Delta Rail is a combined transport operator which “designs and operates reliable and competitive rail solutions to promote modal shift and decarbonisation in freight transport,” the spokesperson explained. The launch of the service coincides with the LET EXPO trade fair in Verona (Italy), from 10 to 13 March, where the Modal Group will be present, the spokesperson added.

Dunkirk to be added to route

The Group’s rebranding was announced earlier this month, the identity change reflecting a widening spectrum of service offerings as it moves towards a more integrated model, which includes its own new rail business. At the end of last year, the then Modalis Group and the Port of Dunkirk laid the foundation stone of a combined rail-road freight transhipment terminal.

The facility is due for completion in Spring 2026 with its first scheduled service to be launched in September linking Dunkirk to Lyon and Piacenza, with onward connections to Rome, Naples and Bari. Three weekly round trips are planned which could rise to five in 2027. Italian shippers are said to be keen to have on-forwarding solutions to the UK and Ireland market and will be able to take advantage of Danish ro-ro shipping company DFDS’ ferry services from Dunkirk to Dover and Rosslare.

The French shipping company is working on expanding its presence in Lyon. Other than the increase in rail, Lyon-Marseille connectivity has also been recently enhanced by an intermodal barge service. Moreover, CMA CGM has invested 40 million euros for the development of container traffic at the Lyon Edouard Herriot Port. All these initiatives are part of the plan to create a Greater Marseille-Lyon Port, promised by French President Emmanuel Macron in 2023.

Amazon has been increasing the presence of rail freight in France. The American company has been using the Le BoulouBettembourg and Le Boulou-Calais rolling highway services operated by VIIA, another member of RLE. “The company has thus doubled the share of rail in its transport in France since 2022, representing more than 25% of Amazon’s inter-site stock movements in France by 2024”, Amazon said in a press release.

Amazon and the failed high-speed experiment in Italy

The e-commerce hegemon claimed that this initiative is a “first for Amazon’s European operations: parcel transport by TGV”. Despite being technically true, it is not the first time the company tries to put freight on high-speed trains in Europe. Between 2018 and 2022, a high-speed train converted to carry freight ran between the Maddaloni terminal near Naples to Bologna, in Italy.

The service, called Mercitalia Fast, was launched with the Italian state-owned logistics group FS. Amazon was the sole customer of this service and was discontinued in November 2022. Initially, FS said it would have been a temporary interruption, but now the converted train went to the scrapyard and the transshipment facility at the Maddaloni terminal has been demolished.

“The project to improve the Vénissieux-Saint-Priest combined transport hub demonstrates the State’s strong commitment to the development of rail infrastructure and will provide economic operators with new low-carbon, freight transport capacity at the heart of the Lyon conurbation,” commented Fabienne Buccio, State Prefect of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region.

The terminal is connected to the Lyon-Grenoble rail line via the Vénissieux marshalling yard, from where trains operate to and from origins/destinations such Marseille, Fos-sur-Mer, Le Havre, Dijon, Strasbourg, Rennes, Tours/Saint-Pierre-des-Corps, Dourges as well as Duisburg, in Germany. It is currently used by two combined transport operators, Naviland Cargo and Novatrans.

European funding

The European Union has contributed 3.2 million euros to the terminal extension which Paloma Aba Garrote, Director of the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) said was “an operational application of its (the EU) sustainable and intelligent mobility strategy”. The terminal’s re-development has included extending three existing rail tracks to 450 metres, the creation of three, new 250-metre tracks, another of 300 metres, the installation of two 2 gantry cranes and a storage area where container handling is served by a mobile crane.

Underlining SNCF Réseau’s commitment to developing rail freight, Chairman and CEO, Matthieu Chabanel, noted: “It’s not for the money: a goods train earns us exactly what it costs, and rates are set by the State transport regulator. If we like freight, it’s because the network’s vocation is to be used as much as possible: the more it is used, the more it will contribute to providing solutions to the challenges of climate, energy and addressing traffic congestion in metropolitan areas”.

CMA CGM has a 67 per cent stake in the consortium which also includes a State bank and two public sector-run Chambers of Commerce. It will take over operation of Lyon Port’s terminals in spring 2025 within the framework of a 30-year sub-concession. Along with its partners, CMA CGM said its aim is to encourage modal shift in a multi-user project open to all maritime companies, river and rail operators via the Mediterranean-Rhône-Saône axis.

CMA CGM’s vice-president, Terminals, Emmanuel Delachambre, commented: “This project reflects our ambition, alongside our partners, to modernise and strengthen the strategic role of Lyon Edouard Herriot Port through sustainable logistics solutions and by developing modal shift, primarily from the Port of Marseille-Fos, to benefit regional, national, and international economic stakeholders.”

100,000 containers on the railways by 2030

Last year saw 101,000 containers handled at Lyon Port, with an almost 50-50 mix of river and rail transport – 53,000 TEU versus 48,000 respectively. Lyon Port’s rail traffic is mainly made up of containers, tanks and craneable trailers, followed by metal-working and agricultural products. The consortium is looking to raise box traffic to 100,000 river-borne containers and 80,000 rail-transported containers within six years.

Investment will encompass terminal expansion works, the modernisation of existing infrastructure and the creation of new railway tracks, as well as the electrification of handling equipment, IT and operational upgrades. By 2028, the terminal will have the capacity to handle 230,000 TEU. The move is in line with French President Emmanuel Macron’s promise two years ago to create a ‘Greater Marseille-Lyon Port’, facilitating access to European markets.

The first phase of the investment programme will focus on consolidating all container handling activities at Lyon Port’s Terminal 2 by the end of 2027, with a 2.9 hectare extension served by two new rail lines. On the Marseille-Lyon freight corridor, 80 per cent of goods are currently transported by road, 15 per cent by rail and 5 per cent by river.

Detailed studies are now underway for Phase 2, the route of the new line having been chosen this Spring. However, no information has been disclosed on when construction work is due to start nor the timeframe for its completion, only that it will offer the possibility to triple rail freight traffic from three to four trains daily today to up to 15 round-trip trains daily by 2040.

Not only Calais

SNCF Réseau is also working with the Port of Marseille on a project attracting public investment of almost 60 million euros and encompassing urban development and the creation of new terminals, in Marseille and Miramas, to develop combined transport.

Another example of collaboration is with the Port of Cherbourg and Brittany Ferries on the creation of a rail motorway between Cherbourg and the Basque country, which should be launched next year, Chabanel noted. “I’m a great believer in rail motorways”, he continued, highlighting the trains operating between Perpignan and Luxembourg or Calais which cover distances of approximately 1,000 kilometers. “These rail motorways represent a significant proportion of goods traffic in France and which are proving very popular with road hauliers.”

SNCF Réseau is also driving the development of new ‘inland’ rail infrastructure to facilitate the growth of freight traffic, such as the bypass around the Lyon conurbation. “Today, all rail freight coming up from the Rhône Valley or Spain passes through the middle of Lyon’s main Part-Dieu railway station, one of the busiest in France,” Chabanel observed.

“The project to bypass the Lyon conurbation by rail is therefore of crucial importance. We have submitted an application to the European Commission, with the support of local and other public authorities, to finance the preliminary studies for the northern section (of this rail bypass).” In the meantime, one near-term project is the development of combined transport hub at Vénissieux, in the suburbs of Lyon.

The newly established service with the R2L system is “a novelty, because there are few solutions for tank trailers, which we transport on the route,” explains Berny Voortman, business development manager Europe of Vos Logistics. VEGA’s R2L system, which allows for the transfer of non-cranable silo-trailers between road and rail, was introduced last year.

A number of benefits

“We are transporting along the Dourges-Vénissieux route, because the centre of gravity of our network is the north-south axis,” Berny Voortman of Vos Logistics explains. Vos Logistics has branches in both the Benelux and Vénissieux. “We can reach our customers and offer a number of benefits.”

Voortman says that “the R2L system allows Vos Logistics to save a lot of kilometres on the road.” Not only is it a more environmentally friendly alternative to road transportation, but it also improves capacity. “We are taking 600 to 700 kilometres in distance off the road. Moreover, via rail we can transport 29 tonnes, by road we are limited to 25 tonnes.”

Further expansion

It is not the first time that Vos Logistics enters the French network. The company transports bulk and tank trailers on the Bettenbourg-Lyon route. It ships petrochemical goods, recycled plastic and minerals.

Unlike CargoBeamer, which reduced its presence in France earlier due to strikes, Vos Logistics is positive about its expansion in France. The company is not worried about strikes hindering operations, like in the case of CargoBeamer. “We have an existing network, a local structure in the Benelux and Vénissieux that serves as a backup. Moreover, Novatrans is a private operator,” says Voortman.

Consequently, Vos Logistics is looking to expand further. A new route to Marseille is in the making, once again in cooperation with Novatrans. “We also have customers there, for which we load goods. Moreover, there is a petrochemical industry and a port,” explains Voortman.

Also read:

• VEGA introduces r2L system for non-cranables in France
• CargoBeamer halts Perpignan-Neuss service: ‘France is a difficult market’
• French shippers say rail freight improves but remains ‘very inadequate’

One of the most important characteristics of this rail link will be its border crossing efficiency. The interoperable train locomotives the partners will use will be key because they will save significant time on the Spanish-French border, considering that no change in locomotives or wheelsets is required.

A streak of services in Europe

The links between Barcelona and France are not the only ones initiated by Maersk recently. The company launched another rail link in Italy where inland and port connections are highlighted again. In this case, the connection is between the port of Vado Ligure and the Verona Porta Nuova terminal, both in Northern Italy.

Vado Ligure is one of the Mediterranean’s most significant fresh produce cargo gateways, with a large reefer terminal. Apart from the Verona Porta Nuova terminal, the port is already connected with other regional destinations, including Milan, Padua, Rubiera and Piacenza. In total, it is served by 12-14 weekly trains. The new service will be managed by Maersk Italia and operated by Logtainer Connect.

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• Maersk puts Central Asian markets in the spotlight with new service

• Zaragoza Maritime Terminal to double number of trains by end 2023

• MSC to take over 50 per cent of Renfe Mercancías

The contract in details

The contract has a duration of 91 months. Thus, the commissioning should expected between 2030 and 2031. The tender entails the construction of the tunnel section from the Italian border with France to the Susa Valley, west of Turin. As TELT pointed out, 28,5 kilometres of tunnels will be dug out. Other than the two main tunnels, the companies will also dig the tunnels to bring down the two dual-mode tunnel-boring machines (TBMs) and the connections between the two tubes. The TBMs deployed for this project are defined as dual-mode because they can break through both hard and soft rocks. It is expected to remove over 2,3 million cubic metres of material during the digging process. According to TELT, up to 60 per cent of it will be used as construction material.

A much-needed infrastructure

Despite many controversies and protests against the Turin-Lyon new railway, recent events show how key this infrastructure can be. Last week, for example, a landslide caused the closure of the Frejus Railway, the main rail connection between Italy and France. According to many, such events will not occur once the tunnel is ready, since the infrastructure will be more protected against landslides and other natural phenomena.

Also read:

• Turin-Lyon tunnel: 3 billion euros tender to carry out railway works
• France will invest in Turin-Lyon access routes after all
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The tender also includes the construction of five safety areas and five ventilation plants. The underground areas will also be equipped with anti-fire systems that will allow to immediately find the exact location of accidents. If a fire starts out, a system of water sprays will go off at the location identified by the anti-fire system. As solutions in cases of emergencies, two evacuation trains and six bimodal vehicles will have to be provided as well.

The recent turmoil surrounding the Turin-Lyon

The project for the tunnel connecting Italy and France across the Mont d’Ambin mountain has been under the spotlight since its announcement. Various former and current French politicians have repeatedly expressed their voices, some against and some in favour. Groups of people against the project are also present in Italy, with the so-called ‘No Tav’ movement being on the front.

Last month, the French government decided to invest up to three billion euros despite advisory bodies suggesting otherwise. The French Orientation Council of Infrastructure proposed that construction of the access routes to the tunnel from Lyon should be postponed and more focus should have been put on the Dijon-Modane line.

On the other hand, Italy seems to be more keen on investing in the project. More recently, Italy received 44 million euros from the Connecting Europe Facility allocated to the Turin-Lyon tunnel. With these funds, it will be possible to start undertaking the needed work to create the access routes to the tunnel from Italy. Once again, the French did not come up with a proposal that would contribute to the projects from their side.

Also read:

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• ‘Italy and China can have a solid relationship even without the BRI’
• 100 billion for rail in France until 2042, but is it enough?