Bremerhaven arms itself for medium-term expected rise of rail traffic to 770 weekly block trains
The Bremen ports are investing heavily to expand their railway facilities at the Bremerhaven site. The list starts with a project in the Kaiserhafen port, where new tracks were inaugurated on 19 June. 12 of the total 16 tracks in the railway station of the Kaiserhafen port were extended to up to 750 metres and electrified.
The construction project funded by the European Union presents total costs of EUR 8.15 million. “We are responding to the strong rise of rail traffic and provide additional infrastructure to the market, which will be urgently needed in the coming years,” said Dr. Heiner Heseler, Häfenstaatsrat at the inauguration ceremony.
The new facilities at the Kaiserhafen port are part of an extensive investment program, aimed to extend and technically upgrade the rail facilities in the overseas port of Bremerhaven in this decade. “We have made available about EUR 39 million,” said Heiner Heseler.
First, the shunting radio of the port railway was modernised (in 2013). After the expansion of the railway facilities at Kaiserhafen was completed, the pre-routing group at Imsumer dike will be expanded: eight tracks will be added to the port railway station at Senator-Borttscheller-Straße by 2017. The Speckenbüttel port railway station will also be expanded in the medium term. This will be implemented in cooperation with DB Netz AG.
In 2014 about 30,200 cargo trains (inbound/outbound) passed the overseas port of Bremerhaven. This means an average of 581 trains per week. The peak value per week was approximately 660 trains. The total number of trains increased by 31 per cent compared to 2010.
Railway traffic in the automotive industry has developed particularly strongly. In 2014 about 12,900 ingoing and outgoing trains were operated (an average of 248 trains per week). Since 2010 the number of car carrier trains rose by 67 per cent. Today rail transport accounts for 74 per cent of the automotive throughput volume in Bremerhaven.
Regarding container traffic, with 47 per cent Bremerhaven is already Europe’s major railway port. Through this investment into the port railway, the Senate intends to increase its share to 55 per cent.
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