Since November last year, the Linz shuttle has been operating between Rotterdam and Austria. At first glance, it is a normal train of open, high freight cars. This train was, however loaded with containers on its journey from Austria, and returns to the Alps filled with ore.
Normally the Eanos wagons are used for the transport of loose, dry bulk. The Austrian ILG innovative logistics group GmbH now loads containers to the train from Linz. “The big advantage is that we can transport much more heavy containers with this type of waggon than on a normal container train”, explained Wolfgang Klepatsch, ILG.”Now we can load 2,150 tonnes, istead of previously 1,150 tonnes,” he adds.
The shuttle consists of 34 Eanos wagons, offering space for a total of 64 TEU. Klepach: “These are heavy 20-foot container with at least 25 tonnes, filled with steel coils. On their way back, they can carry loose bulk material for Voest Alpine. This means that we have to clean the waggons in Austria every time, but that’s only a minor inconvenience.”
The Linz shuttle currently runs once a week. ILG is planning to increase the number of trips from April to at least three departures per week. “This is a really good system. It is a pleasure that we can also work on it,” said Roy de Haan, Account Manager at APM Terminals. The containers are cleared at the Maasvlakte II terminal. Then, the shuttle continues, to be loaded with ore for the return journey.
