rail manager also sees a number of difficulties. In particular, the adjustments required for running trains with a 740-metre length are costly.

1.6 billion

According to a global cost estimate, the adjustments to the freight corridors will cost no less than 1.6 billion euros, which is 60 per cent higher than an estimate from 2019. This is on the one hand due to ‘processing new insights’, and because the addition of measures introduced in the revision had not yet been included. On the other hand, the adjustment to the price level of 2022 also means higher costs.

85 to 90 per cent of these costs are related to measures for the running of 740-metre trains. The other costs that have to be incurred are intended for increasing train speed, and for electrification. Certain costs, such as the additional costs for maintaining the infrastructure, have not yet been included in this analysis. ProRail indicates that it wishes to conduct further research into the costs.

Feasibility

According to ProRail, the extent to which the measures will be feasible also depends on ongoing investigations. For example, the CEO of ProRail John Voppen states that with the current roll-out of ERTMS, the Netherlands cannot meet the new requirements in time.

However, the results of additional research into ERTMS are still being awaited. In addition, according to ProRail, separate research is also being conducted into the ground conditions to look at what is possible for running faster trains with a heavier axle load.

Adjustments

Apart from investigating the costs, ProRail also suggests that not all requirements are equally relevant for the rail network in the Netherlands. In the first place, ProRail recommends removing or adding some lines. The cancellation of lines, for which an exemption must be requested, mainly concerns lines that are not suitable for running freight trains or where freight trains have not been running for a long time. Lines must also be added which, according to ProRail, do have added value for freight transport, but which have not yet been included in the regulation.

ProRail also concludes that not all TEN-T requirements are equally useful for Dutch freight transport. For example, the ‘comprehensive network’ must meet a capacity requirement of two freight paths per hour per direction on two-track lines and one freight path per two hours for single-track lines. According to ProRail, this is difficult to achieve and will cost a lot. Moreover, according to the rail manager, it is not expected that this will be necessary in view of the number of trains currently running on the network.

Moving forward

ProRail emphasises that it wants to ‘give priority to the most important corridors’. This includes the adjustments for being able to operate 740-metre trains on the core and extended core freight network.

All the available financial resources must be used as effectively as possible, it states, whereby ProRail advises combining existing budgets and subsidies. It also believes that the Netherlands must join in with ‘increasing investments in the railways of our neighboring countries’.

Not counting on EU funds

The Netherlands does not necessarily count on contributions from the European Commission, says Voppen. Although it is possible that there will be further subsidies, this is by no means a certainty given the large number of applications that the EU receives. Moreover, it is now time for a European member state to actively participate in the negotiations on the new regulation and to further investigate the financial options, says ProRail.

Vivianne Heijnen, State Secretary for Infrastructure and Water Management, informs the House of Representatives that she has recently received the report from ProRail and therefore does not yet have a good view of the conclusions.

This article was first published on Nieuwsblad Transport. 

The progress note underlines that the TEN-Tinvestement programme has not yet achieved much in adjusting and modernising the EU rail infrastructure to make it eligible for cross-border 740-metres long trains. According to the committee, only one rail corridor in the entire EU is suitable for these long freight trains.

Few track sections where freight trains can pass

The European Commission would like to point out that hardly any track sections have been built in the EU where these long freight trains can overtake each other. This handicap means that the TEN-T network can only be used to a limited extent for the modal shift in Europe and make rail transport more competitive than road transport.

The European Commission is also critical of the fact that too few of the TENT-T corridors are suitable for the transport of P400 semi-trailers. The EU speaks of 60 per cent of the network, which means that large parts of the trans-European rail infrastructure cannot be used as an alternative to road transport. All this happens while Brussels see the transport of trailers by rail as an important growth market for rail freight transport.

Tighten up subsidy requirements

The European Commission believes that these shortcomings must be remedied quickly and therefore wants to tighten the criteria for TEN-T subsidies and targets on these points soon. Brussels still assume that the primary network will be completed by 2030 at the latest. The entire network should be ready in 2050.

This article was previously published by sister magazine Nieuwsblad Transport.

Also read:

• The revision of the TEN-T Regulation is here, this is on Europe’s agenda

• European infrastructure CEOs discuss the future of TEN-T network

• How long until using longer trains?

Construction works started in May, while the finishing touches for the project will take place this autumn. Infrabel aims to deliver Bundle M fully operational for freight trains by the spring of 2022.

740 metre-long trains

The project is important in terms of opening the way for more freight trains in Flanders and, respectively, Belgium. Transforming a railway station to become freight-friendly indicates the Belgian government’s commitment to increase the country’s rail freight share.

However, the most critical aspect of the project is constructing tracks suitable to accommodate trains up to 740 metres long. Not only will the tracks be compatible with TEN-T regulations, but they are a decisive step towards facilitating the traffic of longer trains in the Benelux region. The discussion around 740 metre-long trains in the Netherlands, Germany and the Rhine-Alpine corridor is very relevant since it can result in higher capacity for rail freight.

Since Leuven is a junction between three European Rail Freight Corridors (RFCs), including the Rhine-Alpine, its new profile could be a stepping stone towards using longer trains in the broader region.

New hub in the making?

Leuven is located on the North Sea-Mediterranean RFC accommodating traffic from Zeebrugge/Ghent and Zeehaven/Muizen/Antwerp towards Athus Meuse in the border with Luxemburg and France. Due to its position, it also has easy access to the Rhine-Alpine and North Sea-Baltic RFCs.

Moreover, its central location is in close proximity with multiple businesses, ports and hubs, generating the potential for it to transform into a rail freight and logistics distribution centre for the Flanders region. Attracting more traffic means that a new route is in the making and that other more heavily used routes will possibly decompress and operate more smoothly.

‘Overtaking the tracks’

As mentioned above, there are certain attempts from Germany and the Netherlands to introduce longer trains on their rail networks, but the whole process takes quite a long time. Why is that so? According to DB Netze, the capacity of rail tracks is the biggest issue currently. Freight trains operate at a relatively lower speed than passenger trains. Consequently, when passenger trains use the same route as freight trains, there is a need to overtake them and avoid delays. In practice, his means that the freight train has to switch to another pair of tracks so that the faster passenger train can overtake it.

Understandably, this whole process takes place at specific track points, where, with the help of switches, the trains change lanes. In particular, the overtaking procedure requires two switches, one for getting off and one for getting back on the tracks. And here lies the main issue for long trains: if these two switches are found at a distance of 750 metres from each other, then there are no safety issues for overtaking. However, if they have less space in between, then it is impossible to change lanes.

The German governmental investment for 2021 aims to change this situation by modernising several rail network parts. According to the official plan until 2030, the main prerequisite is to provide more overtaking tracks that will simultaneously facilitate the systematic use of longer trains by freeing capacities. After all, both the government and DB Netz recognise that longer freight trains will benefit the economy, rail transport, and the environment. How? Transportation will become cheaper; there will be more available capacity, and with fewer trains, CO2 emissions will get reduced.

The Dutch experiment

In 2020 LTE Netherlands became the first rail carrier to use 740-metre trains on Dutch tracks as part of a pilot programme. With its customer Contargo and in collaboration with infrastructure managers ProRail and DB Netze, LTE ran a weekly train between the Netherlands and Germany through Venlo. Especially in Germany, the test was successful without any significant hurdles. In the Netherlands, though, the case was a bit different. Due to the lower number of compatible tracks and the insufficient infrastructure for longer trains in terminals like the ECT in Maasvlakte, the company dealt with issues that were fortunately easily and quickly resolved.

The main difference between the two countries that makes them more or less compatible with longer trains lies in the way trains are handled in general, and on the size of their networks. As Jolanda Plomp mentioned, despite the obstacles LTE found on its way, the overall takeaway from a year of trials was very positive. In fact, the company managed to get permission to operate longer trains during 2021 too. However, the frequency of its 740-metre train will not be the same as last year ,because it will not have weekly trips. Nevertheless, LTE runs five weekly trains between the Netherlands and Germany, not as long as 740 metres but longer than the established length of 600 metres.

LTE’s case constitutes a good example of how the possibility to run longer trains than usual could work to the benefit of rail carriers by lifting train capacity restrictions. A train does not necessarily have to be 740 metres long on every trip. However, it can adjust the number of carried wagons based on the customer demand. Do customers think in the same way, though?

Lack of reliability

Plomp highlighted the lack of customer trust as the biggest issue for the pilot service and the further development of 740-metre trains. Because infrastructure is not ready yet, longer trains on tracks could cause capacity issues, as mentioned above, and delays. Logistics companies and shippers would not be happy with such a situation. That is why they still avoid booking longer trains even though they have the chance to transport more wagons and respectively more products.

Their concerns are not absurd. Plomp explained that if three or four more carriers choose to use longer trains under the current conditions with insufficient infrastructure, both German and Dutch networks will face tremendous problems. Consequently, even though companies are willing to use 740-metre trains, their customers doubt such an enterprise’s feasibility and ability to return more profits than losses.

‘Invest, invest, invest’

What could be done with a service that has enormous potential for all parties involved but doesn’t seem able to succeed? RailGood’s Director, Hans-Willem Vroon and Jolanda Plomp, would agree in this case: invest in infrastructure and cooperate. Vroon appeared intransigent in his opinion that there is no reason to plan longer trains when investments are not there yet. Network developments and upgrades are the only way to introduce 740-metre trains in the market and make good use of them. Any other scenario would cause more problems than solutions.

Plomp shared the same view, also underlying the importance of cooperation between ProRail and DB Netz and the exchange of knowledge and examples. “It is positive that ProRail is putting some effort towards this direction and that the government is also willing to invest”, she said. Together with DB Netze, which already implements some of its plans for longer trains, they could reach a good level of capacities quite soon. In any case, since 2021 is the European Year of Rail, “working for longer trains on tracks is one of the best ways to celebrate it”, she concluded.

Watch the show

You can watch the dedicated RailFreight Live show on 740-metre trains, featuring Hans-Willem Vroon and Jolanda Plomp.

Also read:

• LTE goes ahead with 740-metre trains in the Netherlands

The test

The project is being carried out in collaboration with infrastructure manager ProRail and German counterpart DB Netze. The long trains runs in between the regular timetable, both for freight and passenger trains.

“We want to offer our customers the opportunity to transport more cargo by rail”, Plomp explained during the event, which took place in the last week of June and was organised by sister publication Nieuwsblad Transport. “Besides that, we just enjoy trying new things.”

Punctuality

An important point of attention is, of course, punctuality. This is a must, especially if the starting point of the ride is in the Netherlands. From Rotterdam, the train only had a delay of more than three minutes, one out of eight times. “Also with Kijfhoek as a departure point, the delay was only ten minutes in one of four cases. At Venlo, departure was smooth in almost all cases. ”

Conversely, the results were less prosperous. In Mannheim’s, only one out of four trains left within half an hour of the scheduled time. Also at the stop in Venlo, in the direction of Rotterdam, only one train left within thirty minutes of the planned time.

Corona era

During the event Plomp pointed out that the corona problems started shortly after the first test journeys with longer trains. As a result, most of the tests period has currently taken place with an unprecedented empty track. Significantly fewer trains ran in both the Netherlands and Germany. As a result, there was more space for the longer LTE trains.

“The question remains how things proceed when the passenger carriers return to their normal timetable”, said Plomp. “We also have to wait and see what happens when several rail freight operators start using longer trains. And above all, whether they will all run simultaneously or in rapid succession, or whether they will be more spread over the day and the week. If you all arrive at a terminal at the same time, the capacity is quickly allocated, of course.”

Which other problems does she expect if more railway companies will take the same step as LTE? “At some points we see that the infrastructure is not yet in order. Suppose that all carriers will be running two to three longer trains in one day, then we will have problems with the shunting, before arriving. We are aware of this, both ProRail and LTE. A plan is underway for this, so that we will be ready for it in the future.”

Loading and unloading

A large part of the terminals appears to be ready. Of the terminals that were visited, only the track at ECT on the Maasvlakte had a maximum of seven hundred metres. “As a result, we had to take off one wagon on arrival and one on departure. That gives a delay of ninety minutes per direction. ECT pays the costs of the extra shunting.”

The longer trains hardly cause any problems when loading and unloading. “There is a time frame in which you have to load unload. I have not experienced that we did not meet those window times. The unloading takes a little more time, but we managed to do it within the time frame.”

Despite some problems and uncertainties, LTE is enthusiastic about the longer trains. The company is therefore determined to continue and ProRail is also positive. “We have already applied for the paths for 2021 and they have already been awarded. As far as we are concerned, we are going to go ahead with it.”

Watch it

Do you want to hear more about the 740-metre trains in the Netherlands and surrounding countries? It will be the topic of discussion in today’s RailFreight Live. This will be broadcasted at 1pm on our YouTube Channel.

New technology

The introduction of the new technology will allow the modification of the current Hupac pick-up and deliver tracks with a lengthening of the sidings. The new digital signalling system controls the rail traffic at the interface between the terminal and the network of RFI, the Italian rail infrastructure manager.

By the end of 2021 it will also manage the internal circulation of the entire terminal, controlling switches, signals and level crossings in a safe and flexible way, intermodal operator Hupac added.

Between competition and cooperation

In addition, railways are assisting this EU environmentally-friendly policy by removing more and more freight from the congested roads. That is why combined transport is on top of CER’s agenda. Moreover, the EU authorities and the Member States should work together on improving connectivity between railways and roads.

However, the latter is unreal without level-playing field. Therefore, Lochman as the Executive Director of the association that represents the majority of the European rail sector has appealed once more to review the Eurovignette Directive and to introduce polluter-pays and user-pays principles, not only for railways but for road transport too.

Read also:

• Finland tests longer freight trains to intensify Russian transit
• ‘Engage with neighbouring countries for 740-metre long trains’
• Dutch port of Moerdijk to handle 740-metre length trains
• Germany speeds up 740-metre freight train network upgrades

“Trains of similar size arrive in Finland from Russia regularly, but we had not been able to operate such long trains on the Finnish side. It is great that we can increase the size of trains in Finland, making the Finnish transit traffic and transit route even more efficient”, noted Tero Kosonen, VR Transpoint’s Sales and Marketing Director.

Obstacle for transit

Vainikkala is the railway gateway for Russian transit heading to the ports of Southern and Western Finland, including Kotka and Hamina. Since Russia and Finland have similar gauges, 1,520 and 1,524 millimetres, which are interoperable, the Russian wagons are able to run on the Finnish network. But there is an obstacle.

Usually, Vainikkala border station receives Russian freight trains with a length of one kilometre or even more. In order to transport the wagons further, VR Transpoint splits them into two or more sets. This complicates the transit traffic on the Finnish railway network.

One-kilometre-long trains

As a result, Finland is thinking about one-kilometre-long freight trains. This requires the installation of longer spurs at Vainikkala station. However, the Finnish company sees many benefits from this step. “The longer trains increase the efficiency of the entire railway logistics operation.

On the same timetable, more goods can be transported at once and the tracks have more transport capacity. This enables the establishment of new transport concepts on both the Russian and Finnish sides. In addition, the longer train brings environmental benefits”, specified Antti Pursiainen, Sales Director for Russia and CIS countries at VR Transpoint.

Read also:

• Kilometre-long trains and no gauge switch: this is Railgate Finland
• Stadler improves shunting at Finnish freight terminals