1331i

INTERNATIONAL SUPPLEMENT TO BLN 1331 6 JULY 2019

BRANCH LINE NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

This newsletter covers the World outside the British Isles from information
supplied by members.

Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Compilers or of the Society.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS TEAM:-
International Editor (to whom all email and postal contributions should be sent):
Paul Griffin, 7 School Bell Mews, Church Lane, Stoneleigh, COVENTRY, CV8 3ZZ
Email: [email protected]
Deputy International Editor: Derek Woodward, 68 Church Street, Matlock, DERBY, DE4 3BY

_________________________________________________________

The sign at the La Plage terminus of the Le Havre trams reads Arrêt absolu, meaning absolute stop. Our member
suggests that a suitable caption might read, “What? You really want me to stop? If Mr Adlam was here he would
want the remaining 5 metres even though there is no wiring!!”

[242] Denmark – More on the København - Ringsted high speed line
The København - Ringsted line via Køge was ceremonially opened on 31 May. Public service started on
1 June. At present it is used only by an hourly RE service between the two, leaving København H at

xx:35 and Ringsted at xx:44. Looking for København -Ringsted on the Journey Planner doesn't show the
trains as they are overtaken by others! You have to ask for trains via Køge Nord.

[243] France – News in Brief
What's in a name? - Further moves, as regions seek to reinforce their identity, have seen Centre Val-
de-Loire Region rename its TER network "Rémi", while Grand Est has renamed its local trains and
buses "Fluo Grand Est".
Beauvais - Le Tréport - There will be five return services daily at Le Tréport when the line reopens next
December (2 more than when the line closed). The local communauté des communes has purchased
the station building from SNCF. It will be renovated and the Tourist Office will be installed there as well
as a ticket office.
Aurillac inaccessible by rail this summer - As in recent summers, the line from Arvant to Aurillac will be
closed for engineering work and replacement services will be operated by road transport. From 13
May until 18 October, the section from Vic-sur-Cère to Neussargues will be closed. 11.3 km of track
will be replaced and the water tower at Le Lioran will be renovated. The total budget is 9 million euros.
The line from Aurillac to Brive is due to re-open on 3 June. But the branch from Aurillac to
Figeac/Toulouse remains closed.
MTVS approved to operate to Rotangy - On Friday 3 May MTVS received formal approval to extend
passenger operations from Crèvecoeur-le-Grand to Rotangy where a run around loop has been
installed. The event marks the significant progress that is being made by MTVS in restoring and
converting the former Crèvecoeur to St Omer-en-Chaussée line to metre gauge, that has included the
installation of automatic barriers where the line crosses the D149.
Courtesy of the French Railways Society

[244] Germany – Rare connection in use between Göttingen and Hannover
From 11 June until the end of the timetable period in December, all ICE and Nightjet services are
diverted over the classic line between Göttingen and Hannover. All northbound ICE and Nightjet
services are booked to use platform 4 at Göttingen, which implies use of the connection from the
Kassel direction at Abzw. Siekweg (DE19/162), which currently is only used by one late-night SX
service.

[245] Germany – Changes in the Museumsbahnkursbuch 2019
The Museum Railway timetable, published annually, has its own numbering system for the various
heritage lines. The first two letters are an abbreviation for the Land ie SH = Schleswig Holstein, the
next two letters are an abbreviation for the operator if they operate more than one line, and the
numbers are for the railways in each Land.
● SH/HH01: No service Schönberg(Holst) – Schönkirchen
● MV01b: Still no information on reopening Reppenhagen – Hof Gutow
● NI/HB04b: No service between Winsen (Luhe) Süd and Niedermarschacht, the same as last year
● NI/HB09: Stuhr to Leeste reopens this year to heritage trains. Still no trains to Bremen-Kirchhuchting
● NI/HB16: Expanded service Hollige – Vorwalsrode but no round trip Hollige – Altenboitzen.
● NI/HB23: As in 2018, no service Bremerhaven Hbf to Bhv- Fischereihafen due to track work.
● NI/HB26: All trains Piesberg Zechenbahnhof – Osnabrück Hbf now via Osnabrück Hafen instead of
Osnabrück-Eversburg, so no service Piesberg – Eversburg.

● BE/BB13: Loksammlung Falkenberg(Elster): The (rusty) private steam locomotive collection at
Falkenburg (Elster) is now open to the public sometimes, but no word on whether on the site ng line is
operating.
● NW04: Abschnitt Barntrup – Dörentrup: Despite what the website says, there is no service Barntrup
– Dörentrup
● NW05a: There is a service on just three days between Lengerich Stadt and Bad Iburg.
● NW09: No service Wengern Ost – Hagen- Vorhalle
● NW13 (ex NW11): Reopening of museum line Dieringhausen to Wiehl
● NW26: Buses replace trains between Blumenthal and Hellenthal!!
● SN10: Draisine operation now operating Pirna – Herrenleite
● SN21: Re-0pening Nebitzschen – Kemmlitz(b OZ)Bf
● SN27b: Reopening Göhren – Penig
● BY06: Reopening Eggmühl – Langquaid

[246] Germany - Extracts from recent editions of Bahn Report and Der Schienenbus
Bayern: Better news for the Neumarkt St Veit to Frontenhausen – Marklkofen line. It was being used
for compacted refuse trains until October 2017, but faced closure due to the poor state of the track.
Negotiations have led to a solution. The line is likely to be leased and then sold to BayernBahn Infra
GmbH. Several hundred thousand Euros will be invested to bring the track and bridges up to the
necessary standard. In addition to the compacted refuse trains a firm with a warehouse in Marklkofen
wishes to use the line to transport fertiliser.
Berlin: Reinstatement of the “Siemensbahn” (Jungfernheide – Gartenfeld) is envisaged by 2025 with
the possibility of an extension to Hakenfelde and what might by then have become the site of Tegel
airport. A third platform will need to be constructed at Jungfernheide.
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: Both magazines carry reports on the potential closure of the lines
Güstrow to Plau am See and Parchim to Malchow. These are owned by Regioinfra GmbH. The
company acquired Karow to Plau am See and Karow to Malchow in 2012 and Karow to Parchim in
2014. The problem for the company has been that since the withdrawal of regular services, the income
they receive for use of the track has declined. There is insufficient income from the current mix of
occasional special trains, freight services and seasonal passenger services. The company states that it is
reluctant to take this step, but will be left with no option other than to seek closure. Anyone wishing to
travel over the lines should therefore do so as soon as possible.
Niedersachsen: Emmerthal to Bodenwerde – the line has been refurbished and now carries trains to
serve a gravel pit near Bodenwerde. Three block trains per week are envisaged. The line has only been
open from Emmerthal to Grohnde.
Rheinland-Pfalz: There is doubt as to whether the line from Gerolstein to Kaisersesch has been saved.
Local authorities have plans to convert the track into a cycle path if no one comes forward to take over
the line as a railway.
The state of Rheinland-Pfalz now holds the concession to run the Bendorf to Siershahn line and also
the Grenzau to Höhr Grenzhausen line. Earlier attampts to reopen from Siershahn to Bendorf stalled
when the operating concession ran out in 2013.
Sachsen-Anhalt: New and re-opened lines are under consideration. With the likely closure of opencast
coal mines, a direct link from Merseburg to Leipzig is planned.

A new curve from Abzw Tornitz to Abzw Seehof would allow direct trains from Bernburg to Magdeburg
and increase patronage from a miserable 100 passengers per day on the Bernburg – Calbe route to a
miserable 300 per day instead.
Barby to Güterglück is also under consideration for reopening, although the line is closed and parts of
the trackbed are now freed from legal use as a railway.
A ten year reconstruction of Köthen is likely to result in diversions and major changes to the current
layout which includes semaphore signalling.
Schleswig-Holstein: Both magazines carry stories on the re-opening from Kiel to Schönberger Strand.
This is behind schedule and the costs have escalated from 35 to 50 million Euros. This may mean that
cost benefit tests are no longer passed. Some of the problem appears to be the poor conditions of the
earthworks under the track. Target date for re-opening is 2022. The coal fired power station at Kiel
which has generated since 1969/70 was closed in March this year, leading to the loss of traffic over
part of the line.
Wrist to Kellinghusen – locals and local politicians are getting frustrated with the lack of progress
towards re-opening. There is now a question as to whether funds which were available in 2016 for the
project are now available at all. The state government has been slow to answer questions about the
project.
Tornesch to Uetersen – studies are looking at two alternatives – reopening the currently freight only
line to passengers and retaining the railway for freight, but with a surface which allows buses to run.
The former option is going to be cheaper and quicker.

[247] Hungary – Four threatened lines visited
In May, the writer travelled on four of the fourteen branch lines said to be under threat of closure.
Vámosgyörk – Gyöngyös - This service runs approximately hourly (but with some gaps). The line is
electrified and trains were formed of loco hauled coaches with a driving trailer. There were limited
numbers of passengers joining and leaving at the terminus. This was in contrast to the busy bus station
nearer to the centre of town. There were no freight wagons on the day of the visit and some of the
sidings were overgrown.

Gyöngyös station with ubiquitous class 418 electric locomotive

Gyöngyös is the main terminus of two narrow gauge lines - one to Szalajkaház and the other to
Mátrafüred. The terminus is just a few minutes walk from the MÁV station and boasts a relatively
modern looking booking and information office. In the time available it was only possible to sample
the Mátrafüred line. Trains are operated by a company called ÁEV. On this occasion a diesel loco and
single coach with wood burning stove were in use. The writer was just settling into his seat when the
peace was shattered by a party of young children and their handlers. This meant the outward journey
was full and lively, but only four people were on the return working.

Narrow gauge Mk48 locomotive with single coach at Gyöngyös ÁEV

Szentlőrinc – Sellye - This service runs approximately every two hours, and on the day of the visit the
train was formed of two 117 railcars (more familiar to most enthusiasts as Bzmots).
On the north side of the line, about 2-3 kms from Szentlőrinc, is a factory which seems to be a major
and the only intermediate source of freight traffic on the whole line. Two former CD 740 diesels were
at the head of a train and a third loco was in the sidings. Most of the passengers got out at Sumony,
leaving just two by the time the train reached Sellye. There was no sign of any freight traffic there
although the line towards Villány is in use and the running lines through Sellye station were in use. It
was not possible to tell if the line towards Barcs was still in use. In the booking office area was a poster
which confirmed withdrawal of Sellye to Barcs and Sellye to Villány passenger services as from 4 March
2007. There were but a handful of passengers on the return working although a few joined at Sumony.

Sellye station
Notice of withdrawal of two services from Sellye in 2007 – still posted in the station.

Godisa – Komló - This line has just two return workings each weekday, so in theory it would be
possible to commute from Komló to Dombóvár (or vice versa) each day. It proved easy to buy a ticket
for the outward journey at Dombóvár, but less easy to buy a ticket there for the Komló to Godisa
return leg. Having asked the lady in the booking office if she spoke either English or German (she spoke
neither) her colleague came out to the public area (she did speak some German) and asked if the
writer realised that the train was only in Komló for a few minutes and did he really wish to leave so
soon. Having explained the purpose of his trip, her colleague was now willing to sell a ticket (after
replacing a defective roll of paper in the ticket machine).
Our member travelled from Dombóvár on a Dombóvár to Pécs local train and alighted at Sásd. The
train to Komló then arrived from Dombóvár having run empty a few minutes behind. The train was
again a 117 Railcar and a reasonable number of passengers joined. There was intermediate freight
(timber loading) at Mecsekjánosi, but no sign of freight at any other stations. The loops at Komló
suggested recent use, but there were no freight wagons present on the day of the visit. Komló has
been a coal mining town in the past (until 2000) and there is a memorial next to the line. There were 7
passengers on the return journey so the railcar was by no means full. There is a speed restriction next
to a river bank near km 12.5 where the bank appears to be eroded.
Villány - Mohács - An early morning journey was sampled. 05:12 from Pécs, change at Villány. However
even at 05:00 there were a relatively large number of passengers filing off trains at Pécs. The train
from Villány was formed of a 117 railcar. Again passenger numbers were relatively low. There were no
intermediate loops in use and no sign of any freight traffic at any of the intermediate stations. The
freight sidings at Mohács station itself were overgrown and did not look recently used (as did a
connection leading to some sidings next to the river). However a connection to a factory (shown as
Kronospan Mofa on Google satellite) was in use. During his "stay" at Mohács waiting for the return
working the writer completely failed to appreciate that the station was very close to the River Danube.
There were a few passengers on the return working to Villány and only one or two more joined or left
intermediately.

Komló station

[248] Hungary - Csömör to Kerepes ends, possibly only temporarily
The service on the HEV line between Csömör and Kerepes ended on 15 June as MÁV-START needs all
its Desiro units for summer traffic. There is no decision yet to reinstate the service. It might happen
with Desiros or Bzmots after 25 August - or it might not.

[249] Hungary – Road and rail bridge renovated
The 130 year old dual road and rail bridge over the River Tisza at Kisköre, between Kál-Kápolna and
Kisújszállás, has been renovated. Work started in June 2018 with bus replacement between Kisköre
and Abádszalók (or at one point Kisújszállás) and was “completed” in November 2018, but testing
found unexpected problems and more work was needed. On 15 May 2019 the bridge reopened, but
with a 20km/h speed limit due to bridge maintenance work still progressing. Once these are finished
speeds of 40km/h will apply.

[250] Italy – Recent timetable changes
Como avoiding line: With effect from the summer timetable all EC trains via Chiasso also call at Como
S. Giovanni, so no passenger services via the Como avoiding line.
Genova diversions: The "fast" line between Genova and Arquata Scrivia is closed 16 to 29 August,
during which period there are numerous trains via the connection Bivio Rivarolo - Bivio Bersaglio
[EGTRE IT19/69]. This line is also used to a more limited extent on 20 & 21 July when trains between
the Milano area and Albenga/Ventimiglia do not use the north to west curve avoiding Genova
Sampierdarena [EGTRE IT19/64], but reverse at Piazza Principe. At the moment, these are the only
passenger trains doing the line Bivio Fegino - Bivio Polcevera [EGTRE IT19/63], but obviously not while
the "fast" line is closed.
Piacenza Linea AV/AC connection: There is now a southbound train from Milano via the high-speed
line that does the connection to Piacenza, balancing the late evening northbound working that has run
for several years. The train is FR9503, the 05:50 Milano Centrale to Roma Termini. This also does the
connection back onto the high-speed line at Castelfranco Est.

[251] Luxembourg – Recent developments in Luxembourg
Sandweiler-Contern to Luxembourg has now been double tracked and is in use, including the new
viaduct on the approach to the tunnel north of Luxembourg station. The old junction north of the
original viaduct where the Ettelbruck line branches off has now all been plain lined, all points are now
in Luxembourg tunnel. For the microgricers it seems that the two routes north are now platform
specific at Luxembourg. The extension of Luxtram continues apace. The track is in situ, and has been
for some time, over Pont Adolphe. From there to the Gare along Avenue de la Liberté, it appears that
the double track will be split with one line each side of the road (at least if that’s what the mass of
current roadworks all labelled Luxtram are all about!). Also work has started with the tram station at
Luxembourg Gare, just outside the front door, how convenient is that!! This does mean that certain
bus routes no longer terminate or call at the Gare, including a number of Railway Replacement
Services which run when lines are closed for engineering works. Again for microgricers, Luxtrams
leaving Stäreplaz/Etoile do the crossover to the ‘out of town’ line towards Luxexpo, unlike when the
trams terminated at Rout Bréck-Pafendall where the crossover is to the south of the tram station.

The plans for free transport are still being processed. There is a problem regarding the homeless who
may be eyeing this up as nice warm accommodation, not that there are many homeless in
Luxembourg. On our members recent visit he was on the Koblenz train from Sandweiler-Contern and
in the upper compartment one very dishevelled person was fast asleep on the three longways seats,
although he woke up before Wasserbillig and got off! Perhaps he had managed to ‘acquire’ 4 euros
and bought himself a day ticket or was hoping for no ticket inspection, though our member observes
that CFL staff nearly always ticket check on every train he is on, even the cross border ones when the
DB staff have already done the job.
[252] Poland - Surprise summer line re-opening
From 28 June to 31 August (the date of the next timetable update) there is a weekend service between
Hajnówka and Siemianówka stopping at Narewka. This is a re-opening of part of line 31.
It is tempting to speculate whether this is related to opening of the newly rebuilt line
from Hajnówka to Lewki, but there are, currently, no direct journeys in the journey planner between
Bielsk Podlaski/Lewki and Hajnówka in this period.

Courtesy of Europeanrailwayatlas.com

[253] Romania – Doubling of part of Bucureşti – Urziceni line for new Otopeni airport train
The section between Mogoşoaia and Baloteşti will be doubled as part of the project to build a new
branch to serve Otopeni airport. The 8 km of track should be completed within 17 months.
[254] Slovakia – Timetable changes from 9 June and a closure coming up
KBS 122 Trenčianska Teplá - Trenčianské Teplice: Four train pairs on Saturdays, Sundays and public
holidays 22 June until 1 September 2019. KBS 185/188: Two new train pairs Poprad Tatry - Muszyna
on Saturdays and Sundays from 29 June until 1 September.2019. KBS 187 Spišské Vlachy - Spišské
Podhradie: Four pairs on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 June until 1 September 2019 operated by LTE

Logistik a Transport Slovakia. KBS 190 Košice - Mukachevo: Two new train pairs between Košice and
Mukachevo on the standard gauge line. KBS 195: Bánovce nad Ondavou - Veľké Kapušany: This route
will be re-opened with four train pairs Mon-Fri.
North of Bratislava the short branch from Zohor to Záhorská Ves will close at the December timetable
change. The passengers currently using each train would easily fit on a bus which is eight times
cheaper to run.

[255] Slovenia/Croatia/Bosnia – Border crossings
In early October a member, with a friend, travelled on two of the cross-border lines between Slovenia
and Croatia which reopened in 2014. The 13:21 Celje – Đurmanec was formed of a heavily-graffitied SŽ
2-car DMU. At Rogatec (Slovenia), the short freight branch which crosses the border to Hum na Sutli
(Croatia) was noted to have shiny rails. The last “normal” passenger left the train at Sveti Rok ob Sotli,
the last station in Slovenia, leaving just our two enthusiasts on the train across the border and to
Đurmanec. The SŽ unit departed back as the 15:00 to Rogatec, without any passengers. The next day
they travelled on the 10:40 Varaždin (Croatia) to Lendava (Slovenia). From Varaždin this was a pair of
HŽ (former SJ) single-car units, but the rear car was detached at Čakovec. After Vratišinec, two stops
before the border, they were again the only passengers. On approaching Lendava, the sidings leading
into the chemical works of Nafta Lendava were noted to be rusty, although there were some wagons
present within the works. The station at Lendava has 5 tracks, converging to a headshunt beyond, but
they were all rusty apart from the one used by their train. Amazingly, the station is staffed by SŽ, for
two trains a day. They returned to Croatia straight away on the 11:42 back to Varaždin, once again the
only passengers until Mursko Središće, just after the border. Back in Croatia they noted that the
Gradec – Sveti Ivan Žabno cut-off (BLNI 1263.327), the new (single) track was in place and connected
at both ends, and signals have been erected. The “main” line between Križevci, Gradec and Dugo Selo
is in the process of being doubled. As Bosnia-Herzegovina is currently without international passenger
rail services, they entered the country on foot, following the advice given on the Seat 61 website.
Although the gap in passenger services is only 6km between Volinja (Croatia) and Dobrljin (Bosnia) on
the Zagreb – Banja Luka line, there is no direct pedestrian route between these two locations, as the
River Una which forms the border is only crossed by the railway bridge. They therefore left the train
from Zagreb at the penultimate station in Croatia, Hrvatska Kostajnica, where there is a road bridge
over the river to Kostajnica in Bosnia. This is a small town with banks, shops etc so they were able to
obtain Bosnian currency and then visit a café, where the staff were able to order a “taxi” to take them
the 14km to Dobrljin station. Although the transport arranged was not an official taxi, it got them to
Dobrljin in good time, for a reasonable price. At Dobrljin, a Class 441 electric locomotive with one
passenger coach formed the 14:6 to Banja Luka. Another ŽRS Class 441 locomotive was present with a
northbound freight, so there is clearly still regular freight traffic across the border. Two days later they
travelled on the 07:07 from Sarajevo to Čapljina, which was formed of a Talgo set hauled by a Class
441 electric. Beyond Čapljina the line crosses the border into Croatia and continues for another 31km
to the Adriatic at Ploče, but again there are no longer any cross-border passenger services. Until a few
years ago, Croatian Railways (HŽ) operated a local train service between Ploče and Metković, but this
has been replaced by buses (which are shown in the HŽ timetable). An HŽ electric locomotive was
present at Čapljina, suggesting that they still operate international freight trains on this isolated
stretch of line.

[256] Spain – Updating opening of Granada high speed line
Updating and correcting BLNI 1330.233, services on the new high speed line actually commenced 26
June with 3 trains each way to Madrid and one Barcelona -> Granada -> Barcelona return trip in a day.
The Granada - Madrid Talgo via Linares-Baeza ended on the same day thus closing Moreda - Bif.
Almeria to passengers. No indication yet as to when Granada - Antequera Santa Ana broad
gauge services will resume.

[257] Spain - Recoletos tunnel to close for six months
The 7km Recoletos tunnel linking Atocha and Chamartín through central Madrid will be closed for six
months to allow track, catenary and signalling renewal. All the ballast will be replaced, along with
wooden sleepers and the existing flexible catenary replaced with plate and rigid catenary.
Construction began in 1933, but the tunnel only opened in 1967. It is now used by 470 trains and more
of 200,000 passengers daily. It is used by Cercanías lines C-1, C-2, C-7, C-8 and C-10, as well as regional
and intercity services. Despite remedial works in recent years, 225 incidents were registered between
2014 and 2018, with around 28 trains affected each time.

[258] Sweden - Berga to Oskarshamn closes at short notice
A correspondent has reported seeing a poster at Oskarshamn station stating that passenger trains
from Berga would end on 16 June with bus replacement from 17 June. In fact many trains had been
replaced on an ad-hoc basis by buses before the closure date. A lack of operational stock is partly to
blame, though passenger loadings are presumably poor as well as the closure is permanent. A
normally trustworthy source was quoting that the last planned train on the Berga - Oskarshamn line
would actually be on Saturday 15 June. Our correspondent also found that many trains on the "main
line" from Linköping to Kalmar were cancelled, with a very unreliable and delayed bus replacement
service running which forced him to have a 170 Euros taxi ride from Berga to Kalmar airport in order to
not miss his flight.

Closure notice at Oskarshamn

The delightful station building at Oskarshamn is the second station on the site. The first was considered inferior to
the one recently built at Hultsfred, and some planning irregularities in its construction made it easy to knock it down
and build the much more imposing existing structure in the Nordic Renaissance style. It was completed and
inaugurated in 1906. The station's exterior is well preserved and since 2004 the building has been heritage listed.
Some parts of the building are used as flats, but on the ground floor there is still a waiting room, which sadly will not
be necessary shortly.

REST OF THE WORLD

[259] Egypt – Service suspended, and another one shortened
Ain Shams to Suez seemed to be suspended, at least out of Ain Shams. A railway enthusiast turned up
to a deserted station, rather dusty tracks and an absence of staff. When questioned locals pointed to
the road and suggested bus or car.
Shibeen al Qanatir to El Marg trains now only run to a newly built terminus station at 23 July and the
metro has a big new terminus over the road at New El Marg.

[260] Turkey (Asiatic) – More on the Kars tourist train
It seems the sleeping cars for this service have been taken from the Kars service train, which now has
none. The fare is 400tl (£54.20) as opposed to the former sleeper price on the service train of 173Tl
(£23.44). It seems to call at most stations, though not Sivas as the long diversion via the avoiding line is
in use until late winter.

[261] Turkey (Asiatic) – Electrification testing begins on missing link
The Ankara to İzmir railway line is electrified throughout, apart from the section from Tavşanlı to
Balıkesir. Now testing has started of the newly completed electrification project on this section. Once
this is completed electric train services will commence between Ankara and İzmir.

[262] Turkey (Asiatic) – High speed line behind schedule
The Ankara-Sivas HST line has the biggest budget of all the HST projects this year: TL 1 bn. - one third
of all HST investment. The project is expected to cost TL 13 bn, so there will be TL 5 bn of work in
following years. The Ankara - Kirikkale section is behind schedule, so a partial opening does not seem
possible and hence the whole thing is unlikely to be finished in 2020. The line will open in stages:
Stage 1: Yerköy-Sivas (253 km), stage 2: Kırıkkale-Yerköy (79 km), stage 3: Kayaş-Kırıkkale (62 km) and
stage 4: Ankara-Kayaş (12 km)

[263] Uruguay – Central Railway Project kicks off
23 May saw the official launch of construction of the Central railway project. This involves rebuilding
the 273km line linking the port of Montevideo with Paso de los Toros, where Finnish paper producer
UPM is building a new pulp mill. The upgraded line will also be used by passenger services between
Montevideo and 25 de Augusto. The first 26km from Montevideo will be double track with single track
for the rest of the line with 12 passing loops. The rebuilding will allow 22.5-tonne axle loads and a
maximum line speed of 80km/h for freight trains.