Railway PRO July

the railway business magazine

Year VIII ■ No. 3.7 (97) ■ 2013

OTIF: The development of interoperability on the Euro-Asian axis is a necessity

Railway PRO Freight & Logistics

Журнал железнодорожный бизнес

Parliament approves EU draft budget for 2014-2020 A long-awaited measure: single authorisation for placing in service a rail vehicle

Grup Feroviar Român takes over 51% in CFR Marfă

Encouraging signals throughout Europe for SHIFT²RAIL Initiative Interview with Mr. Philippe Citroen, Director General of the European Rail Industry Association (UNIFE) Мы получаем положительные сигналы со всей Европы по инициативе SHIFT²RAIL йнтервью с генеральному директору Ассоциации Европейской железнодорожной промышленности (UNIFE), Филиппу Ситроену

editor’s note 1

T

he European Union leads a true guerrilla campaign to build a single railway transport market, especially in the freight sector, or to maintain the current status-quo. The long-standing tradition of approaching the networks as independentnational structures with unique valences and with role in protecting local business has a say in market mobility. As we speak, the ministers and MEPs are besieged with divergent messages from lobby groups who want them to change the meaning of the proposed Fourth Railway Package by introducing exemptions and derogations that would permit, in the end, the preservation of a closed market, hostile to real liberalization. Although we are talking about a long-term vision which seeks to transfer a significant share of the cargo transport from roads to railways, the institutional and administrative barriers they want to preserve in Member States will perpetuate the market fragmentation by disrupting this desideratum.

Meanwhile, we are looking to the east, where the large geographical

areas tend to join again to create an attractive framework for the forwarders on the routes linking the Far East to Europe. Russia has carried out its railway restructuring plans, conveying the sector into a real business platform where both local magnates and multinational groups activate. Repositioning RZD in a company dealing mainly with infrastructure and investments and the outsourcing combined with the privatization of transport activities permit the concentration of public financial resources to the development of infrastructure and to the participation to large international projects, together with a dynamics of transport investors which seems to outrun by far the activities of the European companies. The international stock exchange listing has become a trend which permits the attraction of capital, but also a certain business visibility and credibility. In this context, it is not surprising the perseverance of Russia, together with Kazakhstan and Belarus, in carrying on the “Eurasia” project, by setting up a railway joint-venture that

would facilitate freight transport in the common space. Based on a joint technical and institutional tradition, interoperability is easy to ensure thus enabling the construction of attractive commercial offers for large intercontinental transport.

A similar vision can also be noticed in the central area of the Eurasian bloc. Among diplomatic crises and local ambitions, Turkey continues, with Georgia and Azerbaijan, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars project (while still not permitting Armenia to join the project), while the joint project of Turkmenistan with Afghanistan and Tajikistan draws the attention of neighbours (China, Iran and Kyrgyzstan) to identifying faster and cheaper routes to the Indian Ocean. In this puzzle, it will be interesting to watch the future position of Iran which can get out of “isolation” over the next period and which, just like Armenia, seeks to ensure a north-south axis to link the Persian Gulf to Northern Russia.

Eurasia, a dynamic platform for railway business

Issue published with the support of Romanian Railway Industry Association & Club Feroviar – The Railway Business Club

Журнал издаётся при поддержке Асоциации Железнодорожной Промышленности и Club Feroviar – ЖД Клуб Деловых Людей

Евразия - динамичная платформа для развития железнодорожного бизнеса Европейский союз ведет настоящие партизанские бои за построение единого рынка железнодорожного транспорта, в частности грузового сектора, или за сохранение нынешнего статус-кво. Давняя традиция подхода к сетям в виде национальных независимых сетей единой валентности, выполняющих роль защитника местного бизнеса, говорит за себя в части мобильности рынка. Даже в этот период министров и европарламентариев подвергают «бомбардировке» противоречивыми сообщениями от группировок лоббистов с целью изменения смысла предлагаемого Четвертого железнодорожного Пакета путем введения поправок и исключений, которые позволят, в конечном счете, сохранить закрытый рынок, враждебный в отношении реальной либерализации. Хотя речь идет о долгосрочной перспективе, которая направлена на переход значительной доли грузовых перевозок с автомобильного на железнодорожный транспорт, институциональные и административные барьеры, которые есть желание сохранить на уровне государств-членов ЕС, увековечат фрагментацию рынка, подрывая

поставленную цель. Между тем, мы смотрим на восток, где обширные географические пространства проявляют тенденцию снова объединятся, чтобы создать привлекательные условия для перевозчиков на маршрутах, связывающих Дальний Восток с Европой. Россия продолжила планы реструктуризации железнодорожной отрасли, превращая его в настоящую бизнес-платформу, где присутствуют как крупные местные магнаты, так и многонациональные группы. Пересмотр позиции РЖД, как в основном по части инфраструктуры и инвестиций и аутсорсинга, в сочетании с приватизацией транспортной деятельности, позволяет сосредоточить государственные средства на развитии инфраструктуры и участии в крупных международных проектах, вкупе с динамикой инвестиций в транспортные компании, которая, похоже, значительно обогнала поведение европейских компаний. Листинг на фондовых биржах стал модой, которая позволяет привлечь капитал, но и обеспечить определенную видимость и авторитет бизнеса. В данном контексте неудивительна настойчивость России, Казахстана и Белоруссии продолжить проект

«Евразия», закладывая основу для нового совместного предприятия для облегчения грузовых железнодорожных перевозок на общем пространстве. На фоне общей технической и институциональной традиции, обеспечение совместимости легко достижимо, что позволит создать привлекательные коммерческие предложения для крупного межконтинентального транспорта. Аналогичную точку зрения можно заметить в Центральном блоке Евразии. Посреди дипломатических кризисов и местных амбиций, Турция продолжает наряду с Грузией и Азербайджаном проект Баку-Тбилиси-Карс (но держа Армению вне игры), в то время как совместный проект Туркменистана с Афганистаном и Таджикистаном привлекает внимание соседей (Китая, Ирана и Кыргызстана) на предмет поиска более быстрых и дешевых маршрутов до Индийского океана. Во всей этой головоломке будет интересно наблюдать будущую позицию Ирана, который может выйти из «изоляции» в следующий период, и который вместе с Арменией давно наметил для себя обеспечение оси север-юг, связывающей Персидский залив с Севером России.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

2 cOntent leaders

MARKET DEVELOPMENT

РАЗВИТИЕ РЫНКА

50 26

Need for a new approach on intermodal transport Потребность в новом подходе к интермодальному транспорту

The freight transport in the EU is mostly performed by trucks (47.3%), followed by seagoing ships (37.8%), by trains (11.2%) and by ships using the inland waterways (3.7%). Грузовые перевозки внутри ЕС в большинстве случаев осуществляется с помощью грузовиков (47,3%), затем морскими кораблями (37,8%), поездами (11,2%) и транспортными средствами, использующими внутренние водные пути (3,7%)

POLICIES & STRATEGIES

30 TEN -T core network will have to rely on the European freight corridors

31 New discussions to speed photo: club feroviar

up the completion of the North-South Corridor

Editor’s note the railway business magazine

Railway PRO

ISSN - 1841 - 4672

1 Eurasia, a dynamic platform for railway business POLICIES & STRATEGIES

Publisher: Editura de Transport & Logistică S.R.L. 30, Virgiliu Street, Sector 1 Bucharest, postal code: 010881 Tel.:+4 021 224 43 85; +4 021 224 43 87 Mobile: +40 721 723 724 Fax: +4 021 224 43 86 E-mail: editors@railwaypro.com Web-site: www.railwaypro.com

Editors: Elena Ilie elena.ilie@railwaypro.com Pamela Luică pamela.luica@railwaypro.com Department of translations: Alina Vuţulicu Paula Bădescu Gentil Traduceri SRL Graphic design: Petru Mureşan Layout and DTP: Petru Mureşan petru.muresan@railwaypro.com Photo: Radu Drăgan Marketing Manager: Cristina Trifon cristina.trifon@railwaypro.com Advertising Enquiries: advertise@railwaypro.com www. railwaypro.com/advertise

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

16 Parliament approves

EU draft budget for 2014-2020

18 EC meets economic

challenges by launching an action plan for the steel sector

19 A long-awaited measure:

single authorisation for placing in service a rail vehicle

21 Positive efforts of rail

freight operators are not enough. Further measures are necessary to increase efficiency and competitiveness

22 Quality of rail freight

transport, affected by infrastructure sub-financing

24 The European railway industry is the main global product supplier

32 OTIF: Development of

interoperability on the Euro-Asian axis is a necessity

36 Rail Baltica fills in missing link

38 Croatia plans full

liberalisation of railway services

42 Serbia, closer to the EU 51 European rail freight transport still needs firm development strategies

ЛИДЕРЫ

Encouraging signals throughout Europe for SHIFT²RAIL Initiative

Interview with Mr. Philippe Citroen, Director General of the European Rail Industry Association (UNIFE)

Мы получаем положительные сигналы со всей Европы по инициативе SHIFT²RAIL Интервью с Генеральный директор Филиппу Ситроену, Ассоциации Европейской железнодорожной промышленности (UNIFE), The European railway transport is at a crossroads. The old challenges linger, while new ones appear. The European railway industry has all the necessary resources to face these challenges. Европейский железнодорожный транспорт находится на перепутье. Старые вызовы остаются актуальными, появляются новые. Европейский железнодорожный транспорт имеет все необходимые ресурсы для того, чтобы успешно справиться с ними.

MARKET DEVELOPMENT

50 Need for a new approach on intermodal transport

54 The historical Silk Road…

52 Urban logistics can be

55 Better prepared to face

53 Galaţi and Iaşi, two

reinvented on railways climate change

MARKET DEVELOPMENT

40 Four companies submit

offers for the acquisition of 75% in HZ Cargo

41 Grup Feroviar Român

takes over 51% in CFR Marfă

44 Republic of Moldova

prioritizes the harmonization of railway policies to EU legislation and the allocation of investments

46 Europe seeks solutions

to reduce rail noise. DG MOVE could launch a study for the efficient reduction of freight wagon noise

redefined

important intermodal hubs on the Eurasian platform

56 South-East Gateway

programme, still in negotiations Products&Technologies

48 Europe will have more silent trains lex

60 European Union ratifies

Transport Protocol within the Alpine Convention Statistics

58 Freight statistics

cOntent 3

Редакционная статья

ПОЛИТИКА И СТРАТЕГИЯ

ПОЛИТИКА И СТРАТЕГИЯ

22 Качество

38 Хорватия планирует

ПОЛИТИКА И СТРАТЕГИЯ

железнодорожных грузовых перевозок оказалось под влиянием недофинансирования инфраструктуры

16 Парламент одобрил

24 Европейские

19 Единое разрешение на

31 Новые дискуссии об

21 Положительные

32 ОТИФ: Развитие

1

Евразия - динамичная платформа для развития железнодорожного бизнеса

проект бюджета ЕС на период железнодорожные перевозки все еще нуждаются в жестких 2014 - 2020 гг. стратегиях развития 18 Европейская комиссия отвечает на вызовы 30 Центральная сеть TEN-T экономического характера будет основываться на с помощью запуска плана европейских коридорах действий для сектора черной грузовых перевозок металлургии введение на рынок железнодорожных транспортных средств

усилия операторов железнодорожных грузовых перевозок не являются достаточными Остается ряд мер, которые необходимо реализовать в целях повышения эффективности и конкурентоспособности

ускорении завершения строительства Коридора Север-Юг взаимной технической совместимости по оси Европа-Азия - это необходимость

36 Rail Baltica - „не

хватающее звено”, которое начинает приобретать контур

РАЗВИТИЕ РЫНКА

46 Европа находится провести полную в поисках решений для либерализацию снижения шума на железной железнодорожных услуг дороге 42 Сербия - все ближе к ЕС 50 Потребность в новом 51 Европейские подходе к интермодальному железнодорожные перевозки транспорту все еще нуждаются в жестких стратегиях развития 52 Городская логистика 54 Исторический Шелковый может быть пересмотрена путь ... вновь изобретен на 53 Галац и Яссы - два железной дороге крупных интермодальных 55 Насколько мы центра евразийской осознаем последствия платформы климатических изменений? продуктов и технологий РАЗВИТИЕ РЫНКА 40 Четыре компании подают 48 LL тормозные колодки – одним шагом ближе к заявки на приобретение освидетельствованию 75% акций компании «HZ Cargo» ЛЕКС 41 «Груп Феровиар Ромын» получит 51 % акций компании 60 Европейский союз ратифицировал Транспортный «ЧФР Марфэ» протокол в рамках 44 Республика Молдова Альпийской конвенции относит к числу приоритетов приспособлениеn СТАТИСТИКА железнодорожной политики к законодательству ЕС и 54 Железнодорожного выделение инвестиционных статистика средств

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

news 5

FYR Macedonia: Macedonian railway infrastructure operator Makedonski Zeleznici - Infrastruktura is seeking a consultant to review the track access charges as part of Corridor VIII railway project, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The consultant should deliver a methodology for the evaluation of the elements for decision making on the level of fees charged for the use of the rail infrastructure, organisation and regulation of rail traffic, the EBRD said. The deadline for sending expressions of interest is July 25. It is anticipated that the assignment will start in October 2013 and will last six months.

The estimated cost of the contract is EUR 220,000.

Gazprom and RZD to convert locomotives to gas Russia: Gazprom and Russian Railways signed a memorandum of cooperation whose aim is to use gas as a fuel for railway applications. This will make it possible to reduce transportation costs due to the fuel used and to mitigate adverse environmental impacts.

The parties will jointly develop and implement programs for designing, testing and using gas–powered locomotives. A draft Federal Target Program on Natural Gas as a Motor Fuel for the Railway Rolling Stock between 2014 and 2020 will be prepared.

The number of gas-powered locomotives and their maintenance facilities will be gradually increased along with the development of NGV fuel production capacities and refuelling infrastructure.

Russian Railways will coordinate the production of natural gas-powered locomotives, will take part in adapting production & technical facilities of operating companies to NGVs and will organize a system of vocational training.

Gazprom will coordinate the construction of NGV infrastructure in line with synchronization schedules for the development of gas-powered rail transport.

The Company will fuel rail transport at locations agreed with Russian Railways and will ensure that NGV infrastructure meets the present-day requirements. The Company will also contribute to testing prototype models of rail transport.

HZ Infrastruktura to receive state guarantees for loan Croatia: Croatia’s competition authority, AZTN, said it has approved extending state guarantees for a HRK 650 Million (EUR 87 Million) loan that state-owned rail operator HZ Infrastruktura plans to take out from Erste&Steiermaerkische Bank.

The loan will be used to finance rail infra-

Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus create joint transport and logistics company International: The national railway companies of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus signed an agreement on the establishment of a joint transport and logistics company (UTLC), that will transport goods within the Common Economic Space.The rolling stock, equipment and other property of the new company will be provided by its shareholders.

According to the business plan, the total turnover of the new company will hit 4 million twenty-foot equivalent units in 2020. Additional income of the national railway companies from the infrastructure is expected

structure maintenance activities in 2013.

Since the funds are earmarked to ensure the smooth operation of public infrastructure and the creditor bank has been selected through a public tender, it was determined that the guarantee does not constitute state aid, AZTN said in a statement.

Iran-Armenia railway construction prospects discussed International: General Director of the South Caucasus Railway JSC Victor Rebets has discussed the prospects of construction of the Southern Railway from Iran to Armenia during a visit to Tehran.

In particular, the discussion covered projected traffic flows as well as the possibility of building a logistics centre at Yeraskh station, the South Caucasus Railway press office reported.

The launch of the Southern Railway Armenia and South Expressway Armenia projects estimated at $3 billion were announced in January 2013.

EU finances Trencianska Tepla – Belusa rail project Slovakia: The European Union will grant

В мире: Государственные компании железных дорог России, Казахстана и Беларуси подписали 21 июня договор о создании общей компании по транспорту и логистике на Общем экономическом пространстве. Македония: Администратор железнодорожной инфраструктуры Македонии намеревается заключить договор об оказании консультационных услуг ввиду пересмотра налога на использование инфраструктуры. Хорватия: Хорватская антимонопольная организация AZTN объявила об утверждении предоставления государственной гарантии на получение кредита в

to reach USD 1.6 billion by 2020. The cumulative contribution to GDP of the countries of Common Economic Space, according to estimates, will reach USD 11.3 billion in 2020, including USD 5 billion in Russia, USD 5.3 billion in Kazakhstan and USD 1 billion to Belarus.Vladimir Yakunin, President of Russian Railways declared that he estimated the new company’s authorised capital transferred by the Russian party at USD 980 Million.

photo: visual.rzd.ru

FYR Macedonia plans to review the infrastructure access charge

EUR 231 Million for the modernisation of over 20 km of railways between Trencianska Tepla and Belusa.

This is the third major project approved for Slovakia by the European Commission and it also represents a significant progress in attracting EU funds in the country, declared the spokesperson of the Ministry of Transport in Slovakia.

China, Iran and Kyrgyzstan may join Turkmenistan-AfghanistanTajikistan railway project International: Construction of the Turkmenistan - Afghanistan - Tajikistan (TAT) rail corridor which began in the beginning of June is of great importance to the strategic, political and economic interests of all countries participating in the project, according to the Strategic Planning Institute under the Ministry of Economy of Turkmenistan. The report notes that “China, Iran and Kyrgyzstan may also join the project later.” It is planned that the 400 kilometers-long new TAT railway will come into operation by 2015.

“The future rail network will not only connect the countries of the region, but also

размере 87 млн. евро. Россия: «Газпром» и «Российские железные дороги» подписали меморандум сотрудничества, целью которого является использования газа в качестве горючего для железнодорожной деятельности. Азербайджан: Всемирный банк утвердил кредит в размере 220 млн. долларов на оптимизацию железнодорожных услуг в Азербайджане. В мире: Генеральный директор Южно-Кавказской железной дороги Виктор Ребец обсудил возможности строительства коридора Южной железной дороги.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

6 news SUSTRAIL- sustainable rail freight transport: designing the freight vehicle – track system for higher delivered tonnage with improved availability at reduced costs International: A sustainable and efficient freight transport in Europe plays a vital role in having a successful and competitive economy. The EU-funded project Sustrail aims to promote modal shift of freight in Europe from road to rail, complaining with the European Commission targeted objectives of shifting 30% of road freight over 300km to other modes such as rail or waterborne transport by 2030. To this end Sustrail will contribute to a new era in the rail freight sector by adopting a holistic approach and implementing a clear methodology to develop innovations in both freight vehicles and track infrastructure components. This deliberate approach will account for innovations in both vehicles and infrastructure. Higher vehicle speed and increasing axle load will be achieved by means of new vehicle system design and novel lightweight materials; while higher infrastructure efficiency will

WB approves credit for increasing rail transport capacity Azerbaijan: The World Bank approved a USD 220 Million loan to Azerbaijan as additional financing for the Rail Trade and Transport Facilitation Project. The project supports implementation of Azerbaijan’s national railway development program aiming at improving railway services in the country to foster trade and attract transit cargo between Europe and Central Asia.

Rail transport and transit services are important elements of Azerbaijan’s economic diversification strategy. By investing in railway infrastructure and operations, Azerbaijan intends to attract increasing volume of transit in the Central Asia and Black Sea region, thus benefiting from its geographical location as the shortest route between Central Asia and Europe.

The new grant adds to the original USD450 Million World Bank loan. The additional financing will be mostly used for power conversion and upgrading the railway signalling system along the East West corridor from Baku to the border with Georgia. “

Germany increases track access charge based on noise pollution International: DB Netz AG introduced a new rail track pricing system that includes an additional noise payment fee for loud freight trains on 1 June. The aim of the railway corporation is to reduce noise emissions from the railway by 50% (starting from the level in 2000) by 2020. The new noise-linked rail track pricing system initially includes a 1% surcharge on top of the normal price. Over the eight years to 2020, this surcharge will be steadily increased.

photo: www.azernews.az

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

exceeding 70% on its Prague – Ostrava – Bohumin services, although it witnessed a temporary decline recently as a result of the flooding which disrupted train services.

The company has fully booked trains on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Leo Express competes with fellow openaccess operator RegioJet on the Prague – Ostrava route, as well as incumbent operator Czech Railways.

Geodis Wilson expands rail freight services in China

Czech Rep.: Czech passenger transport operator Leo Express announced that it has carried more than 400,000 passengers in the six months since the launch of its full timetable on January 18. Leo Express says it is achieving average load factors

International: Geodis Wilson announced the expansion of its Asia-Pacific operations to include domestic rail freight services in China, with intercontinental services between China and Europe also planned. “In Geodis Wilson we follow closely the development of this segment, particularly when it involves intercontinental connections between China and Europe”, says Kim Pedersen, Executive Vice President of Geodis Wilson. As part

налога на использование инфраструктуры, которая включает дополнительный налог для товарных поездов с повышенным уровнем шума. Чехия: Чешский оператор пассажирских перевозок Leo Express объявил о том, что начиная с 18 января и по настоящее время перевозил более 400.000 пассажиров В мире: Компания Transport for London (Tf L) объявила названия четырех компаний, включенных в краткий список претендентов на присвоение договора о работе на линии Crossrail. Болгария: Болгарское Агентство

по приватизации приняло решение отменить процедуру приватизации БДЖ Карго. Россия: Крупнейшая российская горная компания СУЭК намеревается создать подчиненного себе оператора. В мире: Армении не будет позволено участвовать в проекте Баку-Тбилиси-Карс (БТК) до тех пор, пока она не прекратит оккупацию азербайджанской территории. Словакия: ЕС выделит 231 млн. евро на модернизацию свыше 20 км железной дороги между Тренчанска Тепла и Белусой.

Leo Express records good results despite competition

В мире: Китай, Иран и Кыргызстан могут присоединиться к проекту линии Туркменистан Афганистан - Таджикистан. В мире: Финансируемый ЕС проект Sustrail нацелен на продвижение модального трансферта за счет перехода от автомобильного к железнодорожному транспорту. В мире: Геодис Вильсон объявил о расширении операций в АзиатскоТихоокеанский регион, которое включает железнодорожные услуги внутри Китая. В мире: DB Netz AG с 1 июня ввела новую систему определения

be achieved by means of optimized track geometry, ground stabilization and novel monitoring techniques.

The exploitable results of the project will be discussed at the upcoming mid-term conference to be held on 4 December 2013.

SUSTRAIL is jointly developed with main coordinator Consorzio TRAIN (Italy), the Consortium for research and development of innovating transport technologies. The cost of the entire project is of EUR 3 Million, the financing source being FP7. Participating partner countries are Italy, Great Britain, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, Sweden, Spain, Norway and Russia. The project was initiated in June 2011 and will complete in May 2015.

photo: www.azernews.az

provide them with access to the markets of more distant states. Such routes will allow the continental and closed Central Asian countries to fully realize their economic potential,” according to the report.

This route will open a new corridor between Central Asia and global markets through the ports on the Indian Ocean.

Its length is twice less than through Russia to the coast of the Baltic Sea.

news 7

Four companies shortlisted in the Crossrail project International: Transport for London (Tf L) announced the name of the four companies shortlisted in getting the contract to operate the Crossrail project. The four companies are Arriva Crossrail Limited, Keolis/Go Ahead, MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Limited and National Express Group PLC. The invitation to tender will be launched in September 2013 and the winner of the contract will be announced at the end of 2014. The selected operator will begin services in May 2015 linking Liverpool Street to Shenfield. The line, fully operational in 2019, will have 118 km and 37 rail stations.

SUEK could set up railway operator Russia: SUEK, the largest coal mining company in Russia, wants to create a captive railway operator, “Kommersant” newspaper writes, quoted by rzd-partner. com.

“This idea appeared long ago, but it wasn’t put in practice. An active discussion recommenced in recent weeks,” specify sources of the newspaper.

Currently, the company manages its rolling stock by itself. It has approximately 2,400 railcars (in property and financial leasing), and over 15,000 wagons rented from the other companies. SUEK constantly needs about 40,000 gondola cars, and the figure

Authorities abandon privatization of BDZ Cargo bulgaria: The Bulgarian Agency for Privatization and Post-Privatization Control has decided to cancel the procedure for the privatization of the freight unit of the Bulgarian State Railways Company. The Agency has noted that the decision was coordinated with the Ministry of Transport.

The PM Plamen Oresharski hinted that it would stop the privatization of the freight unit soon after it took over at the end of May. In mid-November 2012, Bulgaria’s Privatization Agency launched a second privatization procedure for BDZ’s Freight Services, after the first one fell through. The second attempt to sell the cargo unit of BDZ only included strategic and financial investors.

matches the Neftetransservice’s and Globaltrans’ fleet of gondola cars.

SUEK is the largest customer of rail transport among coal companies, its demand covers almost 10% of the Russian market of gondola cars. The main partners of SUEK now are the Federal Cargo Company (owned by RZD), Freight One, and Neftetransservice.

“We will construct at least 2,500 km highspeed rail line in the next five years. We will bring together 14 cities, with a total population of 37 million people,” Yıldırım said.

Meanwhile, a code on the liberalization of Turkish railways by allowing private sector operations and investments in state-dominated railways came into force in May.

Azerbaijan not to allow Armenia’s participation in BTK project

Transmashholding-Tognum agreement on engine production

International: Armenia will not be able to participate in Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway project until it doesn’t stop the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Transport Minister Ziya Mammadov said.

“Only after the end of the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Georgia, Turkey and Azerbaijan can think on the accession of Armenia to the participation in the project,” Mammadov said.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions of Azerbaijan.

Russia: Transmashholding Chairman, Andrey Bokarev, and Joachim Coers, the CEO of Tognum, have signed a memorandum to jointly set up a plant to manufacture diesel engines in Kolomna (near Moscow), MTU Transmashholding Diesel Technologies.

The parties will invest EUR 80 Million in the project. The facility will manufacture up to 1,000 engines per year for the railway and mining sectors and will include an engineering centre for the development of new engines. Production will start in 2015.

2,500 km of railways to be built

Czech Rep.: It is possible that the plan of the Czech operator Ceske Drahy (CD) of selling rail stations worth several billion koruna to the infrastructure manager, SZDC, could not be implemented, shows “Mlada Fronta Dnes”, quoting Ministry of Finances, Miroslav Kalousek, who opposes the plan, which is yet to be approved by the Government. Kalousek said that he is not happy with the fact that the state-owned SZDC should be buying assets, which CD gained for free in past.

The item specified that the assets have been preliminary evaluated to be worth CZK 6.5 Billion (EUR 253 Million), but a proper value assessment is yet to be made by the experts.

Sale of rail stations is questionable

Turkey: Turkey will build at least 2,500 kilometers of high-speed rail line in the next five years to connect 14 cities, Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım has said.

In framework of the draft of the tenth development plan, the central administration will allocate a considerable budget for the railroad transformation. photo: www.tcdd.gov.tr

photo: Geodis Wilson

of a mixed rail, sea, air and road transportation solution, Geodis Wilson’s new Chinese rail freight service will offer customized, flexible, and reliable door-to-door services. Shipment of goods on container block trains as well as all pre- and post-rail transportation services will be offered.

These value-adds will include, pick-up, pre-carriage and on-carriage, reloading, control of trans-shipments, railway wagon planning, freight documentation and realtime tracking and tracing.

“Each customizable solution matches our priorities of safety, timely delivery and sustainability,” explains Farhad Kayyum, Rail Freight Manager, China for Geodis Wilson in Shanghai.

Украина: Премьер-министр Украины обратился с просьбой к Министерству инфраструктуры о разработке предложений по замене и постепенной модернизации парка подвижного состава. Турция: По словам турецкого Министра Транспорта, на протяжении ближайших пяти лет будет построено 2500 км высокоскоростной железной дороги. Россия: Подписано соглашение

между Трансмашхолдингом и Тогнумом на производство двигателей Трансмашхолдинг и Тогнум подписали меморандум о создании производственной площадки дизельных двигателей. В мире: Maersk Line продала компанию European Rail Shuttle (ERS), являющейся интермодальным железнодорожным оператором, расположенным в Роттердаме, Группе Freightliner Group (Великобритания).

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

8 news

ukraine: On June 26, at the Government’s session Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov instructed the Infrastructure Ministry to ready propositions concerning gradual replacement and modernization of rolling stock.

Mykola Azarov emphasized these days there had emerged the need to upgrade the rolling stock through its considerable depreciation and for the sake of ensuring necessary supply in passenger conveyance.

“There are objective difficulties: the lack of passenger cars. Four fifth of carriages are exploited more than 28 years. In the nearest years we will have to solve this problem in system. We need to renew

Turkmenistan-Afghanistan railway, completed in 2015 Turkmenistan: The Turkmen Ministry of Railway Transport will act as a customer and a general contractor for the construction project of the “Atamyrat-Ymamnazar (Turkmenistan) - Akina (Afghanistan)” railway line, Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov’s decree stated.

According to the decree, the project also includes the construction of additional facilities and two bridges along the railway. The construction work at these facilities will begin this month and they are planned to be put into operation in June 2015. A solemn ceremony for launching the construction was held in the Lebap region of Turkmenistan in early June with participation of the presidents of the three countries - Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan. The project is being implemented within the tripartite memorandum of understanding signed in March 2013.

Wealth Fund to allocate USD 14 Billion to infrastructure projects

photo: visual.rzd.ru

Russia: The Russian Government will invest up to RUB 450 Billion (USD 13.7 Billion) in infrastructure projects from its sovereign wealth fund together with private capital, President Vladimir Putin said. Up to half the money to be invested in the projects will come from the National

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

minimum 500 carriages year-on-year.

Let’s work in this direction, search for internal reserves and financial instruments to solve the problem. I commission the Infrastructure Ministry to ready propositions concerning gradual replacement and modernization of the rolling stock,” Mykola Azarov has said.

photo: wikimedia.org

Ukraine wants to modernise 500 coaches per year

Wealth Fund, Russia’s USD 87 Billion sovereign wealth fund made up of windfall oil export revenues.

“Key conditions will be an assessment by private business that the projects are viable and effective, and co-financed from their side. The infrastructure projects should eventually return the money invested. I know that investors’ interest in infrastructure projects is very significant, especially if government is ready to ensure risks are minimized and act as a co-investor”, Putin said.

EC is unsatisfied with the track access charge established by Eurotunnel International: The European Commission has called on the French and English governments to analyse the pricing structure of Eurotunnel which manages the Channel Tunnel. The EC says that the track access charges imposed by Eurotunnel exceed reasonable limits both for passenger and freight transport, resulting in the transfer of higher costs to passengers and in preferring the road freight transport to the detriment of the railway freight transport. “Channel Tunnel is not being used to its full capacity because of these excessive charges”, Vice-President

Россия: Российское правительство будет инвестировать 450 млрд. рублей (13,7 млрд. долларов) в проекты инфраструктуры. В мире: Инвестиционный фонд Евразия Файнанс может принимать участие в строительстве железных дорог в Монголии. В мире: ЕК обратилась к правительству Франции и Великобритании с просьбой проанализировать тарифную структуру Еurotunnel, который управляет железнодорожным туннелем под каналом Ля Манш. Туркменистан: Министерство

of the European Commission Siim Kallas declared. The EC has also indicated that the regulator supervising the tunnel management, the Intergovernmental Commission, lacks power and independence.

Freightliner Group buys ERS International: Maersk Line has sold European Rail Shuttle, ERS, its Rotterdambased European intermodal rail operator, to the UK-based Freightliner Group for an undisclosed sum.

ERS has a fleet of 16 multi-system electric locomotives for international cross-border transport and 550 intermodal wagons. ERS Railways developed into a fully operational railway undertaking, holding locomotive operating licences in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Austria.

Eurasia Finance investment fund is ready to invest in construction of railways in Mongolia International: Eurasia Finance investment fund can participate in the construction of railways in Mongolia.

Eurasia Finance could cover 26% of the project of construction of almost 2,000 kilometres of new tracks in the south of Mongolia. The project is estimated at USD 5.2 Billion. The investment fund is ready to invest USD 1.2 Billion.

The new railway is needed to develop the Tavan-Tolgoi coal field. RZD wanted to participate in the project earlier.

RZD discusses the set up of a consortium for the sale of Greek companies Russia: RZD is negotiating the possibility to participate in the privatisation of the Greek transport companies as part of a consortium with Greek and West-European companies, declared RZD President Vladimir Yakunin. The funds used by RZD for the acquisition of the Greek companies will mostly come from funds. According to the data received by RZD, the starting price will be of EUR 100 Million for Thessaloniki Port, EUR 30 Million for TrainOSE and EUR 10 Million for Rosco.

железнодорожного транспорта (Туркменистан) будет играть роль клиента и генерального подрядчика по проекту строительства линии Атамырат - Имамназар (Туркменистан) - Акина (Афганистан). Чехия: План чешского оператора Ceske Drahy о продаже вокзалов на сумму в нескольких миллионах крон администратору инфраструктуры SZDC, возможно, не будет осуществляться. Россия: ОАО РЖД ведет переговоры по возможному участию в приватизации транспортных компаний в Греции.

10 news Doha rail project to benefit local private sector

SHIFT²RAIL – supports a coordinated approach to R&I in the rail sector

International: Qatar Chamber chairman Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohamed al-Thani has said the involvement of local companies in the Doha Metro and Rail projects will support the national economy and benefit the country’s private sector. “The decision of Qatar Rail to integrate Qatari companies in the Doha Metro and Rail projects won by foreign companies’ represents a real support to the country’s economy, strengthens the private sector role and enables it to benefit as much as possible,” he said.

Abdul Aziz bin Nasser al-Khalifa, Qatar Development Bank executive director (Strategic Planning and Business Development), said: “There is no doubt that the contribution of local companies in the consortia which were awarded contracts for the Doha Metro Project, will help in transferring the knowledge to these reputed companies. Qatar Building Company (QBC) managing director Ali Mustafawi said: “The efforts of Qatar Rail to implement such a huge project will have a positive and immediate impact on all business sectors in Qatar. This is especially due to the fact that the scope of work will attract a large number of experienced employees and high-quality foreign companies.

Upon completion of Qatar Railway projects, thousands of job opportunities will be available. There will be a lot of opportunities for the local market.

International: The European Commission launched, on June 28, a stakeholders’ consultation on a proposal for an EU coordinated approach to R&I in the rail sector under Horizon 2020 in support to the completion of the Single European Railway Area. Background studies have shown that R&I in the rail sector is currently carried out in a fragmented manner with fragmentation lines. This leads to a situation in which the absence of a critical mass in resources restricts ambitions and necessary breakthroughs; the rail market fails to attract more advanced, customer-focused industrial sectors as potential providers of ideas

construction of the Qazvin-Rasht railway should be completed in the first half of 2014,” Arasi said. According to him, the working group discussed the construction of the railway, investment in construction work and other issues. The results of discussions will be introduced for making a decision at the next meeting of deputy foreign ministers of the four mentioned countries.

MoU between the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and UIC

Rasht – Astara railway should be constructed over a short timeframe

photo: metraconsult.ir

International: A taskforce comprising representatives of Iran, Azerbaijan, Russia and India is working over the issue of building Rasht-Astara (Iran)-Astara (Azerbaijan) railway, Iranian Tasnim news website quoted Iran Railways administration official Mohammad Reza Mohammadi Arasi as saying.

The construction of the Qazvin-RashtAstara railway was discussed at the fifth session of the Coordination Council on the International North-South Transport Corridor which was held in Baku on June 24-25; participants noted the importance of constructing it over a short timeframe.

“There is a railway from the Iranian Bandar-Abbas port to the Qazvin city. The www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

and solutions; when particular innovation actions are devised, the difficulties of generating equitable returns to all the players in the rail value chain hinder market deployment and risk sharing levels are low when developing new technologies, products and services supporting internal market goals and the European transport industry in maintaining its world leadership. SHIFT²RAIL is the first European initiative to seek focused Research and Innovation (R&I) and market-driven solutions by accelerating the integration of new and advanced technologies into innovative rail product solutions, matching key objectives of the EU 2011 White Paper on Transport and the Framework Programme for Research and Innovation Horizon2020.

and by UIC’s Mr Vincent Vu and Mr Teodor Grădinariu. We expect the official signature of the memorandum to be signed

by Dr Victor Ţvircun, Secretary-General of the Permanent International Secretariat of BSEC, and Mr Jean-Pierre Loubinoux, UIC Director General.

Libya holds talks with Russia and China to restart National Rail Project

International: The negotiated Memorandum of Understanding between the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation and the International Union of Railways was approved at the Foreign Affairs Council held in Odessa in June 2013. The Council approved the Memorandum of Understanding and authorised the Secretary General of BSEC PERMIS to sign said Memorandum on behalf of BSEC. This successful collaboration is the result of efficient work undertaken by BSEC, His Excellency the Ambassador Traian Chebeleu, the Deputy General Secretary

International: Following the announcement in February 2013 that plans were to be revived to build railways in Libya, the Libyan Rail Implementation Authority has held talks with the China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) in an attempt to reach a framework agreement to reactivate contracts which have been on hold since the revolution. The 12 Billion USD Libyan railway project saw contracts split in 2008 between Russian Railways, to build the line between Sirte and Benghazi, as well as the CRCC building railways between Tripoli, Khoms and Al-Hisha Sebha.

Transport Minister, Abdel-Qader Ahmed, has already communicated with the Russians about restarting their contracts.

В мире: Недавно - 28 июня Европейская комиссия запустила проведение общественных консультаций по предложению о координированном подходе Исследования и Инновации в железнодорожном секторе в рамках проекта Горизонт 2020 в поддержку завершения осуществления Единого Европейского железнодорожного пространства. В мире: Совет по иностранным делам Организации экономического сотрудничества в Черноморском пространстве (OCEMN), который провел заседание в Одессе, утвердил Меморандум понимания, по которому OCEMN провела переговоры с Международным союзом железных дорог (МСЖД). В мире: Строительство целого отсека Казвин-Рашт-Астара, который является частью Коридора Север-Юг, обсуждалось в рамках V Координационного совета

по Международному коридору Север – Юг, проведенного в Баку в середине июня. Участники подчеркнули важность строительства линии в кратчайшие сроки. В мире: По словам председателя Торговой палаты Катара Шеиха Калифы бин Яссим бин Мохамед аль-Тани, решение о привлечении местных компаний в национальный железнодорожный проект и в проект Метро города Доха будет поддерживать национальную экономику и одновременно частный сектор страны. В мире: После объявления в феврале 2013 года национального плана реконструкции железнодорожного транспорта, Учреждение по осуществлению железных дорог в Ливии провело различные переговоры с компанией China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) и РЖД в попытках достижения соглашения по возобновлению контрактов, приостановленных в связи с революцией.

news 11 DB and Etihad Rail sign freight operations agreement

New high-speed line Albacete – Alicante

photo: adif.es

International: In June, Spain inaugurated a new high-speed section, Albacete-Alicante, part of the line MadridCastilla-La Mancha-Murcia. The new section reduces the travel time between Madrid and Alicante by 50 minutes to two hours and 20 minutes. For the beginning RENFE will provide 9 daily pairs of trains between Madrid and Alicante with prices starting from EUR 19.45. The 165km project, initiated nine years ago, demands an investment of EUR 1.92 Billion. Over the past year and a half, around 300 km of new high-speed lines have been commissioned and the Spanish high-speed network amounts to over 3,100 km.

Nordic Investment Bank finances Rail Baltica in Lithuania International: Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) and Lithuanian Railways (Lietuvos gelezinkeliai) have signed a 19-yearmaturity EUR 114 Million loan agreement for the construction of a European-gauge track as part of the future Rail Baltica route, as well as for modernising parts of the Trans European East-West corridors in Lithuania.

The loan financing is earmarked for the

В мире: Государство, расположенное на Пиренейском полуострове в июне запустило новый отсек высокоскоростного транспорта Альбасете-Аликанте на линии Мадрид - Кастилья - Ля Манча - Мурсия. Новый отсек позволяет сократить время пребывания в пути между Мадридом и Аликанте на два часа и двадцат минут. В мире: Deutsche Bahn (DB) и Etihad Rail заложили основу нового партнерства, направленного на осуществление железнодорожных грузовых перевозок на Аравийском полуострове. Компания Etihad Rail DB Operations будет отвечать за управление поездами по всей продолжительности в 1200 км железной дороги, строящейся в настоящее время в Объединенных Арабских Эмиратах. В мире: Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) и Железные дороги Литвы

International: Deutsche Bahn (DB) and Etihad Rail have establishes a new partnership to run freight services in the Arabian Peninsula. Etihad Rail DB Operations LLC will be responsible for running freight services on the 1,200km rail network

construction of a 115-kilometre Europeangauge (1,435 mm) railway track from the Lithuanian-Polish border to the city of Kaunas. The European-gauge track will be built parallel to the existing wider-gauge (1,520 mm) line. The project also includes the reconstruction of a 60-kilometre widergauge track from the city of Šiauliai to the Lithuanian-Latvian border. Both the newly built and the reconstructed lines will allow train services to run at up to 120 kilometres per hour. As part of the future Rail Baltica route, this will be the first European-gauge track built in the Baltic countries to open a direct connection with the railway network of Poland and potentially to continue passenger and freight transportation to other European Union countries.

currently under construction in the United Arab Emirates, connecting Saudi Arabia with Oman. The passenger and freight line, which is being built in three phases, is expected to cost around EUR 8.4 Billion.

Dr Rüdiger Grube, chief executive of DB, said: “The Etihad Rail network heralds a new era in transportation. DB Schenker Rail is proud to be part of it.

operating contractor and the SRO. SRO chief Mohammad Al-Suwaikit said the dry port will witness huge developments in the near future. The current contract includes developing the port’s infrastructure according to the highest international standards. The SRO is also expanding according to a strategy that will connect industrial cities with the railway line as soon as this is feasible. Coordination with relevant bodies is now under way.

photo: www.arabiansupplychain.com

Libya has offered to pay the companies 50% of the original agreed terms, with remaining fees payable in two further tranches. It is unclear whether this offer was met with a favourable response.

Riyadh dry port to be privatized international: The Saudi Railway Organization (SRO) is to develop the dry port in Riyadh which has been under great pressure recently due to increased numbers of incoming containers and limited space.

In May, the port witnessed its largest number of incoming containers since its establishment. SRO chief Mohammad Al-Suwaikit said the infrastructure of the dry port will be rebuilt, a move that will raise capacity and increase efficiency in handling large numbers of containers.

He said the port will be privatized and that returns will be shared between the

(Lietuvos gelezinkeliai) подписали соглашение о финансировании на 19 лет, стоимостью 114 млн. евро, на строительство линии с европейским стандартом колеи. В мире: Совет Европейского союза принял решение открыть новую главу (Главу № 22) в рамках переговоров с Турцией о вступлении в ЕС. Об этом объявляется в сообщении для печати учреждения. Глава № 22 является очередным условием ЕС для вступления новых государств в данную организацию, и она касается региональной политики и координирования структурных инструментов. В мире: Операторы RENFE (Испания) и Comboios de Portugal (Португалия) подписали соглашение о сотрудничестве по техническим вопросам ввиду увеличения доли рынка по сегменту грузовых перевозок на Пиренейском полуострове.

Portuguese-Spanish agreement for stimulating railway freight transport International: The operators RENFE (Spain) and Comboios de Portugal (Portugal) have signed a technical collaboration agreement for the increase of the market share of the freight transport sector in the Iberian Peninsula. The agreement will last for two years and can be renewed. Another agreement signed by the two companies stipulates that the Portuguese operator will be able to sell tickets for the passenger transport services of RENFE.

“Full Service Model” - for the benefit of European passengers International: The CEOs of European passenger railways agreed to launch a joint project, “Full Service Model”, designed to enhance end-to-end journey information and make it easier to book train and intermodal journeys on a diversity of distribution channels during their meeting on June 14, in Spiez, Switzerland. The project will facilitate cross-distribution and allow railways to provide more choice and information to passengers, by making the most out of modern information technology (IT) developments. European passenger CEOs agreed to run the project jointly with the ticket vendors’ associations ETTSA, ECTAA and GEBTA. The main goal of this project will be to reinforce July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

12 news

serbia: The launch for the liberalisation of the railway sector is projected for January 2014. As part of the process, Zeleznice Srbije will be initially separated into two companies: the infrastructure manager and the railway freight and passenger transport operator, said director Dragoljub Simonovic.

The two companies resulted will be financially and operationally independent. The operator will be then separated into two different companies, for freight transport and for passenger transport. Private companies

business partnerships by making it easier for both railways and third party ticket vendors to display accurate and transparent data about available rail products, whilst respecting the commercial freedom about distribution channels and partners. It will concentrate on the functional requirement specifications for an IT infrastructure providing system capabilities for increased IT interoperability in the field of distribution. The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) will support it in an advisory capacity.

DB Schenker Rail to provide new connection to Turkey International: As of September, DB Schenker Rail will provide a new conventional and container rail freight transport service between Germany and Turkey (Halkali-Istanbul), called “Bosporus Shuttle”. For the beginning, the connection will be made by three pairs of trains and then by five pairs of trains. The new service will consolidate the transport offer between Western Europe and destinations in Turkey. DB Schenker Rail Bulgaria will transfer the trains directly to Turkish Railways. The travel time is five days. The trains pass through Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria.

EU opens new round of negotiations on Turkey’s accession International: The Council has agreed to open Chapter 22 of the accession negotiations with Turkey, the institution announced in a press release. Chapter 22 is another condition of the EU on the accession of a country and concerns regional policy and the coordination of structural instruments. The InterGovernmental Conference with Turkey will take place after the presentation of the progress report elaborated by the European Commission and, following the discussions with the General Affairs Council (GAF) the position of the Council on the opening of Chapter 22 will be confirmed and the date of the accession conference will be set. But, bbc.co.uk states www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

will gradually receive license to operate in the railway freight transport sector. The new law regulates the route acquisition procedures from the infrastructure manager and gives wider responsibilities in adopting rail and intermodal transport regulations to the railway directorate. The directorate will be tasked with the decision-making to prevent disloyal competition and discrimination and will manage the route requirements. The Law also stipulates the implementation of a national railway infrastructure programme which should be elaborated and proposed to the Government and then adopted by the Parliament for a period of 5 years.

management and facilitate collaboration with the entire railway network in North Korea. As part of the Khasan - Rajin project, it was planned to reconstruct the combined dual-track railway with 1520 mm and 1435 mm gauges on the stretch from the Russian border to the port of Rajin in North Korea, a distance of 54 km, reconstruct three tunnels, repair a border railway bridge and construct a freight terminal with an annual capacity of 4 million tonnes at Port Rajin.

that EU foreign ministers have backed a German proposal to postpone further EU membership talks with Turkey for about four months. The EU-Turkey talks had been scheduled to resume on June 26. But Germany, Austria and the Netherlands have criticised Turkey’s crackdown on antigovernment protests. Germany’s Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle played down tensions with Turkey, saying he had had a “really good, constructive” discussion with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu.

International: The European Investment Bank is providing EUR 200 Million to the Turkish State Railways for the high-speed line Ankara-Istanbul.

This additional funding brings total EIB support for this high speed railway line to some EUR 1.5 Billion. The project was first financed by the EIB in 2006. The total value of EIB financing for the Turkish rail system in the last five years comes to some EUR 2.5 Billion. The project constitutes a key element of the Government’s plans to increase the share of rail transport by improving the productivity and effectiveness of railway operations. The European Union is also providing a grant of EUR 120 Million to the HSL project through its Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA) funds.

Khasan – Rajin line project in final phase International: During a meeting of RZD President, Vladimir Yakunin, and North Korea’s Minister of Railways (MOR), Jeong Gil Soo, on implementing a joint project to reconstruct the railway stretch between Khasan – Rajin. The parties confirmed that the project to reconstruct the line from Rajin station to Khasan station and the port of Rajin is already in the final stages. According to the document, it is planned to create a single control centre with the participation of experts from the joint ventures RasonKonTrans and ZHTK Donghae MOR from North Korea to handle traffic Сербия: Начиная с января 2014 года сербское государство запустит процесс либерализации железнодорожного сектора. В рамках данного процесса, компания Zeleznice Srbije сначала будет разделена на две части: администратора инфраструктуры и оператора железнодорожных грузовых и пасажирских перевозок. Об этом заявил директор компании, Драголюб Симонович. В мире: Исполнительные директора европейских компаний для железнодорожных пассажирских перевозок приняли решение о запуске совместного проекта - “Full Service Model” - нацеленного на увеличение объема информации о поездке от пункта отправления до точки назначения, а также на способствование бронированию билета на поезд или на интермодальные поездки. В мире: В рамках встречи председателя ОАО РЖД Владимира

EIB provides new loan for AnkaraIstanbul project

photo: TCDD.net

Serbian railway sector opened in 2014

Якунина с министром железнодорожных путей сообщения Северной Кореи Джонг Гиль Су был подписан протокол о линии Кхасан - Раджин. Обе стороны подтвердили, что проект реконструкции линии от станции Раджин в сторону Кхасана и порта Раджин уже вступил в завершающий этап. В мире: Саудовская организация железных дорог (SRO) будет развивать грузовой терминал в Риаде, который в настоящее время находится в затруднительном положении в результате увеличения количества контейнеров, но и по причине ограниченного пространства для осуществления маневров на его территории. В мире: Начиная с сентября этого года, DB Schenker Rail введет новую услугу для условных железнодорожных грузовых перевозок и для перевозок контейнеров между Германией и Турцией, которая будет называться „Bosporus Shuttle”

14 news

romania: The Romanian Minister of Transport, Relu Fenechiu, declared that the investment for the underground Line 6 that should link the existing network to the Otopeni Airport is “enormous” and it is not explained by the existing traffic. He said he would come up with a surface, cheaper project instead.

“Regarding the connection between Gara de Nord and Otopeni, Line 6, allow me to say that I believe the EUR 1.2 Billion of investments that this line requires is enormous and I don’t think that we will ever have as many passengers as to make this line efficient. If this line is only to connect the Otopeni Airport to Gara de Nord, I want you to think that the maximum level of passengers that the line can have is the maximum level of passengers of the airport. We are in a delicate

Metropolitana Milanese S.p.A to participate in Moscow rail projects Russia: Milano Metro (Metropolitana

Milanese S.p.A.) signed an agreement with Millenium Bank to set up a company that would participate in the re-designing of the small ring line in Moscow aimed at transforming the line from freightdedicated to passenger-dedicated.

The line will have 30 intermodal stations and the completion is scheduled for late 2015. Future traffic is estimated at 280 million passengers a year. The new company will also participate in the modernisatin of the metro network in the Russian capital.

position, because we have a contract with the Japanese. I will propose to the Government to replace this project with a surface project because we have railway infrastructure close to the Otopeni Airport and we could extend this infrastructure and maybe build an underground section close to the airport and we could do this ten times cheaper and the travel times could be similar”, the minister said in a press conference.

For now, the minister has not talked to Prime Minister Victor Ponta about this project, but they will establish if the proposal is feasible or not.

photo: Club Feroviar

Ministry of Transport to suspend the M6 line project for the Otopeni Airport link and develop a rail project instead

The city has committed a budget of EUR 500 Million for transport improvements by 2015 and up to EUR 300 Million for energy efficiency and renewable energy by 2020 (this includes a confirmed EUR 100 Million investment in renewable energy).

Carbon emissions have been reduced in Bristol starting with 2005 and the authorities are planning to transform the city into “a hub of low-carbon industry”.

Bristol demonstrated 4.7% growth in the green economy in 2012 and it is also the “greenest” city in the UK.

International: VIA Transport, the company responsible for operating the light rail networks in the German cities of Essen, Oberhausen, Mülheim-an-der-Ruhr, and Geslsenkirchen/Bochum has issued an international tender notice for a contract to supply 18 LRVs with an option for two additional vehicles.

The 30m-long bi-directional LRVs must be 2.30m wide with a ground clearance of 65mm and be equipped for operation under 600V dc and 750V dc electrification systems. A minimum 70% low-floor area is specified for each tram.

Bristol wins the European Green Capital Award 2015 International: Bristol was awarded the European Green Capital 2015. The city located in South West England received special praise from the Jury for its achievements, notably in terms of tackling climate change, improving air quality and reducing noise pollutions.

Bristol impressed the Jury with its investments plans in transport and energy. www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

photo: ec.europa.eu

Tender for trams in Germany

about EUR 45 Million. Scheduled for delivery in the spring of 2016, Citadis Compact trams will travel on both lines of the future 14.5-kilometre network. Entry into commercial service is planned for late 2016. The tram, which is 24 metres long, can carry from 133 and 146 passengers.

The rolling stock will be manufactured at Alstom’s factories in France.

Sofia buys new trams Bulgaria: Sofia municipality has signed a contract with Polish manufacturer PESA Bydgoszcz to supply 20 new low-floor trams. The order is estimated at EUR 33.5 Million.The contract also includes the delivery of spare parts, equipments for diagnosis and staff training. The acquisition will be financed by the Bulgarian Ministry of Environment through SOP Environment 2007-2013.

Alstom signs agreement for the production of trams in Ukraine Ukraine: Alstom and TramRus ( JV of Alstom and Transmashholding for production of trams) signed an agreement with City Transport Group (subsidiary of LAZ Group and the main manufacturer of buses in Ukraine) on the production of rapid trams for the Ukrainian market.

The objective of this partnership is to organise the manufacturing, operation and maintenance of modern trams by City Transport Group in Ukraine, under the license of TramRus. The new tram will be built of composite materials which will reduce energy consumption by 10%. The Citadis CIS vehicles are specially designed for the CIS and Russian markets; they will have a life expectancy of 30 years compared to 18 years, the life expectancy of the vehicles currently in operation in Ukraine.

Alstom to deliver trams to Avignon

UK: new order for Vossloh

International: Alstom was selected by officials of the Greater Avignon Metropolitan Area to supply 24 Citadis Compact trams. The contract is worth

International: Vossloh España has been awarded a contract to supply 7 Tram-Trains to South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive, to ensure the

Румыния: Министр Транспорта Румынии Релу Фенекиу заявил о том, что инвестиции в Магистраль № 6 бухарестского метро, которая должна соединить существующую сеть с Аэропортом Отопень, являются «громадными» и необоснованными нынешним уровнем передвижения. Россия: Миланское метро подписало соглашение с банком Миллениум Банк на создание компании, которая будет участвовать в перепроектировании малой кольцевой линии Москвы. В мире: Город Бристоль был объявлен победителем звания Зеленой столицы Европы на 2015 год. Болгария: Мэрия города

София подписала договор с польским производителем PESA Bydgoszcz на поставку 20 новых трамваев с низкой платформой. Украина: Компании «Альстом» и «ТрамРус» подписали договор с Группой City Transport Group на производство высокоскоростных трамваев для украинского рынка. В мире: VIA Transport (Германия) объявила международный тендер на поставку 18 легких железнодорожных транспортных средств. В мире: Компании «Альстом» присужден контракт Метрополитенным участком Авиньон на поставку 24 трамваев Citadis Compact.

news 15 connection between the centre of Sheffield and Rotherham Parkgate. The rolling stock, which will be built in the Spanish factory of Vossloh, will be commissioned in 2015.

Tram-Train vehicles will be compatible for operation on the tramway network of the city and in the conventional railway network. The project has a total budget of approximately GBP 60 Million (about EUR 70 Million), an amount which will cover the purchase of the trams, the electrification of the section between Rotherham Parkgate and Meadowhall and the construction of a 400 metre line that will link the tramway network to the conventional railway network.

New security measures for Moscow Metro Russia: Moscow Metro could benefit from the introduction of an oxygen system in the network, similar to that used by the metro in Tokyo, “Izvestiya” reports.

In case of smoke, special sensors would send an alarm and oxygen is to be supplied to stations or cars automatically. Moscow City Duma is going to budget the establishment of this system in 2014 as part of the “Safe City” Program. Phase one of the security program was put in place – CCTV was modernized and emergency stands were installed at all stations. It is now time to implement phase two – ensuring passengers’ safety in case of an incident.

EBRD to credit Belgrade Metro

The credit will be granted on a period of 20-25 years and will require state guarantees.

Serbia: Negotiations with EBRD to get a credit for Belgrade Metro project have been successfully concluded, Mayor Dragan Djilas declared.

The EBRD loan will be used to finance construction works estimated at EUR 600 Million and due to begin in 24 months. France will finance the acquisition of units and electric equipments for lines.

Vienna: potential tram tender Austria: Vienna’s public transport operator Wiener Linien is considering whether to launch a new tender for LRVs instead of exercising an option for 150 additional Ultra Low-Floor (ULF) vehicles from Siemens.

Wiener Linien awarded Siemens a contract for 150 ULFs in 1997, and placed a second order in 2004 for a further 150 vehicles, all of which will be delivered by 2015.

The ULF has been criticised in a report by the audit department of the City of

Сербия: Успешно завершены переговоры с ЕБРР на получение кредита по проекту белградского метро. В мире: Компании «Vossloh España» присужден контракт на поставку 7 трамвайных поездов, которые будут использованы для соединения центра

Vienna, which claims that up to 25% of the ULF fleet is out of service for maintenance.

Budapest removes Line 2 soviet metro trains Hungary: Budapest’s last Soviet-made metro carriage was decommissioned after 43 years of service on the city’s 2nd (red) metro line. The Soviet vehicles covered nearly 2 billion km overall on the city’s eastwest M2 line during their lifespan.

The Russian trains made by the Mitishinsky railway factory have been replaced by 22 Metropolis trains produced by Alstom.

города Шеффильд и Rotherham Parkgate. Венгрия: Последний вагон метро советского производства, использованный для передвижения по красной ветке (линия № 2) будапештского метро был снят с эксплуатации после того, как он служил 43 года.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

16 Policies & Strategies

Parliament approves EU draft budget for 2014-2020 [ by Pamela Luică ]

On 3 July 2013, the European Parliament approved the EU multi-annual draft budget for 2014-2020, after obtaining the key priorities of its negotiation mandate, namely an almost complete flexibility of moving the non-paid funds (payment appropriations) from one year to another and a broader flexibility of transferring commitments. Moreover, the revision clause was introduced giving the possibility to the Parliament and the Commission to have a view point over the budget.

O

n 19 June, negotiations on the European multi-annual budget reached an outcome that the Parliament considered incomplete and discussions were resumed in the first week of July.

President of the Parliament, Martin Schulz, the chief negotiator Alain Lamassoure (PPE, FR), Prime Minister Enda Kennz, Minister of Foreign Affairs Eamon Gilmore and President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso have reached an agreement which has also gained the support of the main political groups of the Parliament and of Member States.

On 3 July, the EP approved the EU multi-annual draft budget by accepting the budget long-term negotiated package. “It was a good day for Europe. Through its overwhelming vote in favour of the European budget for 2014-2020, the European Parliament has opened the way for putting in place a seven year growth and jobs fund worth almost EUR 1,000 Billion for the next 7 year”, declared the Financial Programming and Budget Commissioner Janusz Lewandowski.

Thus, the Parliament obtained the key priorities of its negotiation mandate, namely an almost complete flexibility of moving the non-paid funds (payment appropriations) from one year to another and a broader flexibility of transferring commitments from one year to another and from one category of expenditure to another, in order to foster the fight against youth unemployment, research and the Erasmus for all programme and support for SMEs. A success of the EP was the introduction of the revision clause in order to give the next Parliament and Commission a say on a budget. Revision will begin in 2016. The Commission will have to present a revision of the operation of the multi-annual financial framework while considering the respective economic situation. The revision will be accompanied by a draft revision proposal.

The Council said it would keep its promise of covering the rest of the 2013 payments, estimated at EUR 11.2 Billion and the ministers of economy and finances in the Member States will make an official

decision on the first instalment of EUR 7.3 Million by 9 July and on the second instalment by autumn. The Parliament will not approve on the Regulation of the multiannual financial framework, nor will they adopt the 2014 budget until the Council will not adopt these budget amendments to cover the deficit, as recommended by the Commission. The outcome of negotiations will be included in a regulation and in an attached inter-institutional agreement that the Parliament will have to approve with its majority of members plus one. The Parliament is ready to vote for the regulation on a multiannual financial framework and interinstitutional agreement this autumn.

On 27 June, the EP and the Council reached an agreement for infrastructure projects regarding the Connecting Europe Facility, the new European fund being estimated at EUR 30 Billion dedicated to joint-interest projects for Trans-European transport networks, energy and telecommunications.

Elements of the political agreement on the European Union’s future budget 2014-2020

Global margin for payments 1. Every year, starting in 2015, as part of the technical adjustment referred to in Article 4, the Commission will adjust the payment ceiling for the years 20152020 upwards by an amount equivalent to the difference between the executed payments and the MFF payment ceiling of the year n-1.

2. The annual adjustments shall not exceed the following maximum amounts (in 2011 prices) for the years 2018-2020 as compared to the original payment ceiling of the relevant years: 2018: EUR 7 billion; 2019: EUR 9 billion; 2020: EUR 10 billion 3. Any upward adjustment shall be fully offset by a corresponding reduction of the payment ceiling for year n-1. www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Specific flexibility to tackle youth unemployment and strengthen research Up to EUR 2 543 million1 (in 2011 prices) may be frontloaded in 2014 and 2015, as part of the annual budgetary procedure, for specified policy objectives relating to youth employment, research, ERASMUS in particular for apprenticeships, and SMEs. These amounts shall be fully offset against appropriations within and/or between headings in order to leave unchanged the total annual ceilings for the period 2014-2020 and the total allocation per heading or sub-heading over the period.

Парламент одобрил проект бюджета ЕС на период 2014 - 2020 гг.

3 июля 2013 года Европейский парламент одобрил проект многолетнего бюджета ЕС на период с 2014 года по 2020 год, после получения одним из ключевых приоритетов в переговорном мандате, а именно речь идет о получении почти полной гибкости для переноса неоплаченных средств (кредитов к оплате) с одного года на другой и широкой гибкости переноса обязательств. Кроме этого, было введено положение о пересмотре, которое позволит будущему Парламенту и Комиссии высказывать свое мнение по вопросу бюджета.

18 Policies & Strategies

EC meets economic challenges by launching an action plan for the steel sector [ by Pamela Luică ]

36 years after the last action plan for the steel market (Davignon plan in 1977), EU launched in June 2013 the action plan for the European steel industry to help this sector confront today’s challenges and lay the foundations for future competitiveness by fostering innovation, creating economic growth and jobs.

W

ith a turnover reaching EUR 170 Billion and an important presence in the value chain of the industrial processing from many sectors, the European steel industry holds a strategic place in the economy, the steel having a significant cross-border dimension: across the EU, 500 production facilities are distributed in 23 states. Under these circumstances, Europe needs basic industries to stimulate the other branches in the reindustrialisation process. “The steel industry has a promising future in Europe. By continuing to lead in innovative products, its traditional strength, it can achieve a globally competitive edge.

With today’s blueprint for the revival of the steel sector, we send a clear signal to the industry that it is a strategically important sector for Europe and a motor for growth. The EU needs its real economy more than ever to underpin the economic recovery and we aim for industry to deliver 20% of GDP by 2020. This is the start of a process; I am committed to monitoring the situation carefully so we can adapt our efforts as needed. Within a year, we will look at whether the actions proposed are having the effect we aim for”, Antonio Tajani, Commissioner for Industry and Entrepreneurship, said.

In Europe, the demand for steel is 27% below the pre-crisis level, and the work-

force in this sector decreased by 10% (in 2007-2011), but the EU remains the biggest steel producer in the world, its capacity amounting to 177 million tonnes of steel/year, which represents 11% of the global production. Although it has dropped, according to OECD, increases are estimated to 2.3 billion tonnes of steel by 2025 at world level, due to the needs in the transport, construction and mechanical engineering sectors, especially on emerging markets. Therefore, it becomes essential that the EU steel industry should be able to consolidate its position on this competitive market.

In order to encourage the development of the steel sector, EU stimulates innovation by promoting eco-technologies for the development of new steel types and by stimulating innovation, in particular for the extremely expensive pilot phases. Therefore, in 2014-2020 the research projects will be financed through the Horizon 2020 programme, and the steel sector will benefit from the European partnership on innova-

Manufacture of basic iron and steel and of ferro-alloys (ECSC); manufacture of tubes; other first processing of iron and steel and production of non-ECSC ferro-alloys

Source: Eurostat (STS)

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

tion in the field of raw materials and from a financial support reaching EUR 280 Million in the same programming period, through the Research Fund for Coal and Steel.

Besides the financial support for the development of this sector, the new EU political strategy will also determine the adoption and the application of an appropriate regulatory framework through measures which include the evaluation by the end of 2013 of the global regulation task imposed to the steel industry by different policies and its impact on competitiveness. By means of the launched strategy, the EC also intends to optimise the access to the external markets and to ensure fair competition conditions to support steel exports in the EU.

Европейская комиссия отвечает на вызовы экономического характера с помощью запуска плана действий для сектора черной металлургии 36 лет спустя после запуска последнего плана действий на рынке стали (План Давиньона, 1977 год), в июне 2013 года ЕС запустил план действий для европейского сектора черной металлургии, в целях оказания помощи данной отрасли справиться с нынешними вызовами. Мероприятия, проведенные ЕС, будут оцениваться в рамках анализа внедрения 1 год спустя после их начала осуществления.

Policies & Strategies

19

A long-awaited measure: single authorisation for placing in service a rail vehicle [ by Elena Ilie ]

Following long negotiations marked by intense debates and amendments proposed by European rapporteurs, in June, the European Transport Council set an agreement on increasing the quality and efficiency of railway services in Europe and managed, in the end, to eliminate technical barriers and to set the bases for railway interoperability. The vote of the Transport Council represents the approval of the European Commission’s proposal to review the Directive on Interoperability, part of the Fourth Railway Package. After adopting the proposal to review the Directive on Interoperability, the Council also adopted a “general approach” on the new rules introducing a single authorisation for placing in service the rail vehicles. The new rules will also enhance the role of the European Railway Agency.

that are redundant or are in conflict with the TSIs should also be approached more carefully by member states, first, and then

by ERA. In fact, until the TSIs are not fully extended to the entire Union rail system, a large number of national rules is still being notified by Member States. Following the extension of the TSIs to the entire Union’s rail system and the closure of open points in the TSIs, Member States should remove national rules which are in conflict or redundant with the TSIs. The Commission’s fourth package clarifies this. Furthermore, the Agency should be given more power vis-à-vis Member States with a view to removing inconsistent/discriminatory/ disproportionate national rules Therefore, the fourth package will enable the Agency to adopt opinions addressed to a Member State and stating the reasons why a national rule which is redundant or in conflict with the TSIs or any other EU legislation should not entry into force or be applied.

Secondary legislation on interoperabil-

ity (TSIs and other legal measures) is now complete as far as the trans-European rail system is concerned. As already foreseen by the current legal framework, the large majority of TSIs are expected to be extended to the whole rail system in the European Union by 2015. Beyond this date, TSIs will be subject to regular revision to keep up with technical progress, market trends and social requirements. Future revisions of TSIs should also simplify the regulatory environment, ensuring the relevance, effectiveness and proportionality of railway legislation. For example, greater use of voluntary European standards will be considered.

This simplification process, already possible under the current legislative framework, is enhanced and further clarified by the Commission in its fourth package proposals.

Similarly, in the fourth package the Commission proposes clarifications regarding the application of TSIs when existing subsystems are renewed or upgraded. In the

Photo: http://creativity103.com

T

he Council introduced some changes in the proposal, such as the concept of “area of use” of a vehicle, a longer transitional period and the possibility for national safety authorities to issue authorisations for vehicles operating in one Member State only. Vice-President Kallas emphasized the importance of a shorter transitional period, as the provisions are urgently needed to boost competitiveness and promote modal shift towards rail transport. He also underlined that deviations from the concept of a single EU-wide vehicle authorisation must be limited in time.

The current barriers in railway interoperability include the lack of transparency of the national legal frameworks on the authorisation of vehicles and the fact that national norms are not public. These two aspects are approached by the European Railway Agency within its current activity related to the classification and correlation of national norms.

The problem of preserving national rules

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

20 Policies & Strategies same package, the Commission emphasises the importance of the role and correct functioning of Notified Bodies by aligning the interoperability legislation with the new legislative framework for the marketing of products.

Finally, the fourth package also addresses the difficulties experienced in the current vehicle authorisation process, by introducing the notion of a single vehicle authorisation for placing on the market which will be valid throughout the European Union.

This will entail a reinforced role for the Agency and an increased focus by national safety authorities on supervision tasks.

According to the proposal of recasting the Directive on Interoperability, the vehicle authorisation for placing on the market is issued by the Agency and contains all information needed later by the railway undertaking to place a vehicle in commercial service.

The applicant (railway undertaking, manufacturer, etc.) may ask the Agency to complement the vehicle authorisation for placing on the market with a statement concerning the technical compatibility of the vehicle with a particular set of lines or networks defined by the applicant on the basis of commercial and/or technical considerations. This complementary state-

ment will facilitate the railway undertaking in its task of placing the vehicle in service.

In its recast proposal, the Commission introduced a series of new articles aimed at improving procedures and at supporting the establishment of the Single European Railway Area. One of the new articles, shows that “the pursuit of interoperability within the Union’s rail system should lead to the definition of an optimal level of technical harmonisation and make

it possible to facilitate, improve and develop international rail transport services within the Union and with third countries and contribute to the progressive creation of the internal market in equipment and services for the construction, renewal, upgrading and operation of the rail system within the Union”.

The final vote of the European Parliament on the proposals submitted by the European Commission is scheduled for November 2013.

Единое разрешение на введение на рынок железнодорожных транспортных средств Европейская Комиссия приветствовала прогресс, достигнутый в рамках Транспортного Совета от 10 июня, в целях совершенствования и упорядочения железнодорожных услуг в Европе путем устранения технических барьеров. В ответ на предложение Европейской комиссии реформировать Директиву по взаимодействию, Транспортный Совет принял “общий подход” новых правил, который будет предусматривать единое разрешение на введение на рынок ЕС железнодорожных транспортных средств. Одновременно с этим, роль Европейского железнодорожного агентства будет укрепляться. Совет внес несколько изменений по предложению Европейской Комиссии, такие как понятие “регион использования” транспортного средства, более длительный переходный период, и возможность того, чтобы национальные органы безопасности на железнодорожном транспорте выдавали разрешения на транспортные средства, которые передвигаются по территории одного государства-члена.

"GSM-R

Asset & Evolution

Management" Conference Conference purpose

Who should attend ?

» provide detailed information on GSM-R present, its evolution, and its strategy for the long-term future » supporting the railways to look on wider opportunities for mobile applications » promote the debate at the event and beyond

» railways & rail transport experts, and strategy decision makers » authorities & standardization bodies (e.g. EC, ECC, ETSI, 3GPP, Sector) » telecom, signalling, operation domains » international audience

» demonstrate GSM-R technology & applications

GSM-R technology & applications Exhibition Booths available

www.gsmr-conference.org

Contact: jubier@uic.org

10-11 Sept 2013, Paris UIC Headquarters

21

Policies & Strategies

Positive efforts of rail freight operators are not enough Further measures are necessary to increase efficiency and competitiveness [ by Pamela Luică ]

During 10 years of policies which have set ambitious objectives in railway freight transport, the European Commission has introduced several measures targeting the growth vision of this segment and the promotion of an efficient and sustainable transport, the introduced measures and instruments being aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of railway freight transport. But, according to data, the impact of these measures has been limited.

How much are member states investing?

6

I

Figure 13 Rail track versus motorway length in EU-15, 1970-2008

Rail track versus motorway length in EU-15, 1970-2008 n spite of a significant development in intra-modal competition over the past decade, the much-needed modal shift Index 1970 = 100 450 Road towards rail, whichofwould energyby member states in inland transport Length of motorways (km) The percentage GDP bring invested 400 efficiency and important CO2 emissions infrastructure Western has been350steadily decreasing from 1.5% in gains, is still farinfrom being aEurope reality. The imbalance between road but and increasing rail freight isin CEEC from 0.9% in 1995 to 2% in 2009.

1975 to 0.8% in 2009, Road performance 300 increasing, in a worrying move for the susTotal traffic units (tkm+pkm) Although the total amount of investment in infrastructure in CEEC has risen in tainability of the transport system”, CER 250 states its “Rail Status distribution Report the lastinfew years,Freight the modal strongly favours the road sector.

200 2013. Rail freight after a decade of EU rail Rail performance policy”, (April 2013). Nevertheless, railway Total traffic units (tkm+pkm) 150 transport has proved its commitment for quality and efficiency through the different 100 quality schemes and quality management Rail 50 systems and seeks to improve the processes Length of lines in use (km) and the products of the sector and of the 0 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 companies. of Source: infrastructure Rail Freight Status Reportinvestment 2013- Rail freight after a decade of EU rail policy, (April 2013) - CER Only one of the objectives of the White In Western Europe, the development of transport between modes Paper of Transport from 2001 (regarding 120%Source: European Commission, ETIF 2010 infrastructure is trailing behind the growth of the rail freight transport) has been reached: such systems the towards paperless consignment notes and 2 2 in 2the 2near future.

11 3 Also, 2 4 economy.

100% increase of intermodal competitiveness punctuality and reliability of railway freight longer trains. On top of these initiatives, Where large investments have been made in the past, this 80% whose stimulation has attracted a higher transport remained balanced in the pastinfrastructure various companies Rail services are only as good as the they run have on. also launched new spending pattern might be sufficient. For the rail sector, 68 this 67 evolution 66 66is mainly 75 84 due 83 60% 69 share of railway freight transport to the new five years and processes and products aimed at improving CER together with MEP Dominique Riquet (EPP, FR) organised which in post-war Western Europe has seen decreasing entrants (25% in the EU-25 in 2010). But to the efforts of the industry for improving andtocompetitiveness. an40%exhibition in the European Parliament intheir Mayoffer 2012 present levels of investment compared to competing modes, the situation critical regarding thebeen shift theand quality of transport and ofcompetitiveinvestment in rail is infrastructure clearly has not the use the different financing instruments for 20% demonstrate 30 30 31 32 to rail, as road operators have increased ness “which proves that the 23railby22sector sufficient.

13and member states, showing railway infrastructure offered the14 EUhas 0% their share in cargo transport which gener- seriously approached 1995 2000 2005 2009the problem 1995 2000 of 2005qual2009 The situation is even more dramatic in Central and Eastern best practices how financing could be optimised.

WECs and suggestingCEECs Положительные ally led toCEEC thecountries reduction of thetheirrail trans- ity andIWWhas constantly sought to improve its Europe.

While are increasing spending The panels of the exhibition were compiled into a leaflet which can be port shareinfrastructure, from 18.5% services”, the CER усилия операторов Road says on transport thein rail2000 sectorto is 16.2% receivingin WEC: BE, DK, FI, FR, DE, IS,report.

IE, ES, SE, UK Aside from the CER website CEEC: HR,from CZ, EE, MK, HU, LV, LT, ME, PL, RO, SI, SK, Albania, Serbia Rail 2010, according to to EU27 data.InAlthough thedownloaded various quality charters adopted by(www.cer.be). the increasingly less compared other modes.

1995, rail железнодорожных Source: ITF 2011 (at current prices) received 23% of totalisinvestment in transport infrastructure the situation not favourable, the qual- sector, several projects have been launched грузовых перевозок не compared to only 13% intransport 2009. ity of rail freight has been main- to help improve specific segments of rail являются достаточными tained and, in some situations, optimised, freight, such as combined transport or Остается ряд мер, которые and all companies have one of more qual- single wagonload, and to reinforce the необходимо реализовать в целях ity management systems or plan to acquire competitiveness of the sector, with a move повышения эффективности и конкурентоспособности CEEC Investment in Rail Infrastructure Western Europe Investment in THE

Distribution

Kindly hosted by MEP Dominique RIQUET

CER_EXPO_EP_FLYER_V4.indd 1

CEEC*

Western Europe*

million EUR

million EUR Road WEC 50000 Rail WEC 45000 40000 35000 30000 25000 20000 15000 10000 5000 0 1993 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 2009

Investment in rail infrastructure 16000

Road CEEC Rail CEEC

14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0

1993 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 2009

* HZ, CZ, EE, HU, LA, LT, PL, RO, SK Sources: ITF 2011

Source: Mind the Gap, CER

Railin Infrastructure Investment rail infrastructure

* AT, DK, FI, FR, DE, IR, NO, PT, ES, UK

5/21/12 11:34:25 AM

На протяжении 10 лет проведения политик, наметивших весьма амбициозные планы на железнодорожные грузоперевозки, Европейская Комиссия ввела целый ряд мер по осуществлению взглядов на развитие этого сегмента и содействию устойчивому и эффективному транспорту. Меры и инструменты нацелены на укрепление конкурентоспособности железнодорожных грузовых перевозок. Тем не менее, по предварительным данным, воздействие этих мер было ограниченным.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

22 Policies & Strategies

Quality of rail freight transport, affected by infrastructure sub-financing [ by Pamela Luică ]

The economic crisis had a negative impact on the railway freight sector, as well as on other transport modes, such as road cargo transport. Considering the strategic importance of the rail sector in Europe, it is important to understand the causes of this relative decline. This situation can be explained through various factors related to the fact that the policy measures introduced in the past decade have not been accompanied by vital frame-conditions such as appropriate infrastructure investments and fair measures for all transport modes.

Figure 15 Quarterly rail freight development (in million tkm), Europe, 2007-2012 120 000

RAIL FREIGHT STATUS REPORT 2013 RAIL FREIGHT MARKET DEVELOPMENTS | CHAPTER 2

Figure 12 Rail Railand and road modal share of transport infrastructure investment road modal share of transport infrastructure investment in EU-15 and CEEC, 1992-2009 in EU-15 and CEEC, 1992-2009 100% 90% 80%

ROAD

70% 60% 50% 40% 30%

RAIL

20% 10% 0%

1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

Road EU-15

Rail EU-15

Road CEEC

Rail CEEC

Source: Rail Freight Status Source: ITF/ECMT, 2011 Report 2013- Rail freight after a decade of EU rail policy, (April 2013) - CER

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013 The chronic underinvestment

in rail infrastructure is visible when comparing the growth of rail infrastructure with the growth or motorways in EU-15 since 1970 (see next figure). Indeed, in

100 000

In an increasingly congested infrastructure network, it is more difficult for railways to be punctual. This is even more the case for freight trains. The rise in both passenger and freight traffic in 2010 has probably had an impact on punctuality. This negative trend has been reversed since then, thanks to important efforts by railway undertakings.

80 000 60 000 40 000 20 000

Europe

EU-15+CH

Q2 2012

Q1 2012

Q4 2011

Q3 2011

Q2 2011

Q1 2011

Q4 2010

Q3 2010

Q2 2010

Q1 2010

Q4 2009

Q3 2009

Q2 2009

Q1 2009

Q4 2008

Q3 2008

Q2 2008

Q1 2008

Q4 2007

Q3 2007

Q2 2007

0

Q1 2007

S

tudies show that the quality of rail the report says. transport mostly depends on the The acute under-financing of the railway quality and availability of railway in- infrastructure is visible when we compare frastructure. However, the rail sector suffers the development of railway infrastructure from severe under-financing of the infra- to that of road infrastructure in the EU15 Besides, which poorly affects maintained infrastructure and/or upgrades lead structure punctuality and re- andindeferred 1970. Inrenewals 40 years, the length of lines duces the competitiveness the railand freight was toreduced by 14%, the length of to speed restrictions and of delays, ultimately poor quality andwhile punctuality for the transport to the other transport infrastructure customer.compared In the longer term, it can lead to the road closure of lines, whichincreased creates anthree-fold; additional modes spite of the efforts made by although confronted with few investments, loss of in competitiveness with respect to this other modes. sector to consolidate its attractiveness”, says the railways have managed to increase their Infrastructure and availability therefore has a tremendous on the quality and the CER studyquality “Rail Freight Status Report transport volume impact by boosting productivity. competitiveness rail afreight services, due toMeanwhile, its influence on though key parameters of modal 2013.

Rail freightofafter decade of EU rail even road has benefited choice for freight customers identified in sectionfrom 1.2, such as reliability transport, policy”, (April 2013). a much greater ofshare of theavailable public In EU15orand Centraltime. and Eastern Europe, budget, growth ofisvolumes transported capacity transport Sufficient investment in rail the infrastructure therefore a must to the highest share of 2011 investments in the road has not matched the growth of moreach the goals of the Commission Whiteby Paper. transport infrastructure (over 2/3 in 2009) torway’s length, indicating a deterioration is dedicated to road infrastructure and this of road freight productivity.

1.6.2 underinvestment lack of Chronic balance has been accentuated inin rail Also,infrastructure the insufficient allocation of investCEE since 2002 generating a significant ments in infrastructure has a negative imIn both EU-15 and CEEC, the biggest proportion (more than 2/3 in 2009) of transport drop in the investment shares allocated to pact on transport punctuality which is an infrastructure investment goes towards road infrastructure. This has been the case since railway infrastructure. This is a serious issue important element of railway transport.

1992,the as negative demonstrated 12. This has the substantially increased in CEEC given impactbyofFigure insufficient in- imbalance Therefore, punctuality level depends as of 2002, with a deep rise in the share of transport infrastructure investment going vestments in the railway infrastructure over not only of the individual processes and eftowards road and “The a deep decrease in the share allocated to railbut infrastructure. the quality of infrastructure, freight transport. trend forts of railway companies, also32 of exThis situation is problematic, the negative impact of among insufficient investment in rail should be reversed as a mattergiven of urgency ternal factors, which the infrastrucinfrastructure on rail freight’s quality, as shown section 1.6.1. The trend should reversed in order to reinforce the competitiveness of inture.

An appropriate network is be an essential rail to trigger further in ensuring the punctuality of as afreight matterand of urgency in order to improvereinforce the parameter competitiveness of rail freight and to trigger ment the quality ofofrail transport process. furtherofimprovement thefreight quality services”, of rail freight the services.

CEEC

Source: CER, 2012

Five years after the start of the crisis, rail freight traffic has not gone back to pre-crisis levels, in both EU-15 and Switzerland and in the CEEC. The Q2 2012 level for EU-15 and Switzerland is more than 20% below the Q2 2008 level for the same zone, while the Q2 2012 level for CEEC is more than 14% below the Q2 2008 level.

Rail freight in Europe: comparison of Q2 2012 level to pre-crisis level Figure 16 Rail freight in Europe: comparison of Q2 2012 level to pre-crisis level (in million tkm) (in million tkm) pre-crisis level

90 000

-20.2%

80 000 71 737

70 000

76 593 65 629

60 000

66 276 61 087

55 934

50 000 40 000

-14.2% 33 894

30 000

31 701

29 424 22 897

27 192

26.021

20 000 10 000 0

Q2 2007 CEEC

Q2 2008

Q2 2009

Q2 2010

Q2 2011

Q2 2012

EU-15+CH

Source: CER, 2012

Качество железнодорожных грузовых перевозок оказалось под влиянием недофинансирования инфраструктуры По данным исследований, качество железнодорожных грузовых перевозок зависит от качества и доступности железнодорожной инфраструктуры. Несмотря на это, железнодорожный сектор страдает от хронического недофинансирования инфраструктуры, а это сказывается на пунктуальности, снижая конкурентоспособность железнодорожных грузовых перевозок по сравнению с остальными видами транспорта, вопреки усилиям, приложенным данным сектором для укрепления своей привлекательности.

www.railforce.ro

Rail passenger transport Rail freight transport Shunting services Contact: 2 Oltului St. 500283 - Brasov Romania Tel: +40 268 310 697 Fax: +40 268 310 859

SPIACT BRAĹžOV

24 Policies & Strategies

The European railway industry is the main global product supplier [ by Pamela Luică ]

In June, the European Commission, the Directorate General of Enterprise and Industry, published the report on the competitiveness of the railway industry according to which the EU has a strong leader position compared to non-EU countries, which also have a developed market. Europe is in the top of global trade, a situation also confirmed by the analyses and the competitive advantages of Europe. Regarding the delivery of complex technological solutions, the European railway industry is also among the top suppliers.

T

he European railway industry is a operating rate and productivity levels”, the significant economic sector being study states. The European railway industry estimated at EUR 40 Billion (2010) has improved compared to the USA and with a gross added value of 30% of produc- Japan whose market share in production tion. Regarding the value of production, the and total of exports dropped. Compared rolling stock and locomotive market is the to China, the EU has a global competitive most important market which equals the advantage, although China is trying to fill market segment of railway infrastructure, in the gap. This advantage can be noticed followed by signalling and electrification. in the commercial data where China runs As a result, the rolling stock and the lo- a trade surplus in railway products with all comotives create the largest and most glo- the countries except for the EU. balised market, shows the report on the The European railway industry has a series competitiveness of the European railway of key elements compared to non-EU counsector, launched in June by the European tries: an important advantage of the railway Commission, the Directorate General of electrification industry is the development Enterprise and Industry (Sector Overview of the ERTMS, a system also implemented and Competitiveness Survey of the Railway by non-EU countries; another point refers Supply Industry, conducted by Ecorys). to the significant development of integrated The EU is in the lead as a top exporter ac- solutions, such as merging the technology of counting for 21% of railway total trade. In vehicles with intelligent signalling systems, infrastructure.

Also it should be acknowledged on average and in absolute terms, addition, the EU is the most important pro- thethat optimisation of operations and the manexports two times bigger“the thangood imports. ducer ofare railway products, per- agement of services. Moreover, the Europeformance of the railway industry indicating an railway suppliers have qualified essential the optimisation of competitiveness. More- components such as the braking systems deThe sections a more detailedlivered analysis EU trade per over,following the industry hasprovide improved its gross byofspecialised and segment. experienced sup-

pliers. In infrastructure, EU is leading the top of the countries which develop long lifecycle steel, rail fastening systems, switches and high-quality concrete and plastic sleepers, whose role is to maintain certain limits of maintenance costs and to guarantee the safety of operations. The highest competitor in this segment is Japan.

The EU spends significant amounts of resources in R&D ranging between 4% and 10% for the more technologically advanced market segment of locomotives and rolling stock and signalling and electrification. For the infrastructure segment this R&D expenditure is much lower at 2% due to different R&D requirements. Also, estimates regarding the mere technological development vary significantly of the type of technology. For vehicles, the stress will fall on improving design, for engines, on increasEU ingRSI efficiency and on reducing the pollution level. Generally, the development of the R&D will aim at making mobility efficient, especially in urban areas.

Distribution of EU railway industry exports: Total value (€ million)

Figure 2.8 Distribution of EU railway industry exports: Total value (€ million)

Source: UN COMTRADE

Source: UN COMTRADE

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Figure 2.9 Distribution of EU railway industry imports: Total value (€ million)

Европейские железнодорожные перевозки все еще нуждаются в жестких стратегиях развития Сообщество европейских железнодорожных компаний (CER) опубликовало отчет, который предоставляет детальный взгляд на текущее состояние европейских грузовых железнодорожных перевозок. Доклад CER анализирует последнее десятилетие, отмеченное многочисленными стратегиями и целями, намеченными главным образом для того, чтобы оживить рыночную долю железнодорожного транспорта в Европе и укрепить свои позиции по отношению к другим видам транспорта.

Join the summit for railway business champions

THE WIDER BLACK SEA AREA RAILWAY INVESTMENT SUMMIT

8th edition 8-9 October 2013 Bucharest, Romania The Wider Black Sea Area (WBSA), a median area of the Eurasian platform, expands from Central Asia to Central Europe and from Northern to Southern Europe and Asia Minor. The macro-area includes 28 dynamic railway markets, a mixture of mature, developing and ascending markets, that bring about a spectrum of opportunities across the railway sector.

Organisers:

Under the aegis of:

INNOVATIVE RAILWAYS. COMPETITIVE BUSINESS

Main Partners: Partners:

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www.railwaysummit.com

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Railway PRO

For further details please contact us: Tel.: +40(21) 224 43 85 / Fax: +40(21) 224 43 86 / E-mail: contact@railwaysummit.com

The European railway transport is at a crossroads. The old challenges linger, while new ones appear. The European railway industry has all the necessary resources to face these challenges. However, considering the fact that other regions of the world launch important and ambitious programmes for the modernisation of transport and infrastructure, it is essential that the European transport would continue to develop and invest in preserving its competitive position. Therefore, the railway industry plays a significant role and the SHIFT2RAIL initiative represents a solution to the current challenges of rail transport. The recent railway events have triggered objective and pertinent questions about the success or the failure of the long-awaited Fourth Railway Package and its impact in the industry, about creating the Single European Railway Area, increasing the role and the attributions of the European Railway Area or about the cross-border interoperability of the European transport networks. We have tried to find the answers to some of these questions from the Director General of the European Rail Industry Association (UNIFE), Philippe CitroĂŤn. www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Photo: UNIFE

26 leaders

leaders

27

Encouraging signals throughout Europe for SHIFT²RAIL Initiative

Interview with Mr. Philippe Citroen, Director General of the European Rail Industry Association (UNIFE) [ by Elena Ilie ]

RailwayPRO: What news can you tell us about the progress with the SHIFT2RAIL initiative?

Philippe Citroën: As you and many of your readers know, after more than 10 years of already close R&D cooperation within EU projects, the European rail supply industry in concert with a growing number of operators and infrastructure managers are now pushing for a real step change in rail Research and Development. They are calling on the European Institutions to set up a multiannual public-private research initiative, dubbed SHIFT²RAIL, in the framework of the upcoming Horizon 2020 Programme. As well as coping with growing demand, this initiative would result in increased user satisfaction with Europe’s railways, whilst at the same time reducing their cost and augmenting the competitiveness of the European rail supply industry.

The latest developments on SHIFT²RAIL include the extension of the SHIFT²RAIL promoters’ circle, the finalisation of the technical preparatory work by the signatories as well as the growing interest and support for the initiative throughout Europe and within the European Institutions.

The 15 founding companies – including two major European infrastructure managers: Network Rail and Trafikverket – have now been joined by numerous other industrial partners as well as other prominent railway undertakings and infrastructure managers (ADIF, FS, SNCF). Altogether they are now working on finalising the technical preparatory work for each of the 5 Innovation Programmes (respectively dedicated to Rolling stock, Signaling systems, Infrastructure, e-Ticketing & Passenger information, and Freight).

Also, it is important to note that the promoters of the initiative are paying special attention to the rail transport issues of the Central and Eastern European coun-

tries—especially with regard to solving problems related to aging infrastructure.

Moreover, the initiative has gotten significant support from the Polish transport ministry and industry stakeholders. With regard to Romania, we really hope that we can involve Romanian stakeholders and obtain the support of the Romanian government.

For its part the consortium is ready to establish the Joint Undertaking and start R&D operations as soon as 2014. The SHIFT²RAIL promoters have therefore called on the European Commission to adopt an official Regulation Proposal as soon as possible and asked the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament to then adopt this Proposal so as to start the Joint Technology Initiative without delay.

There are an increasing number of encouraging signals throughout Europe with more and more Member States, Members of the European Parliament and rail stakeholders– including numerous SMEs, research institutes and clusters – supporting this initiative and placing great confidence in its success.

In fact, the European Commission officially stated in its recent Communication on the 4th Railway Package: “The SHIFT²RAIL initiative would contribute to developing rail as a transport mode by promoting step-change innovations for passenger rolling stock, freight transport, traffic management systems and rail infrastructure”.

RailwayPRO: One of the directions of the European Union is setting a single European rail transport market. What are the hindrances from the point of view of the industry in meeting this objective?

Philippe Citroën: In order to set a Single European Railway Area we should turn a few key-words into reality. The first one is interoperability: transport nowadays goes beyond the national borders

“

UNIFE promotes the full deployment of ERTMS which would bring significant benefits in terms of interoperability, safety and performance Philippe Citroën and therefore it is in everyone’s interest to make cross border transport as smooth as possible from both a technical and an administrative point of view. Procedures for rolling stock authorisation should be harmonised and made faster across Europe by enhancing the role of the European Railway Agency, making it the single central agency for a Single European Railway Area. Moreover, all rail stakeholders should help EU decision makers and ERA eliminate the unnecessary national technical rules; there are around 11000 that are applied in Europe today. This leads me to the second key word that should become reality: investment. As it is clear that rail is key in order to meet the future societal and environmental challenges, Member States and the EU should coordinate their efforts in order to invest in our sector. In this respect, we welcome the revision of the TEN-T programme and the related financial instrument called Connecting Europe Facility that should give a boost to rail project implementation in Europe.

Linked to the first two key-words here’s the third: innovation. The European rail sector should join forces to cope with future challenges, including new competitors entering the European rail market, and massively invest in research and innovation with the support of the EU. This is how the rail industry sees the future of rail transport. > July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

28 leaders that the European Commission made on the technical pillar of the Fourth Railway Package. I believe that the structure proposed in the Fourth Railway Package, and in particular in the Interoperability Directive and the ERA Regulation, will indeed deliver, especially after the Council of 10 June clarified some points. In my opinion, we must have a strong European Railway Agency at the centre of the Single European Railway Area – at least this is what the shortcomings of today’s decentralised system suggest. We need a strong ERA that issues authorisations and that ensures that European processes are implemented in the member states. We must not forget that today’s situation would not be satisfactory even if authorisation processes worked perfectly in every country: it would still be expensive and cumbersome to have rolling stock authorised separately in every country where it might operate.

I firmly believe that the structure proposed will help solve this issue if the member states and NSAs cooperate. UNIFE is very happy with the compromise that was agreed upon in the Council of Transport ministers on 10 June, and would particularly like to thank all the efforts made by the Irish presidency and Vice-President Kallas’ teams at DG Move to negotiate an acceptable compromise. Additionally, UNIFE would also like to recognise the hard work on the compromise done by the National Associations of UNIFE and also by our friends at CER. RailwayPRO: What is UNIFE’s opinion concerning the strengthening of attributions and the role of the European

Photo: www.rfg.org.uk

RailwayPRO: Do you consider that the Fourth Railway Package could be “the structure that delivers”, as the European Commission says in its proposals?

Philippe Citroën: Everybody knows that the current system is in bad need of reform. The situation today is unbearable: authorisation is time-consuming, costly, and in some countries unpredictable. We also face the problem that all NSAs use different procedures. Let me give you some figures to illustrate the enormity of the problem: Today, procedures to authorise a new locomotive can last up to two years and cost up to EUR 6 million; the costs for a single country authorisation can account for up to 10% of costs of a locomotive, and each additional country authorisation will increase the costs by another 10%. EUR 1.2 billion of capital is immobilised because it is standing idle and awaiting authorisation. In the end, the manufacturers face fines because of delayed deliveries.

Clearly, the problem is big and has an impact on the overall competitiveness of our industry. This problem requires a European solution. We have continuously asked the Commission to address this issue and I believe that with the technical pillar of the Fourth Railway Package, in particular with the proposal for a new interoperability directive and the new ERA regulation, the European Commission made a proposal that can solve the problems.

In fact, for the past years UNIFE has continuously lobbied for an improvement of the authorisation processes of today and we are pleased with the proposals

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Railway Agency (ERA)? Do you support this initiative of the European Commission?

Philippe Citroën: As I said before, I believe that the proposed structure is good. Based on our experience with the current system, I consider that a strong, centralised European agency is necessary for the creation of a Single European Railway Area.

As you probably know, the interoperability directive and the ERA regulation give a lot more power to ERA than they have today and we are very happy to see that ERA will be in charge of authorisations in Europe. Importantly, ERA will also supervise National Safety Authorities, making sure that European procedures are adhered to, setting an end to the various different national processes in the NSAs that currently present a barrier to the functioning of the internal market and that are very costly. Also, ERA will also have the power to delete the aforementioned 11000 or so different national rules that currently exist and that present a huge obstacle to interoperability and also are an obstacle to a functioning internal market.

It is against this backdrop that we fully support the proposals of the European Commission. In fact, I believe that the Fourth Railway Package offers a great opportunity to make the European railway market more efficient and competitive.

RailwayPRO: How do you comment the “threat” coming from the large-scale introduction of mega-trucks in the European Union? How will such a measure impact on the railway freight transport?

Philippe Citroën: We remain opposed to the concept of cross-border use of megatrucks, as we are convinced that their use in this way will start a process that will inevitably lead to a ‘domino effect’ and in time their general use across Europe. On the contrary, modal shift towards environmentally friendly transport modes like rail is the way forward.

In this respect, we are keen to implement the objectives set in the 2011 Transport White Paper. Indeed one of the five innovation programmes being developed in SHIFT²RAIL aims at developing technologies for sustainable and attractive European rail freight that will help further realise the Commission’s environmental and modal split targets with regard to freight transport.

RailwayPRO: Is adapting the ETCS to European networks the right answer for ensuring this single European railway transport market?

Philippe Citroën: As far as the rail sector is concerned, UNIFE promotes the full deployment of ERTMS which would bring significant benefits in terms of interoperability, safety and performance, thus contributing to the objec- >

> tive of a single European railway area. The Commission’s provision for mandatory ERTMS implementation on the comprehensive network is therefore an essential step in the right direction.

UNIFE strongly believes that EU funding has a critical role to play in ensuring the deployment of this technology along the European railway network. Since the full benefits of ERTMS are only realised when a significant number of neighbouring countries have made the necessary investments to upgrade their network, EU funding is pivotal in increasing the pace of ERTMS deployment along the European railway network.

UNIFE welcomes Germany’s announcement on equipping its Rail Freight Corridors with ERTMS. The first priority is Corridor A (Rotterdam - Genoa) which will be equipped by 2018. This positive message from Germany will certainly boost the implementation of ERTMS and due to Germany’s strategic location, four corridors out of six are passing through the country. Equipping these corridors will enhance the interoperability between Germany and its neighbouring countries.Also, the use of ERTMS outside Europe proves the considerable advantage and high-performance of system, which contributes to increased capacity safety, higher speed and reliability rate, and a more open supply market. Thanks to these benefits, ERTMS is indeed being implemented in a growing number of countries worldwide (thirty-eight, to be exact). However, ERTMS was designed to be the unique signalling system for Europe and support full interoperability across the EU.

RailwayPRO: To what extent do you consider the objectives of the White Paper on Transport on reducing polluting emissions by 60% until 20150 achievable, given the fact that many of the EU member states don’t seem to comprehend the importance of railway transport in meeting these objectives?

Philippe Citroën: Indeed the environmental objectives set up by the Commission are quite ambitious and member states are sometimes a bit reluctant to undergo radical changes, but I am not so pessimistic. Now more than ever before, I have the feeling that there is really a momentum for rail and even Member States are becoming more rail-oriented than they used to be in the past. I see positive signs: the results of our World Rail Market Study show that our sector is somewhat resilient to the current economic situation, showing a global 2.6% growth in the market compared to 2 years ago; the Council reached a relatively quick agreement to speed up rolling stock authorisation and certification procedures.

And, last but not least, our SHIFT²RAIL initiative is gaining support among a number of European Member States, such as France, Poland, and Italy, as well as in the entire rail sector. Based on this, I am convinced that rail can really be the decisive factor to reach the ambitious EU transport and GHG reduction targets.

Мы получаем положительные сигналы со всей Европы по инициативе SHIFT²RAIL Европейский железнодорожный транспорт находится на перепутье. Старые вызовы остаются актуальными, появляются новые. Европейский железнодорожный транспорт имеет все необходимые ресурсы для того, чтобы успешно справиться с ними. Однако, учитывая тот факт, что другие регионы мира разрабатывают гигантские программы по модернизации транспорта и инвестиций в инфраструктуру, важно, чтобы европейский транспорт продолжал развиваться и инвестировать для сохранения своей конкурентоспособной позиции. Железнодорожная отрасль играет важную роль в этом отношении, инициатива SHIFT2RAIL представляя собой решение текущих проблем железнодорожного транспорта. Недавние события в области железнодорожного транспорта вызвали объективные и актуальные вопросы об успехе или неудаче долгожданного Железнодорожного пакета IV и его последствиях для отрасли, о создании единого европейского железнодорожного пространства, об усилении роли и полномочий Европейского железнодорожного агентства, или о трансграничном взаимодействии европейских транспортных сетей. Мы обратились с некоторыми из этих вопросов к генеральному директору Ассоциации Европейской железнодорожной промышленности (UNIFE), Филиппу Ситроену.

30 Policies & Strategies

TEN-T core network will have to rely on the European freight corridors [ by Elena Ilie ]

The recent agreement between the European Commission, the Council and the European Parliament sets the foundation of establishing the core transport network which should become effective by 2030.

In turn, the core network represents the “backbone” of European transport within the single market.

Transport financing under the Connecting Europe Facility (for the period 2014–2020) will also focus on this core transport network, filling in cross-border missing links, removing bottlenecks and making the network smarter. The trans-European transport network has to ensure efficient multi-modality in order to allow better modal choices.

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fter long negotiations, the European Commission, the Council and the European Parliament have reached an agreement at the end of May on the proposals to transform the existing patchwork of railways, roads, airports and waterways into a unified transport network (TEN-T). There have been enough fears about the financing of the TEN-T projects; the fears have gone on 27 June when the European Parliament and the Council reached an agreement on the Connecting Europe Facility and the new European Fund worth EUR 30 Billion was dedicated to the financing of joint interest projects on infrastructure for trans-European transport network, energy and telecommunications.

“In order to foster growth and employment, to strengthen its role in a globalised world, Europe needs strong and interconnected infrastructures in the fields of transport, energy and telecommunications. This is the main aim of the CEF, which focuses funding on projects with a European added value, contributing to deepen European integration. “I therefore deeply regret that governments do not strongly support this fund, since they proposed to drastically reduce its financial envelope”, said co-rapporteur Do-

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

minique Riquet (France).

The agreement sets a core transport network to be established by 2030 to act as the backbone for transportation within the Single Market. Transport financing under the Connecting Europe Facility (for the period 2014–2020) will also focus on this core transport network, filling in cross-border missing links, removing bottlenecks and making the network smarter. The EUR 30 Billion granted to transport within the “Connecting Europe Facility” (for 2014-2020) will serve in practice as “initial capital” to stimulate additional investments from the member states in order to finalize the difficult crossborder connections and links which would probably not be developed otherwise. Each EUR 1 Million spent in Europe will generate EUR 5 Million from the governments of the member states and EUR 20 Million from the private sector. To support the financing from the Connecting Europe Facility, the Commission also adopted the terms of the “Project Bonds” Europe 2020 Initiative (bonds for the financing of projects) which will represent one of the instruments for dividing the risk that the Connecting Europe Facility could rely on in order to attract private capital for the financing of projects. The pilot phase will begin in 2013.

The new core TEN-T network will be supported by a comprehensive network of routes, feeding into the core network at regional and national level. This will largely be financed by Member States, with some EU transport and regional funding possibilities, including with new innovative financing instruments. As regards the establishment of the core network corridors, proper attention has to be paid to the railway freight transport corridors established under Regulation 913/2010. According to the TEN-T guidelines, the operators of freight terminals will ensure that all freight terminals are opened to all transport operators and logistics platform terminals provide at least one terminal open to all operators. The core network has to reflect the evolution of the traffic demand and the need for multimodal transport.

Центральная сеть TEN-T будет основываться на европейских коридорах грузовых перевозок Недавно заключенное соглашение между Европейской комиссией, Советом и Европейским парламентом, закладывает основы создания центральной транспортной сети, которую предстоит запустить до 2030 года. В свою очередь, центральная сеть является стержнем европейского транспорта в рамках единого рынка. Финансирование транспорта в рамках механизма Подключения Европы (на период 2014-2020 гг.) будет также сосредоточиваться на данной центральной транспортной сети, дополняя отсутствующее звено на межгосударственном уровне, устраняя ее узкие места и превращая ее в более продуктивную сеть. Трансъевропейская транспортная сеть призвана обеспечить эффективную мультимодальность, которая будет способствовать наличию лучших вариантов для транспорта.

Policies & Strategies

New discussions to speed up the completion of the North-South Corridor

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[ by Elena Ilie ]

A working group reuniting representatives of Iran, Azerbaijan, Russia and India has set as working plan the construction of the railway line working group Rasht – Astara (Iran) – Astara (Azerbaijan), according to the Iranian news web site Tasnim which quotes an official of Iranian Railways, Mohammad Reza Mohammadi Arasi. The construction of the entire Qazvin-Rasht-Astara section, part of the North-South Corridor, was debated during the fifth Coordination Council for the International North-South Corridor, organised in Baku in mid-June. The participants have underlined the importance of building the line in the shortest timeframe possible.

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ccording to the Iranian Deputy Minister of Roads, Ahmad Sadeghi, the Qazvin-Rasht-Astara line will be ready by March 2014. Currently, the line is 67% completed and 15 of the 22 tunnels included in the project are 70% completed.

Countries such as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and even Afghanistan have expressed interest in the development of the railway works of this corridor. According to Iranian Railways (RAI), the commissioning of the Corridor will significantly cut the transport time of goods from the present 45-60 days to 25-30 days. Ever since October 2010, when the 1520 Forum was held in Baku (Azerbaijan), agreements were signed on launching the construction of railways for the single missing link along the North-South Corridor, Qazvin – Astara – Rasht, with a length of 375 km. Works are currently underway. The largest part of the section, 300 km, is on the territory of Iran, which in 2011 allocated USD 111 Million for the construction of the respective line. According to the technical and economic data, the capacity of the new line Rasht (Iran) – Astara (Azerbaijan) could

reach 9 million tonnes by 2015 and over 19 million tonnes by 2030. The total sum of investments in the construction of this line is estimated at USD 408 Million.

RZD said they were ready to participate to the implementation of the international North-South Corridor, according to the company’s Vice President, Vadim Morozov. “For the deployment of the railway line, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Iran have initiated the construction of the Uzen-Gorgan line along the Caspian Sea to replace the longer actual route to Iran”, declared Vadim Morozov, Vice President of Russian Railways. “For the first time in history, the construction of this route will make possible the establishment of a rail connection of around 4,500 km from St. Petersburg to the port of Bandar Abbas (Iran) in the Persian Gulf and a shorter connection between North-East and Central Europe to the countries in Middle East and South Asia”. The line will be used for the organisation of international container railway traffic and, experts say, the market of freight transport is estimated at 16-17 million tonnes.

According to Mohammadi Arasi, the

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45-60 DAY:TIME TRAVEL

40%Shorter

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INDIA

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30%Cheaper

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working group talked about the construction of the railway, necessary investments and other issues. The results of discussions will be presented in order to make a decision to the following reunion of the deputy foreign ministers of the four participating countries. “The construction of the Qazvin-Rasht-Astara railway is a quite difficult process as it includes 22 tunnels and 15 special bridges. However, 70% of works to 15 tunnels is already completed”, added Arasi.

In fact, what are the advantages of developing the route along the west coast of the Caspian Sea? The advantages have been emphasized by the International Union of Railways (UIC) in a feasibility study elaborated in 2008 which shows that the route is the most feasible on the long-run. The fewer countries involved the better because this enables the conclusion of agreements and facilitates cross-border procedures.

Новые дискуссии об ускорении завершения строительства Коридора Север-Юг

25-30 DAY:TRAVEL TIME

Рабочая группа, объединяющая специалистов из Ирана, Азербайджана, России и Индии, установила в качестве плана работы строительство железнодорожной линии Рашт – Астара (Иран) – Астара (Азербайджан). Об этом сообщает иранский новостной сайт Тасним, цитируя официального представителя Иранских железных дорог - Мохаммада Резы Мохаммади Араси. Строительство целого отсека Казвин-Рашт-Астара, который является частью Коридора Север-Юг, обсуждалось в рамках V Координационного совета по Международному коридору Север – Юг, проведенного в Баку в середине июня. Участники подчеркнули важность строительства линии в кратчайшие сроки.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

32 Policies & Strategies

OTIF: Development of interoperability on the Euro-Asian axis is a necessity [ by Pamela Luică ]

Eurasia has a major importance in the economic, political and commercial relationships worldwide, the transport system being the strong element that binds them. The region needs an integrated transport system that would efficiently meet mobility needs and railway connections involve many countries with different systems, policies and legal frameworks which are still fragmenting the integration process. At the beginning of the year, the ministries of transport interested in the railway connection on the Europe-Asia axis signed a joint declaration on intensifying transport activities and harmonizing the railway legislation. OTIF (Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail) negotiated for this agreement as well.

The organisation believes that an important aspect of railway traffic between Europe and Asia is the concept concerning the terms and general transport conditions (GTC) representing a part of the group of experts in charge with the standardisation of railway legislation. The development of international traffic in this region has to rely on a pragmatic approach aimed to define the simple common norms that offer market players a certain freedom in the activity they carry out.

O

Photo: OTIF

François Davenne

TIF plays an important role in promoting the development and standardising the legislation of railway transport and implicitly in facilitating transport. The organisation is constantly expanding its activity in the countries of the region. Currently, the organisation has 49 member states (and an associate-member, Jordan) in Europe, Middle East and Africa, its railway network stretching on 250,000km. Over the past years, Georgia (2011) and Pakistan (2013) initiated procedures to become OTIF members, Pakistan’s accession representing for the organisation not just the increase of the number of its members, but also the opening of the entire region to OTIF policies.

For operators, creating commercial offers on the Europe-Asia axis is confronted with a series of challenges which could be efficiently approached by authorities in order to increase the attractiveness of railway transport. Here, the development of interoperability is a necessity. The obvious solution is to ensure continuity in the 1520mm network and in the European network, but the development of common norms and a clear understanding of responsibilities are strong and efficient instruments for reducing railway transport costs. In this context, www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

the coordination of investments in infrastructure is vital and relies on a framework of common regulations which can make possible the reduction of the cost of the vehicles in operation and their acceptance by the different networks.

The implementation of the necessary legislative and financial criteria and measures for ensuring the increasing competitiveness of railway transport between the two regions, the harmonisation and compatibility of OTIF legislation to that of the EU, the review of the uniform technical specifications of OTIF in the context of ERA’s adoption of the TSI amendments for freight wagons are only few of the topics approached in our interview with OTIF Secretary General, Mr. François Davenne.

RailwayPRO: The Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF) has 49 member states in Europe, Middle East and Africa and expands its influence as more and more countries initiated access procedures and become members (Georgia, Pakistan). What are the main criteria that a state interested in becoming OTIF member should meet in the context of rail transport system integration and keeping in mind that countries have different railway systems?

François Davenne: It is very important for OTIF that it continues to broaden its geographical scope. Rail transport has to be able to offer seamless links over the widest possible area if it wishes to continue to occupy a major modal share. In this respect, the recent accession of Georgia in 2011 and of Pakistan in 2013 demonstrates OTIF’s attractiveness. This is because the Organisation offers its Member States a broad palette of instruments to develop their rail transport.

Pakistan’s accession is linked to the initiative by the Economic Cooperation Or-

ganization (ECO) to set up a rail link for trains carrying containers between Islamabad and Istanbul via Tehran, which might one day be extended to Western Europe and southern Asia. Applying the rules of COTIF will also therefore enable freight traffic between Turkey, Iran and Pakistan to be developed, thanks largely to the CIM (contrat de transport international ferroviaire des marchandises)consignment note, which makes border crossing much easier. In the long term, it would seem that Pakistan’s accession to COTIF will mean not just that OTIF has another Member State, but that an entire region will be opened up to OTIF. In the form of RID, COTIF also offers the possibility of using a set of uniform and harmonised rules for the transport of dangerous goods. These rules also provide a guarantee of compatibility with ADR, which deals with these issues for road transport. States such as Azerbaijan, which are in the process of acceding to COTIF, have therefore joined ADR and will recognise the obvious advantages of ratifying the equivalent rail-related regulations.

For the Contracting States that apply its technical regulations, in terms of freight transport OTIF offers technical compatibility with the European rules on interoperability: specifically, it guarantees railway undertakings that they have the peace of mind to exchange their wagons with other Member States that apply the technical regulations, particularly with the EU Member States.

One of OTIF’s strengths is that the substance of an accession can be adapted to the needs of the rail sector. In Pakistan’s case, for example, interest was focused on the CIM consignment note, which will enable Pakistan to develop trade links with surrounding countries that apply OTIF law. However, as the tracks have different

Policies & Strategies

RailwayPRO: At the beginning of the year, the transport ministers in the countries interested in the rail connections between Europe and Asia signed a common declaration on the intensification of transport activities and the harmonisation of railway legislation. How do the authorities manage to determine the development and consolidation of cooperation in the Eurasian region? How will they manage to set harmonised legal measures for rail transport operation given the different systems and structures in these countries?

François Davenne: OTIF, which took part in negotiating this agreement, obviously welcomes the signature of the joint declaration on the promotion of rail transport between Europe and Asia. In my view, the most important aspect is that the concept of General Terms and Conditions of Transport (GTC) forms part of the mandate of the group of experts on the unification of railway law. The development of international traffic in the Euro-Asian region must in fact be based on a pragmatic approach, which consists of defining simple common rules giving the actors in the market a certain amount of freedom. CIM, which OTIF developed in numerous working groups with help from the sector, particularly CIT, already encapsulates a comparable philosophy.

As far as OTIF is concerned, an approach must be favoured which is based on the real constraints in international traffic. In legal terms, we broadly share Russia’s position, which is that the issue of the facilitation of border crossing is an extremely important one. Extending the application of the new Annex 9 to the 1982 Convention on customs harmonisation should achieve tangible results and will be one of the priorities of the group of experts set up to monitor the agreement. In other areas, the task is obviously a complex one, but I believe that work based on a detailed analysis of the legal and technical constraints faced by rail traffic on several major existing corridors between Asia and Western Europe could be the way to provide concrete solutions.

I would like to use this question to underline the great flexibility of COTIF, which can integrate particular arrangements for these major corridors that are being developed, the purpose of which is to concentrate the transport of goods.

RailwayPRO: There are countries in Eurasia that implement agreements to fa-

Photo: OTIF

gauges, technical collaboration on Appendices F and G is not of great interest for Pakistan at the moment.

COTIF therefore allows the implementation of what I would call a “law interface”, which provides our Member States with the opportunity to make their various railway laws compatible so that international traffic can be developed. COTIF can embrace countries whose structures are very different in terms of technology and the degree of openness to competition. For example, our technical rules, as I said, provide real compatibility with the networks of the European Union. Nevertheless, this does not mean that the structural reforms underway in the European Union, such as the separation of infrastructure managers and railway undertakings, have to be adopted.

In other words, there is no specific profile for countries that are interested in acceding to COTIF. Candidates for accession must be guided by their economic interest in developing international rail transport. In particular, OTIF offers effective legal instruments to develop freight, and for those countries that are developing their networks with an international dimension, OTIF provides compatibility with the European technical regulations.

This last point is one of the reasons that led the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) to initiate discussions with the Organisation.

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cilitate mutual railway transport, but they do not manage to level the railway market which is still very fragmented. What are the methods and measures of OTIF to eliminate cross-border barriers in international transport?

François Davenne: OTIF has no competence for customs issues, although the CIM consignment note can be used as a customs document, nor for matters concerning the opening of the market, but it does offer a number of common rules that enable borders to be crossed more easily. The legal framework provided by the International Freight Contract thus enables customs checks to be carried out in the destination country and frees wagons from checks in transit countries.

Similarly, the International Passenger Contract provides a common framework for the rights and obligations of railway undertakings and passengers, which is applied throughout the entire journey.

Moreover, these regulations also form an annex to the European Regulation on rail passengers’ rights and obligations.

In addition to the legal uniformity OTIF can offer, it is important to note that at the technical level, there are two opposing models for international rail transport: - The interoperability model, which assumes that trains will cross borders without having to be recomposed at a border station. This model presupposes a rail system that is more or less liberalised, in which more than one rail transport undertaking has access to the international lines.

- The vehicle exchange model, in which trains are recomposed at a border station and are then operated by the incumbent rail transport undertaking.

Although it is compatible with these two models, OTIF’s operations are currently based on a vehicle exchange model limited to goods wagons. Promoting a model aimed at interoperability might make it possible to develop the rail markets strongly. This model obviously implies a degree of openness of international lines, but it must also give States the freedom to choose the speed and extent of this opening up.

I therefore consider that the idea that interoperability is linked to opening up competition is wrong. This is the result of the fact that for historical reasons based on military considerations, the rail networks were designed not to be compatible. If you take the example of telecommunications, the networks were designed to be interoperable from the outset, but this was never linked to the opening of the markets. Interoperability certainly helped to open up the markets once the political decision had been taken, but it engendered the same complex questions as in the rail sector.

RailwayPRO: Regarding the activity of operators, the development of commercial offers on the Europe-Asia axis has to face > July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

34 Policies & Strategies At the legal level, I am very much in longer be automatically authorised in the toms procedures, different requirements EU Member States under the old RIC re- favour of a very pragmatic approach for regarding the length of trains or tonnage). gime. OTIF will therefore be working on the instruments we are developing. Both What is the answer of the authorities and a new PAS UTP, which might help resolve the EU and OSJD have a complete body infrastructure managers to these chal- this inconvenient situation. During the of regulations that are fully operational. lenges and what do they do to increase the drafting process, we will analyse whether However, these two cases are underattractiveness of rail transport? What are the 1520 mm gauge can be incorporated pinned by a really systematic mindset, the most frequent problems that operators alongside the 1435 mm gauge in order to which ensures that the application of all face and which are difficult to tackle by au- extend the application of common rules. these rules is consistent with a general organisation of the rail sector that differs thorities and infrastructure managers?

RailwayPRO: What do you think that widely in the two geographical areas. If François Davenne: Your question complements the preceding one. The the necessary juridical and financial steps one is speaking of developing internadevelopment of interoperability on the that European and Central Asian coun- tional traffic, legislation is needed which, Euro-Asian axis is a necessity. The obvious tries have to take to increase the competi- to borrow an IT term, is “portable”, in solution is to ensure continuity between tiveness of railway transport between the other words, it should be able to function in widely differing environments and the 1520 mm network and the UIC lines, two regions?

François Davenne: It would be very systems. I like to think that this is a charwhich are the rule in Western Europe, but the development of common rules and a ambitious for OTIF to claim to have an acteristic of the law of COTIF which, in clear understanding of responsibilities are autonomous vision on this issue, about itself, is modern law that is adapted to the a powerful tool to reduce the cost of rail which a lot has already been said and development of international traffic. transport. In this respect, it is vital that in- written. Nevertheless, I think there are RailwayPRO: What can you tell us vestment infrastructure is coordinated and two points that should be noted.

At the financial level, there are some about the harmonisation and compatibiis based on a body of shared regulations which make it possible to reduce as much extremely important infrastructure lity of OTIF legislation to that of the EU as possible the costs of commissioning ve- projects, such as the Marmaray tunnel, on the validation of technical standards, hicles and of getting them accepted by the which will link Europe and Asia in re- adoption of uniform technical prescripmarkable technical conditions. From the tions (APTU) and the procedures for the various networks.

At the moment, the European rules freight perspective, for the development Technical Admission of Railway Material and those of OSJD offer a cohesive mo- of trade, this investment will only be fully in International Traffic (ATMF)?

François Davenne: The accession del that enables the application of uni- worthwhile if all aspects of the carriage of form procedures for putting rolling stock goods are envisaged. For example, let us of the European Union to OTIF in July into service. At European level, an infra- take the problem of track gauges; clearly, 2011 provides an important opportunity structure register would also make it pos- converging the gauges is not something to develop OTIF’s technical legislation. sible to simplify procedures for entrant that is going to happen (and what stan- Above all, it is important to have a clear dard would beand used?).

In orderoftoTSIs move railwayPRO: undertakings.

Railway What can you Unfortunately, tell us about the harmonisation transposition into strategy that is shared by our Member States. The UTP offer a greater degree of forward, every aspect of the issue will these two organisations’ regulations are the Uniform Technical Prescriptions (UTP) and how can the conformity between the two not compatible at present. OTIF, which have to be taken into account, particu- technical compatibility with the TSI, so legislations be preserved from the point of view larly of thethe technical criteriaaspects: for rolling operational thestock? exact my hope is that by acceding to the techmakes possible the construction of a “law interface”, must join in the efforts to unify state of the exchange points, the level nical appendices prepared by OTIF, our of development transport, It Member States will have a real return on the lawDavenne: by fully playing François This isits in role fact of thegateway ambitious objective that I haveofsetcontainer for the Organisation. up operations and miniMemberwhich States. is between based on its a strategy consists of moving which towardsspeeds developing the interoperability of our their investment in the assurance that their access to the European rail market mises costs, etc....

The funding of major As an example, the entry into force Member States' railway networks. In this context, the TSI that can be transposed into OTIF's in the European Union of the so-called infrastructure projects would therefore will be made easier. legislation have to be chosen on basis of a reasoned Wequestions are therefore have todecision. take these intodeveloping account, a The ongoing development of the techTechnical Specifications fortheInteroperthree stageLOC&PAS, strategy thatwhich will allow us tolocomove from havehave at present (theattempt exchange and what therewe would to be an to of nical regulations must not obscure those ability concern inthat mind an overall operational vision that already exist: these have to be kept vehicles) real interoperability for will thoseaffect Memberbear States choose this option. motivesto and passenger trains, the commissioning of new vehicles not of goods transport, rather than just a rail- up to date and equivalence with their counterparts in the EU has to be mainoriginating from the EU: this will no based vision. tained, thanks to regular revision and a Ideas for development of OTIF under APTU/ATMF process for the correction of errors. The increasing number of regulations also means that there has to be some work on disseminating them, particularly in order to help the States parties that are not members of the EU to apply OTIF regulations. We will also have to rely on the States themselves to implement the UTP correctly. OTIF therefore now has a new role, to exchange, collect and disseminate information on the Member States’ activities in the common interest.

In addition, OTIF has to support active partnership with the non Member States of the EU and the European Railway Agency. The development of European railway law might have the paradoxical effect of strengthening closure of the European market by the development of technical standards that end up being a barrier to entering the market. By focus> a series of challenges (from gauge to cus-

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

At level 1, which was reached in 2012, OTIF ensures compatibility with the two models

Policies & Strategies

RailwayPRO: What can you tell us about the harmonisation and transposition of TSIs into the Uniform Technical Prescriptions (UTP) and how can the conformity between the two legislations be preserved from the point of view of the technical criteria for rolling stock?

François Davenne: This is in fact the ambitious objective that I have set for the Organisation. It is based on a strategy which consists of moving towards developing the interoperability of our Member States’ railway networks. In this context, the TSI that can be transposed into OTIF’s legislation have to be chosen on the basis of a reasoned decision.

We are therefore developing a three stage strategy that will allow us to move from what we have at present (the exchange of vehicles) to real interoperability for those Member States that choose this option.

At level 1, which was reached in 2012, OTIF ensures compatibility with the two models (interoperability and exchange of vehicles).

This will also be the case for level 2, which will see the approval of passenger vehicles in international traffic covered in the regulations. A PAS UTP - for passengers - will be drafted and will encompass all the elements for the international exchange of vehicles. To be compatible with the EU regulations - in the absence of requirements for the safety management system that exists at OTIF level - safety management provisions linked to the use of vehicles will have to be added. The PAS UTP will be drafted on the basis of the revised TSI LOC&PAS, a draft of which OTIF sent for consultation to those of its Member States that are not members of the EU. The subsequent levels will make important advances possible by extending interoperability to cover trains and infrastructure. This development assumes a greater degree of coordination between our Member States, but it must be possible to put this in place without imposing an organisational railway model the same as that of the European Union: OTIF’s ability to offer technical compatibility which does not compromise national models must be maintained.

RailwayPRO: Since ERA adopted the amendments to technical specification for interoperability relating to the subsystem ‘rolling stock-freight wagons’ (March 2013), will OTIF also review the UTPs for freight wagons?

François Davenne: The UTP Wagons is being revised and the Committee of Technical Experts on 12 June 2013 will be able to align both sets of regulations. This is an excellent achievement and an illustration of successful cooperation between OTIF and the EU. RailwayPRO: UTP WAG has been in force since 1 December 2012 and takes precedence over RIV. What are the benefits of this process and what will be its impact on railway traffic and industry?

François Davenne: The forecast end of RIV is certainly a major change, which has to be seen not just in connection with the new UTP WAG, but also with the transposition of the ECM regulations (Entity in Charge of Maintenance) into OTIF legislation. Tasks and responsibilities have now been allocated differently. For example, rules are now defined and adopted at government level, instead of being agreed between railways. An independent entity must assess whether the rules have been complied with. There are now three actors in the operation of freight wagons: - the railway undertaking operates trains, - the keeper owns or operates vehicles with the aim of making a profit, and - the Entity in Charge of Maintenance (ECM) takes responsibility for the maintenance of the vehicle.

These responsibilities may each be borne by separate entities or by a single entity. In international operations, it must be clear at all times and for each wagon who is the keeper, the ECM and the railway undertaking. Any organisation meeting the ECM requirements may be certified as an ECM. Therefore, a keeper or railway undertaking may also be certified as an ECM. This reinforces one of the key principles underpinning APTU and ATMF, which is that the States parties must trust each other mutually to approve only vehicles that meet all the requirements for use in international transport. Not only must vehicles meet all the technical requirements, but the conformity assessment must also be carried out by an assessment body that meets all the conditions concerning independence set out in Article 5 of ATMF. If a State party were to issue certificates without correctly applying the relevant OTIF regulations, this mutual trust would be jeopardised, to the detriment of international rail transport. One of my priorities is therefore to create a better overview of the implementation of ATMF in the States parties. As far as possible, the Secretariat of OTIF is available to assist the

States parties and will give priority to maintaining close contacts with the people responsible in each of these States.

To come back to the question of wagons and their utilisation, I intend to cooperate closely with the sector, particularly UIP, in order to modernise CUV (Contract of Use of Vehicles), which serves as a basis for the GCU (General Conditions of Use). This is in fact a particularly useful instrument for clarifying the liability regime in the new framework of the UTP Wagons and the ECM regulations.

Photo: OTIF

ing on the facilitation of international transport, OTIF has a role to play in ensuring that the regulations developed as TSI incorporate from the very beginning the constraints that States outside the EU have, in order to make it easier to adapt the corresponding UTP. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is being discussed with ERA and the Commission to formalise this new position, which will give our non-EU Member States a better level of information and the opportunity to be involved in European technical developments right from the word go.

35

ОТИФ: Развитие взаимной технической совместимости по оси Европа-Азия - это необходимость На мировом уровне Евразия играет важную роль в экономических, политических и коммерческих отношениях, а транспортная система является ключевым элементом в укреплении этих отношений. В данном контексте, регион нуждается в интегрированной транспортной системе, которая бы эффективно отвечала потребностям в плане мобильности, а железнодорожные системы путей сообщения включают в себя множество государств с различными системами, политическими решениями и законодательными рамками, которые все еще фрагментируют процесс интеграции. Внедрение необходимых мер и критериев для обеспечения повышения конкурентоспособности и интероперабельности железнодорожного транспорта между двумя регионами, гармонизация и совместимость законодательства ОТИФ (Межправительственной организации по международным железнодорожным перевозкам) и ЕС, пересмотр единых технических спецификаций ОТИФ в контексте принятия Европейским железнодорожным агентством поправок к Техническим спецификациям интероперабельности - это несколько пунктов, затронутых нашим изданием в рамках интервью с Генеральным секретарем ОТИФ Франсуа Давен.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

36 Policies & Strategies

Rail Baltica fills in missing link [ by Pamela Luică ]

Ranked 27 of the 30 TEN-T priority projects, Rail Baltica corridor (Warsaw-Kaunas-Riga-Tallinn-Helsinki) is a strategic and sustainable project providing an efficient railway connection between Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Finland. In fact, it is the only direct railway connection between the 3 Baltic States, as well as between them, Poland and the rest of the European Union. To the North, Helsinki can be connected through the ferry services crossing the Gulf of Finland forming a connection to the countriesPriority in theProject north.27 The existing infrastructure is 1,200 km long on the “Rail Baltica”/”Rail Baltic” axis Warszawa-Kaunas-Riga-Tallinn-Helsinki most direct route from Tallinn to Warsaw.

Trans-European transport network. Achievement of the Priority projects

T

he implementation of the project demands funds amounting to EUR 3.48 Billion, 75% of which would come from the EU, 10% less than estimated. According to the declarations of the Transport Minister of Lithuania, Rimantas Sinkevicius, (February 2013), “the project will be developed with European funds, the initial version was covering 85% of costs. The latest version includes a 75% European contribution or the reduction by 10% of the EU support”.

Rail Baltica can become the main heavy cargo transport route which reduces the environmental impact by attracting freight flows from roads to railways. Aside from the important characteristics which determine the authorities to implement the project (environment, direct connections, and attracting transport to the railway network) another reason is “the fundamental change (of January 2015) in the shipping costs in the Baltic Sea Region. Thereafter, vessels travelling in the Baltic Sea can only use bunkers with a content of 0.1% sulphur. This will bring millions of Euros of extra costs for the Baltic Sea shipping. The time of cheap short sea shipping transport may be undergoing change and this will have an important effect on the use of rail in the Baltic region”, says Pavel Telicka, the EU coordinator of Rail Baltica, in the report dated November 2012.

In June, the countries involved in the project and the representatives responsible with the project within the European Commission brought to discussion the efficient implementation and the acceleration of the project. Therefore, considering the decisions adopted by the Lithuanian Government, it was proposed that the parties involved in the project (Poland, Latvia, Estonia and Finland) would set up a joint group, the European Economic Interest Group (EEIG) responsible with the implementation of Rail Baltica. Most of all, the group should deal with the coordination and administration of the project preparation activities, to elaborate the application for European funds, to elaborate the application plans, as well as the stra-

Ongoing and completed projects financed by the 2007-2013 TEN-T Programme

Member State(s)

TEN-T support (in million)

Project status

1)Building of new European gauge line on the cross-border section PL border - Marijampole 2) cross-border section Siauliai - LV border. Reconstruction/ Upgrading

LT

€72.8

Ongoing

1)Reconstruction/upgrading: cross-border section north Valmeira - Valka abd cross-border section south Jelgava - LT border. 2) Reconstruction/upgrading Jugla (Riga city border station) - Valmiera

LV

€22.3

Ongoing

Studies for Rail Baltica, Lithuanian part: a)section PL border - Marijampole in LT European Gauge; b) Improvement of existing line; c)contribution to global Rail Baltica study for European Gauge

€16.1

Ongoing

Cross-border section Tartu - Valga railway reconstruction/upgrading EEexisting line Completed: Upgrading

€10.8

Completed in 2011 LV Works ongoing Studies for a European gauge line for Rail Baltica (Estonian section) EE Works to start between 2012 and 2013 Total Works to start after 2013

€1.1

(TEN-T support figures refer to the initially adopted Decision)

Studies for a European gauge line (Latvian section)

Ongoing

Priority sections

Ongoing

€124.1

Completion status works Completion status of of works (km)(km) Totallenght length ==1,129 km Total 1,129km

458 km (41%)

PP27.indd 14

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

€1

Ongoing

Completion Date

0%

10%

20%

174 km (15%)

498 km (44%)

30%

Completed by the end of 2010

40% Completed in 2011

50% Ongoing

60%

70%

To start between 2012-2013

80%

20/11/2012 15:19:49

90%

To start after 2013

Source: Annual Report of the Coordinator, Pavel TELIČKA- „PP27 - “Rail Baltica/”Rail Baltic” axis Warszawa-Kaunas-Riga-Tallinn-Helsinki”

100%

0

37

RAIL BALTIC AS A MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT CORRIDOR

lated in differentthe waysalready in differentexisting RBGC countries. hub cities alone cantegies for attracting freight and passenger lineThewhich has a 1520 not increase interoperability in the terminals on their territory. flows. mm gauge. The project also includes the Core network corridors cannot function on their own, especially not in the “This legal form will permit a more ef- reconstruction of 60 km of broad-gauge sparsely populated Eastern Baltic Sea Region. Access links and their strategic ficient application of the project and will in ports, the feed citytheofcorridor. Šiauliai to cities the alone Latvian nodes, smaller line cities and The hub are too small concentrations transport demand. linkstrains and nodeto cities reduce costs for all participating countries. border.ofProjects will Access permit run should be closely involved in development of Rail Baltic and the North Sea Moreover, it will ensure the application at speeds of 120 km/h. As part of the fuBaltic corridor. in time of the demand for EU assistance”, ture Rail Baltica corridor, this will be the In passenger transports the basic challenges differ in the southern and in said Lithuanian Minister of Transport first project for the construction of the the northern part of the corridor. In Berlin-Warsaw section there is need of Rimantas Sinkevicius, saying that capacity at theand speed European-gauge line in Inthe in rails, both in commuter and built express lines. otherBaltic secthe problem is almost non-existent rail service.

Rail connections Baltic will make moment, the scheduled preparationtions works States intheorder to open rail difference by bringing many city pairs to business commuting distance to approved by the Government areaeach more with Poland and the EU. other. This is expected to create economic boost for growth in these evolved compared to the others. duopolises. For enhancing Lithuania alsotransport signed three for passenger there need tocontracts be information services in place.

Online travel planner to integrate or local The initiative of the EEIG establishment the development of Railnational Baltic in travel June. planners into a Pan-Baltic service was piloted in RBGC. This work will be conwas accepted by the parties involved in The first agreement was signed with Pantinued, as there is a clear demand for the service. the development of Rail Baltica who will evezio Keliai, for the construction of the make a decision on the model for the ef- 24km section of European gauge between ficient implementation of the project.

Marijampole and Kazlu Ruda and the reconstruction of a 1520mm gauge section.

Lithuania signs important The contract is worth EUR 48 Million. The contracts second contract was signed with a conREGION sortium including the companies Kauno Of the countries involved in the project, Tiltai and Mitnija which will deal with the Lithuania ranks first in the implementa- reconstruction of Marijampole rail station high and and levelsigned of quality ser- and of the line segment between Marijam48 tionfrequency of the project severalofcontracts June.unitised Thus, Nordic Investment vices forinboth cargo and passen- pole and Sestoka stations with works esti- during a visit of the Czech Prime Minister Bank and Lithuanian Railways gers; and(NIB) at the same time help fulfil the EU mated at EUR 22 Million. Also, the third Petr Necas to Tallinn, he said that there (Lietuvos gelezinkeliai) signed a financ- contract was also signed with the consor- were Czech companies which have the carbon emission worth targets. ing agreement EUR 114 Million for tium of Kauno Tiltai and Mitnija for the necessary expertise, as well as the capacthe construction of the European-gauge construction of the European-gauge line ity to build railway infrastructure for the line, Rail Baltica, as well as for the mod- on the Sestokai-Marijampole section (33 Rail Baltica project. “We are definitely ernisation of railway sections in the Euro- km) and the reconstruction of the existing interested in developing this project. Our pean network on the east-west axis on the 1520mm gauge line. The contract is worth companies have the capacity to build from Lithuanian territory. In fact, funds will be EUR 63 Million. The costs of all projects railway infrastructure to locomotives and allocated for the construction of 115 km are VAT free and the deadline set for the wagons. Czech companies are also inteof line with 1435 mm gauge from Lithua- finalization of works in the situation of rested in providing services and in carrynia to the Polish border, the city of Kau- ZONES the three contracts is of 18 months. ing freight”, added Necas.

CROSS-BORDER DEVELOPMENT GOODS TRANSPORTED nas.

The lineGoods willtransported be built with In April, Estonia’s Technical SurveilFrance is another country interested in by raiin l (1000parallel t) lance Council selected the offer of the participating in this project. The repreBY RAIL IN 2011 (1 000 t) Goods companies OÜ Reaalprojekt, sentatives of SNCF, andenvironmental Alstom ment is Systra faced by co 70 000transported by rail in 2011 (1 000 t) Estonian Kaunas-Bialystok-Warsaw OÜ Hendrikson & Ko and EA Reng AS, had a meetingLQ with officials3RODQG·V from theLPSRUWDQW 1RUWK (DVW QUALITY OF ROAD and that of UAB Kelprojektas (Lithuania) Lithuanian Minister of Transport 60 000 60 000 conservation areas.(in May War- to broadly INFRASTRUCTURE in the High tenderquality for thetransport contract connections on prelimi- to2012) discuss the project of saw, one of the fastestsection growing in nary design of the national of major Rail cities the corridor and participation of in Rail 50 000 50 000 Thetheimprovement the existing Finland Baltica.Europe, The cost the offer boost was EUR Baltica. “We are interested intothe sched- and Kau canofpotentially the economy from Warsaw Bialystok Germany 7.49 Million.

OtherThe two construction offers have been in the construction phases and in the 40 000 40 000 of Bialystok. of Rail ule, Baltic potentiallyneeds haveofa Rail significant Lithuania submitted to the fromtimes the British Bal- impac reduces thetender: train travel to a levelfinancial facili- and economic economies of the two cities and fu Estonia consultancy firm Aecom Limited and its tica”, declared Gaelle Leroux, diplomatic 30 000 30 000 tatingand commuting two cities.

A Latvia is of vital importance to work toget subsidiaries Systra andbetween from thethe Swiss consultant of SNCF. better rail Energuide connectionAB can also the 20 000 company Sweco and its enhance Es20 000 the other RBGC partners to understa 1 2 Poland 3 4 5 6 7 distribution channels for the food processtonian and Latvian subsidiaries and Ineco Russia Scale of roads infrastructure rail freight can be increased on the 10 000 preliminary designEuropean should market.

10 0000 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 (Spain). ingThe industries to the wider line.

Rail Baltica - „не хватающее be completed 2015.

However, Kaunas in and Bialystok are there both are cities where Scale of roads infrastructure звено”, которое начинает 0 still problems with the tender because Ae0 of roads index Quality Highest value index (7) Kaunas is an important transport loc food processing is the largest industryприобретать reконтур com contested the outcome of the tender routes from the Klaipeda Port, Kal Estonia Latvia Lithuania Highest value Estonia Latvia Lithuania sulting in transportation needs to markets organised Quality of roads index index (7) by the Council.

Source: Esri, DeLorme, NAVTEQ / Ramboll Oy 2013

EA

Policies & Strategies

Latvia, Poland, Russia and elsewhere. This means that the two cities Коридор Rail(Russia), Baltica занимает позицию № 27 из 30 приоритетных intersect in the city. This makes it Czech and France, areRepublic also originations of freight highlighting a Germany проектов TEN-T (Варшава-Каунасinterested in the project ideal location for a logistics hub. T potential area for further collaboration.

International transport including transit Estonia Рига-Таллин-Хельсинки) of Kaunas иisявляется seeking to capitalize on Finland и устойчивым проектом, Lithuania SinceRoad the launch of the project, thereis in стратегическим infrastructure in Poland poor Quality of railroad infrastructure (1 000 t) Germany gistic hub by investing in intermoda который осуществляет эффективное have been several talks about the potential Latvia Estonia condition in comparison to other RBGC nal to facilitate the interchange of сообщение между routes countries that could– be adopted, the lower neces-indexжелезнодорожное PolandLithuania only Russia has figmodes of transport. Польшей, Литвой и Эстонией, а такжеIt will be impor the way in which the countries 21sary funds, Russia Latvia ures.

At the sameshould time road transportsФинляндией. and Для реализации проекта, included in the project participate the other cities to understand how Poland number ofcompanies vehicle transports are growing 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 необходимые средства насчитывают etc.

For foreign this project has taken an advantage from the Fr Russia 3,48 млрд евро, из которых 75% будет Scale of infrastructure index rapidly, raises has only been which a vision and the theyquestion have notof sustainnomic Zone and intermodal logistic 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 финансироваться за счет ЕС. До manifested contribute. abilityinterest of thetoroad infrastructure in Poland in developing its logistics industry.

Scale of infrastructure index настоящего времени Литве и Эстонии In thein Czech Republic, the Baltic projectwould has provide years to come. Rail Railroad quality index Highest value index (7) удалось подписать контракты на drawn the interest of the companies actimore efficient use of railroad capacity осуществление both проекта. vating in the railway transport.

Therefore, Source: RAIL BALTICA GROWTH STRATEGY (www.rbgc.eu ) Sources: World Economic Forum Highest value index (7) Railroad quality index in terms of passenger and freight transport.

The Global Competitivenes Report, 2012-2013; This could ease the excessive burden of road July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com Eurostat; Economist Intelligence Unit infrastructure in Poland. Via Baltic developKPMG analysis 2013 Finland

QUALITY NationalOF transportRAILROAD International (incl. transit) National transport INFRASTRUCTURE

38 Policies & Strategies

Croatia plans full liberalisation of railway services [ by Elena Ilie ]

Croatia became the 28th member state of the European Union. After Slovenia, it is the second member state of the EU in the former Yugoslavian bloc. The government in Zagreb expects a 1.8% economic growth in 2013, while the International Monetary Fund launches an advance of just 0.75%, after a contraction of 1.5% in 2012. Croatia is passing through the second recession of the past years, following the austerity measures and the drop of investments caused by the European credit crunch.

At the beginning of the year, the three well-known rating agencies Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings gave Croatia negative perspective in the safety of investments indicator, Bloomberg announced.

“

The government’s capacity of re- transport corridors, of which three railway in Croatia HZ), Slovenia (SJ) and Serbia balancing the economy through corridors, X, Vb and Vc, the fourth being (SZ) decided to establish Cargo 10 comexports is limited. The accession the pan-European corridor VII – Danube, pany which seeks to increase transport in to the European Union is a step forward and the authorities have carried out com- the pan-European Corridor X, but also to even if the difficult European economic plex investment programmes to develop increase freight transport in the three sigenvironment and the government’s inertia its sections in the three transport corri- natory countries. The company is based in in reforming will probably limit benefits”, dors. The Croatian Government develops Ljubljana, Slovenia. Last spring the three shows a press release of Moody’s quoted significant investments for its share in the countries said they would speed up the

by Mediafax. pan-European corridor X. implementation of the joint railway freight However, a World Bank report shows that However, public money went to the road transport project, Cargo 10. The JV will the Adriatic Sea country has an increasing transport sector, so that the railway sector elaborate a project containing proposals and competitive economy, as well as the is currently facing significant challenges for the development and intensification of ay Reform inReform South East Europe Turkey: On the Right Track?

Main Report Railway in South Eastand Europe and Turkey: On the Rightmajor Track?

Main Report within Cargo 10. Then the counright institutional capacity to face the chalrequiring investments in order to activities lenges of being a EU Member State. be fully integrated into the trans-European tries will agree on a joint position in this Maybe Croatia is not the best in econom- transport network. matter. However, to improve the efficiency ic policies, but wants to turn into account The Railway Company in Croatia has of the project, the representatives of the mpacting on and demand foronpassenger railpassed services.

Railsignificant passenger services services have Slovenian use, impacting negatively on demand for passenger rail services.

Rail passenger have operator propose to invite the itsnegatively EU accession focuses absorbing through organisational ed suffered from non-reimbursable busfrom and mini-bus competition, despite generally lower rail prices, reflecting longer funds for redefining despite changes, currently beingrail divided five companies bus and EU mini-bus competition, generally lower prices,into reflecting longer in FYR Macedonia and Italy to and upgrading theand transport sector.

Trans- individual companies: HŽ Holding, HŽ join the project. times, lower reliability, less comfort. travel times, lower reliability, and less comfort. port counts for 8% in Croatia’s gross do- Passenger Transport, HŽ Cargo, HŽ Inframestic product. structure and HŽ Traction.

Dedicated to the support of 72 pan-European 72 Croatia is crossed by four In 2010, the three railway companies Figure 6: Figure Traffic by Country, 2009 (million Figure 7: Network Size by Country, 2009 (km) 6: Traffic by Country, 2009 (million Figure 7: Network Size by Country, 2009railway (km) reform traffic units) traffic units) Traffic by Country, 2009 Network Size by Country, 2009 Croatia Railways is still in a transition (million traffic units) (km) period, the process of restructuring and privatisation of certain parts is not fully Germany 33,706 Germany 33,706 Poland 46,394 Poland 46,394 completed due to the lack of clearer strate32,864 gies Study countries 32,864 Study countries 45,059 Study countries 45,059 Study countries on the future railway actions.

Poland 19,764 Towards the end of 2012, the Croatian Poland 19,764 Turkey Turkey 15,055 15,055 Government ordered the Ministry of Romania 10,776 Romania 10,776 Romania Romania 14,877 14,877 Transport to initiate the procedure of Turkey Turkey 8,686 8,686 Bulgaria 5,296 Bulgaria 5,296 identifying a strategic partner for the railBulgaria 4,150 Bulgaria 4,150 way freight transport operator HZ Cargo, Croatia 4,476 Croatia 4,476 shows a press release of the ministry. The Serbia 3,809 Serbia 3,809 Slovenia 3,508 Slovenia 3,508 ministry has thus been authorised to initiCroatia 2,723 Croatia 2,723 Serbia 3,305 ate the procedure of getting expressions of Serbia 3,305 Slovenia 1,228 Slovenia 1,228 interest from the strategic partners interBH 1,049BH 1,049 BH 1,016 BH 1,016 ested in the restructuring of this company BH ZFBH BH699 ZFBH 699 and in a potential change of the shareholdFYR Macedonia 699 FYR Macedonia 699 ing structure. Then in 2013, the governFYR Macedonia 651 FYR Macedonia 651 BH ZFBH BH600 ZFBH 600 ment in Zagreb announced its intention of BH ZRS 350 BH ZRS 350 Albania 423 Albania 423 selling the national railway freight transMontenegro Montenegro 205 205 BH ZRS 416ZRS BH port operator, HZ Cargo.

416 The expressions of interest have been Albania 78 Albania 78 Kosovo 333 Kosovo 333 submitted by Croatian companies such Kosovo 67 Kosovo 67 Montenegro Montenegro 249 249 as DEAL, Nexus Private Equity Partneri, Source: UIC Quaestus Private Equity and Djuro Djako-

rce: UIC.Source: UIC.

Source: UIC.Source: UIC.

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Figure 8: Rail Traffic, 2001-2009 (million traffic units)

vic Holding, but also by foreign companies such as T Kearney GmbH; Rail Cargo Austria AG, DB International GmbH and Advanced World Transport B.V. Private operator Grup Feroviar Român has also expressed intention to participate in the sale of HZ Cargo.

The Commission which supervises the tender will analyse offers and then consultations will follow, but so far no actual step has been taken.

HZ Cargo carries around 11 million tonnes of freight every year and has a rolling stock of 187 locomotives and 6,039 wagons.

Croatia has efficiently initiated and continued the process of aligning the national railway legislation to the European legislation. The latest report of SEETO, from late 2012, reveals that over the past years, the Croatian railway sector has significantly changed due to the implementation of the Railway Restructuring Plan, initiated in March 2012.

According to this recovery plan, Croatia will fully liberalise the railway transport services after the accession to the European Union. The same SEETO report shows that the most comprehensive restructuring plan of the state-owned company could be fully implemented in 2017, when the Croatian railway system, currently counting for 17,000 employees, will be reduced at 4,500 employees, the condition being to fully achieve the investments in plan and the modernisation of the railway system.

Croatian infrastructure manager HZ Infrastruktura plans to invest EUR 2 Billion in the national section of Corridor X by 2020 to align it to European standards. By the end of 2020, the Croatian section of Corridor X will be upgraded to permit the traffic of trains at speeds of up to 160 km/h, will be fully doubled and equipped with GSM-R. Some sections have already been upgraded, others are underway and others are in the design phase and could be included in the applications for EU funds in 2015.

Major investments have been carried out over the past years for the improvement and modernisation of the railway infrastructure and therefore there are railway sections where the traffic speed is 120-160 km/h on sections such as Zagreb – Novska – Vinkovci. Over the past year, the World Bank report say, 756 kilometres have been upgraded. For 2013, the infrastructure manager plan to implement several projects on the reconstruction and modernisation of the Zagreb-Sisak route, part of Turopolje-Velika Gorica line, Sisak-Petrinja and Sisak-CapragNovska lines. Moreover, over the next year, the company will launch projects for the reconstruction of the railway tunnels in the Sisak region.

Due to its geographical position, Croatia has a significant importance in setting efficient transport links between Western Europe in the Balkans area and links between Central Europe and the basin of the Adriatic Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Croatia has direct connections with Hungary, Serbia, Slovenia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Хорватия планирует провести полную либерализацию железнодорожных услуг Хорватия стала 28-м государством-членом Европейского союза. После Словении она является вторым государством-членом ЕС из бывшего югославского блока. Правительство в Загребе прогнозирует на 2013 год экономический рост в размере 1,8%, в то время, как Международный валютный фонд рассматривает рост в размере всего 0,75%, после спада на 1,5% в 2012 году. Может быть, Хорватия и не является лидером в плане экономической политики, но она хочет извлекать выгоду в результате вступления в Европейский союз. Она сосредоточена на усвоении безвозвратных средств ЕС для переопределения и модернизации транспортного сектора.

40 Market development

in 2009 about 80.7 percent of the track suffers from speed restrictions, which is slightly less than 5 years earlier, when the figure was 81.3 percent, indicating that there is a significant backlog of track maintenance and rehabilitation. Figure 116 reveals that over 40 percent of the telecommunications installations, the catenary system, and the relay/interlocking system are over thirty years old, while 40 percent of the signaling system is over 20 years old.

Four companies submit offers for the acquisition of 75% in HZ Cargo Figure 116: Croatian Railways – Age Structure of Rail Infrastructure

Telecommunication installations

Catenary system Relay/interlocking sytem

5

5

25

28 30

40

4

19

25

44

5

[ by Pamela Luică ]

50

20

As the 28th member of the EU (as of 1 July 2013), Croatia gradually tries to40 align to the European Signalling System 5 15 35 5 legislation and to implement the EU policies. Aware of the implications that the EU accession has on railway 10 years 11-20the yearsbusiness 21-30 years segment 31-40 years of > 40 yearsfreight transport, the authorities have initiated a series of processes<regarding the Source: Croatian Railways. operator HZ Cargo aimed at improving business operations, competitiveness, integration into the European transport system, all in all, the implementation of market liberalization.

300. As with the rail infrastructure, the rolling stock of Croatian Railways is quite aged. In 2009, Croatian Railways’ rolling stock and motive power consisted of 253 traction units, 523 passenger coaches, and 6,644 freight wagons. This exceeds the requirements posed by current traffic levels, and the rolling stock is generally old and not well matched to market needs (Figure 117). In 2004, eight modern tilting trains from the German branch of Bombardier Transportation were delivered to Croatian Railways, and these have been mainly deployed on the mountainous route between Zagreb and Split—reducing travel time from 8 hours to 5 1/2 hours. These are the only new passenger coaches acquired over the last decade.

F

Figure 117: Croatian Railways - Age Structure of Rolling Stock

Croatian Railways - Age Structure of Rolling Stock or Croatia, the liberalisation of railway services means one of the < 10 years greatest challenges of a company Freight wagons 12 1 5 32 42 7 which has initiated a process of reshaping 11-20 years and transformation of its role regarding 21-25 years Passenger coaches 3 26 32 24 15 both the organisation and its ownership 26-30 years structure. Moreover, reducing the inten31-40 years sification of transport, determined by the Locomotives 2 7 32 38 20 > 40 years economic crisis, which led to drops of the freight volumes from 17 million tonnes (in Source: Croatian Railways Croatian Railways.

2007) to 11 million tonnes (in 2012), rep- Source: it received seven letters submitted by the restructuring plan and investors will be resents the main issue in preserving liqui- consortium Nexus Private Equity Part- able to buy a stake of 75% in the Croatian dity (a problem which affects the company neri d.o.o (in behalf of Nexus FGS fund) national freight operator, the rest of the Rolling stock productivity is less than the EU average, but has improved over 2005at present) and in paying long-term debts. 301.

- Quaestus Equity d.o.o. (in beshares being byattaining the state.66 percent Freight private wagon productivity increased by 28.8 percent overmanaged 2005-2008, In January 2013, the Ministry of Transport 2009. half of Quaestus Private Equity Kapital The Ministry of Transport has reviewed and Infrastructure invited potential inves- II)-Đuro Đaković Holding d.d. and com- the offers and has invited companies to tors to express interest in HZ Cargo. The panies DEAL d.o.o., AT Kearney GmbH,168 present their plans and the possibility to process involves the restructuring of the Rail Cargo Austria AG, DB International participate in the restructuring process. company and the possibility to purchase a GmbH, Grup Feroviar Român (GFR) and Consequently, the potential shortlisted stake. The invitation was launched follow- Advanced World Transport (AWT) B.V. buyers will have the opportunity of analysing the government’s decision of finding a Following evaluation, only four compa- ing HZ Cargo’s operations. strategic partner for HZ Cargo which end- nies of the total seven have been invited ed 2012 with an estimated loss of around to submit offers for the acquisition of HZ HRK 91 Million (EUR 12.1 Million).

Cargo. The potential investors are the conIn May, the Croatian Government adopt- sortium Đuro Đaković Holding, Questus Четыре компании подают ed the report on the procedure of collect- Fund and Nexus Fund, Advanced World заявки на приобретение ing the letters of intent and negotiations Transport B.V., GFR and Rail Cargo Aus75% акций компании «HZ with potential investors on changing the tria. The offers of the companies will be Cargo» ownership structure. After launching the analysed in conformity with the proposed bid, the Ministry of Transport announced

About HZ Cargo It is the largest railway operator in Croatia carrying an annual volume of goods of 11 million tonnes, the annual average of transport revenues amounting to EUR 80 Million and with a total value of assets of EUR 285 Million. The rolling stock fleet of the operator includes 187 locomotives and 6,039 wagons.

Currently, HZ Cargo owns six companies (100%) whose activities include cargo transport, maintenance of wagons (freight and passengers). The operator also owns specialized facilities dealing with the construction, maintenance and repair of cars, cargo handling and transhipment in ports, as well as rock, sand and clay extraction. www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Будучи 28-м членом ЕС (с 1 июля 2013 года), Хорватия пытается постепенно адаптировать свое законодательство европейскому и осуществлять политику ЕС. Зная о последствиях вступления в ЕС для железнодорожных перевозок, в начале года власти запустили ряд процессов по осуществлению либерализации рынка. В мае месяце правительство Хорватии приняло отчет о процедуре сбора протоколов о намерениях и о проведении переговоров с потенциальными инвесторами по вопросу смены структуры собственности «HZ Cargo».

Market development

41

Grup Feroviar Român takes over 51% in CFR Marfă [ by Pamela Luică ]

15 years after the restructuring of SNCFR, Romanian authorities have finalized the privatisation of the national railway freight operator, CFR Marfă. The value of the contract on the sale of 51% of the company’s shares to Grup Feroviar Român (GFR) was set at EUR 400 Million, of which EUR 202 Million is the cost of the acquisition and EUR 200 Million is the amount necessary for the transfer of the shares, plus EUR 1.5 Million, environment investments. The starting price of the tender was of EUR 180 Million.

B

Balance Sheet- indicators FIXED ASSETS TOTAL FIXED ASSETS - TOTAL MOBILE ASSETS - TOTAL, of which MOBILE ASSETS - TOTAL, of which Arrears Arrears DEBTS - TOTAL DEBTS - TOTAL

lei 911466636 911466636 369991712 369991712 247010683 247010683 2123254369 2123254369

Indicators of the PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Indicators of the PROFIT AND LOSS ACCOUNT Net turnover Net turnover TOTAL INCOME TOTAL INCOME COSTS TOTAL COSTS Gross profit or loss Gross -Profitprofit or loss -Profit -Loss -Loss Net profit or loss of the financial exercise Net profit or loss of the financial exercise -Profit -Profit -Loss -Loss Source:

970399645 970399645 1050070827 1050070827 1455157396 1455157396 405086569 405086569 405086569 405086569

Source: www.cfrmarfa.cfr.ro

y taking over CFR Marfă, GFR will CC has three options: to approve the transbecome the most important player action, to refute it or to accept the condition not only in the Romanian market, on specific conditions. “We will have to see but also in the European rail freight trans- how large the company is in the respective port market. “We believe that, after a period market, what the dimension of the market is of restructuring and effective activities for and if it risks to damage competition, we will CFR Marfă, because this is the first thing see if there are remedies. The remedies can we want to make, to make this company ef- be of behaviours, for example, the company ficient so that it would no longer be the black commits not to increase prices for a specific hole of the Romanian economy, as it is called number of years, or structural, to sell certain now, we could integrate this company and, assets in a specific number of months”, extogether with GFR, with our companies plained the CC President. from Hungary and Bulgaria and our shipping At the beginning of April, the Romanian houses from Moldova, Ukraine, Germany, Ministry of Transport published the anAustria, Montenegro, Serbia, we could have nouncement regarding the offer to sell CFR a say in the transportation market in the seri- Marfă’s stakes and three investors submitous competition that we have from the other ted bids: Grup Feroviar Român, Omnitrax railway operators in the West”, declared GFR and the consortium of Transferoviar Grup CEO, Sorin Chinde. and Donau-Finanz GMBH. After the proHowever, the finalization of the privatisa- cedures, the ministry rejected all three offers tion procedure and the takeover of shares by and changed the participation criteria a day GFR will require the approval of the Com- afterwards. When the privatization procepetition Council (CC) as the two companies dure was re-launched, the three companies will together have a 70% in the market. “The bought the tender book. After analyzing the Romanian Competition Council (CC) has documents, Omnitrax didn’t submit either initiated talks with EC representatives (EC) the preliminary and non-binding offers or on CFR Marfă privatisation process and the comments on the purchase agreements the two authorities will decide whether the and was disqualified. The privatization was takeover of the national railway freight op- continued by GFR and Transferoviar Grup erator by Grup Feroviar Român (GFR) will and Donau-Finanz GMBH. On 19 June, form an economic monopoly, declared CC the latter decided to withdraw from the sale President Bogdan Chiriţoiu. Currently, the of CFR Marfă. GFR was selected winner of two institutions areFinancial exchanging information thebalance sale procedure CFR Marfă on 20 June CFR Marfă: indicators under the sheet on of 2012 and expect for GFR’s notification because 2013.

CFR Marfă: Financial indicators under the balance sheet on 2012 the company has to elaborate its own notiRegarding GFR’s activity, the company fication file. After holds the top position in leithe domestic Balance Sheetreceiving indicatorsthe notification,

transport of oil products and permanently expands its activity area covering more and more varied products – coal, aggregates, crushed stone, cinder, cement, clinker, grains and so on. In 2010, GFR became the most important supplier of rail services for Petrotel LUKOIL and ROMPETROL Group. As of 2012, GFR became member of USER (Romanian Association of Freight Forwarders) and member of FIATA (International Association of Freight Forwarders). In 20032004, GFR became member of UIC (International Union of Railways), OCCF (Organisation for the Collaboration of Railways), CIT (International Rail Transport Committee) and CER (Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies). On the international market, since 2010 GFR has been providing the first transport from Romania to the Republic of Moldova, in partnership with Moldovan Railways and is also collaborating with transport operators it manages in Bulgaria and Hungary: Bulgarian Railway Company (BRC) and Train Hungary (TH).

Currently, GFR exploits a fleet of over 9,900 cars and 275 locomotives. CFR Marfă has a rolling stock fleet of over 39,000 cars (of which only 23,000 are currently functional) and more than 900 locomotives, the volume of its assets placing the company in a favourable position compared to other state-owned operators in Central and Eastern Europe.

«Груп Феровиар Ромын» получит 51 % акций компании «ЧФР Марфэ» 15 лет спустя после реструктуризации Национальной железнодорожной компании, румынские власти завершили приватизацию национального оператора грузовых железнодорожных перевозок, «ЧФР Марфэ». Договор купли-продажи 51% акций компании «Груп Феровиар Ромын» составил 400 миллионов евро, из которых 202 млн. евро - это стоимость приобретения, а 200 миллионов евро - это сумма, необходимая для передачи акций, а также 1,5 млн. евро - это инвестиции в экологические обязательства. Стартовая цена тендера была объявлена в размере 180 млн. евро.

Source: http://www.cfrmarfa.cfr.ro/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=246%3Aindicatori http://www.cfrmarfa.cfr.ro/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=246%3Aindicatori -financiari-conform-bilantului-depus-pe-anul-2012&catid=35&Itemid=112&lang=ro

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

42 Policies & Strategies

Serbia, closer to the EU [ by Pamela Luică ]

In May, the Serbian Parliament adopted the “Railway Law”, a law that will permit competition and complete the restructuring of ZelezniceSrbije. This new law represents the legislative framework for this sector and replaces the former law effective since 2005. The new legislative framework aims at integrating the railway system within the European market, but it is also a measure in view of Serbia’s accession to the EU. Government of the Republic of Serbia y European Integration Office

Needs of the Republic of Serbia for International Assistance 2011 - 2013

management and supervision of construction works on the road corridors, including the construction of Žeželj bridge on the Danube River in Novi Sad, co-financed by IFIs.

T

Freight transport trends in Serbia, 2004-2009 (million tkm) he country’s EU accession a tarSignificant investment andisconstruction works are currently going to completion of roads within Corridor getroad of the authorities and thereX, the sections Belgrade - Novi Sad - Horgos - 2004 Hungarian2005 border and Niš - Dimitrovgrad, the bypass 2006 2007 2008 2009 fore, the medium andŽeželj long-term in Belgrade and the bridge in Novi Sad, as well as the railway line reconstruction and development strategies are elaborated in modernisation works for completion of the Corridor X, specifically in the sections between (Belgrade) – Railway 3,164 3,482 4,232 4,551 4,339 2,967 compliance with the EU objectives set for Batajnica Golubinci, and Niš Dimitrovgrad Bulgarian border.

Studies and projects documentation are transport each sector individually and which impact oninthe establishment for of the European sindevelopment railway sections Niš - Presevo - Macedonia, Novi Sad - Subotica - Hungarian Border gleand market.

This is also the caseBelgrade of Serbia - Vrbnica Road - Bar in Montenegro. the Route 4 section Information 277 680The establishment 798 1,161of River 1,112 1,185 which, in 2003 (during the reunion of the Services (RIS) on the Serbian part of the Danube River, as well as documentation development for the transport European Council in Thessaloniki), was hydro technical works in order to regulate the water course and removal of UXOs from the Danube are identified as potential EU candidate counInlandthe RIS for ongoing and be completed the Sava River 1,640 is also under The try.

Therefore, thewill European Partnership in 2012; 1,115 1,622 1,584 consideration.

1,370 872 forrenewal Serbia was in 2008locks settingon thethe Danube waterways of adopted the Djerdap is also required to ensure a safe navigation; this is under the priorities of the of membership application competency the Ministry of Mining and Energy. transport submitted in 2009. In 2010, the ratification process of the Stabilisation and Association Airsector include 7.5 Other donors supporting theyears transport Norway, 5.9 the Netherlands, Switzerland, 5.5 4.6 4the Czech 2.7 Agreement was initiated and after two transport Republic and Canada.

Financial construction for investment in road infrastructure will be completed with (in 2012), Serbia received the statute of candidate supportcountry. from EIB, EBRD and the World Bank, through a series of loan packages worth a total of €1.6 In this context, the transport sectorhas is vi-beenTotal billion. Substantial support ensured for4,563.5 rehabilitation of railway (€60 million from 5,789.9 6,675.5 lines 7,300.6 6,825.0loan 5,026.7 tal in the development policies of the entire EBRD, a World Bank loan worth €80 million and ‘Loan for the Railway Reconstruction’ of €80 million from EU territory which determines the harmoSource: Draft OPERATIONAL FORBalkans ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 2012 - 2013 - Government of theproviding Republic of Serbia EIB). ofMultilateral istorepresented by thePROGRAMME Western Investment Framework,

nisation legislation andassistance the adaptation thesupport European objectives the restructuring transport to EUR 4-Billion”, shows a document forstandards studiesand relevant to to reconstruction of theofrailway lineservices Niš - Presevo FYROM and for the elaboPE establish a single market. In this segment, within a modern, safe and functional sys- rated by the Serbian Government (Needs Serbian Railways.

Serbia is very important to the EU, its geo- tem are the most important prerequisites of the Republic of Serbia for International graphical position being of strategic signifi- of the authorities in stimulating regional Assistance In the Period 2011-2013).

Funding cance: throughforecast the pan-European corridors development and in reaching their objecThe railway network is 3,809km long, its - Corridor VII (Danube) and Corridor X tive of economic and social development density being compared to the EU-27 aver(Austria-Serbia) - Serbia has rural the shortest in a sustainable manner.additional The investments (50,1km/1000km2) with France The agricultural and development will require supportageboth from nationaland budgetary and the most reliable transit connections so farspectrum to transport of cover a small part and Romania which have a density of 46 resources and international funding.granted The wide activities expected for implementation requires between the countries in Central and Westof its real needs.

“The total value of public km/1000 km2.

Over 46% (1,768 km) of continuous financing. ern Europe and those in the south of Eu- investments necessary to infrastructure de- the network are main lines, 32.7% of which rope, Middle East and Far East. velopment by 2027 is estimated at EUR 15 are electrified.

According to the Budget and and Fiscal Policy for 2011 ofwith Projectionsand The construction andMemorandum modernisation ofon the Billion, of which theEconomic necessary financing for For the integration the infrastructure theforrailway especially 2010), by us- the the following modernisation of Corridors X and VII, optimisation services in budget compliance 2012infrastructure, and 2013 (August funds are planned to be the allocated fromofthe state inginfinancing from the financial the next three years: institutions, compliant to European standards, amounts with the European standards, Dragoljub SiTotal state budget expenditure limits for 2011-2013 (in EUR*) Table 8 - Total state budget expenditure limits for 2011-2013 (in EUR*) Institution 2011 2012 Ministry of Infrastructure 178,978,962 184,458,455 Directorate for Inland Waterways Plovput 1,573,245 1,684,841 Directorate for Railway Transport 421,721 454,456

2013 184,615,319 1,808,090 490,654

* Converted at the rates used in the preparation of the Memorandum on Budget and Economic and Monetary Policy for 2011, with the projections for 2012 and 2013 Source: Draft OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 2012 - 2013 - Government of the Republic of Serbia

The Budget Memorandum introduces the main Government’s main policy objectives, focused on increasing of the scope and quality of transport services and efficiency of the transport as a whole,

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Policies & Strategies

Western Balkan Region

Source: Draft OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 2012 - 2013 - Government of the Republic of Serbia

monovic, the head of the national railway company, ZelezniceSrbije, said in May that they plan to invest EUR 1.4 Billion in the projects for the modernisation of the infrastructure and of the rolling stock in 20132014. Over the next years, the company’s investments will exceed EUR 4-5 Billion.

The railway sector will be opened in 2014 Aside from the importance of modernising the railway infrastructure, the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA)-the Multiannual Indicative Planning Document-2011-2013 for Serbia stipulates that the “reform of the railway sector has to intensify so as to improve the competitiveness of the railway transport, and the restructuring of the sector, as well as the market liberalisation are on-going”. According to the latest report of the Commission (October 2012), “railway transport has made little progress. The transformation of the Railways into a holding company including four different companies is underway. In fact, the market remains closed because of the high licensing costs and time (maximum one year)”.

To contribute to the implementation of the community acquis and to Serbia’s acces-

sion to the EU, the actual process has specific requirements for the gradual opening of the market. At the beginning of May, the members of the Committee for European Integration within the Serbian Parliament adopted the railway law elaborated by the Deputy Minister of Transport, Dejan Lasica, a document “aimed at improving the efficiency of the domestic railway system and at integrating the Serbian services into the EU transport system”, he declared during a meeting of the Committee. During the same month, Serbia’s Parliament adopted the new Railway Law under which the liberalisation of the sector would start on 1 January 2014. Starting with 2014, private companies could gradually receive license to operate in the railway freight transport sector.

The law will permit competition in this sector and will complete the restructuring of ZelezniceSrbije (ZS). “Initially, ZS will be separated into two companies: the infrastructure manager and the railway freight and passenger transport operator”, declared Dragoljub Simonovic. The two companies will be financially and functionally independent. Then, the operator will be separated into two distinct companies, freight transport and passenger transport.

What is important is the fact that the en-

43

tity managing the railway infrastructure will no longer require organisation within the “public company” form - category of entities formed by the Serbian State. This should open the path for private companies to participate in infrastructure management. But private companies will have to be named by the Serbian State as entities authorised for developing public interest activities.

The new law regulates the route acquisition procedures from the infrastructure manager and offers the railway directorate more extended attributions on the adoption of regulations for railway and intermodal transport. The directorate will be in charge with taking measures to prevent disloyal competition and discrimination and will manage route demands.

The law also stipulates the adoption of a national railway infrastructure programme which should be elaborated and proposed to the government and then adopted by the parliament on five years.

Сербия - все ближе к ЕС

Source: Draft OPERATIONAL PROGRAMME FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 2012 - 2013 - Government of the Republic of Serbia

В мае месяце Парламент Сербии принял „Закон о железных дорогах”, который позволят конкуренцию и завершает реорганизацию компании Zeleznice Srbije. Данный новый закон представляет собой законодательные рамки железнодорожной отрасли и заменяет старый закон, вступивший в силу в 2005 году. Новые законодательные рамки нацелены на интеграцию железнодорожной системы на европейский рынок, одновременно являясь мероприятием, направленным на вступление Сербии в ЕС.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

44 Market development

Republic of Moldova prioritizes the harmonization of railway policies

to EU legislation and the allocation of investments [ by Pamela Luică ]

For the Republic of Moldova, the development and modernization of the railway infrastructure is a solution for attracting freight flows to the Europe-Asia axis. In order to increase the contribution of Moldova to the transport system, the authorities plan to encourage infrastructure investments and to align their policies to European standards so as to increase the share of railway transport. The timeframe 2013-2014 will thus witness the implementation of several projects.

S

tatistics on the situation of the Europe and Asia”, organized by Moldovan freight volumes carried in January- Railways (CFM) and Club Feroviar on 6-7 May 2013 on railways in the Repub- June 2013 in Chişinău. lic of Moldova show a 22.4% increase (1.67 As regards investments, it would not be million tonnes) compared to the same pe- enough only to ensure a favourable legal riod last year. Compared to the other trans- framework, an important objective being port modes, railway traffic has recorded the to attract investments. “The railway project highest growth. Due to the traffic growth Chişinău – Ungheni demands investments tendencies, not only nationally but also worth EUR 300-400 Million, investments internationally, the Moldovan authorities which have to ensure the return and the plan to increase their implication in the growth potential has to stimulate us to atdevelopment of the railway system. “The tract investments, especially foreign. Their recent trends of railway transport in the allocation and support by the authorities Republic of Moldova are promising for and financial institutions for infrastructure the development of railway transport and, projects are key elements that increase the according to estimates, there is a growth share of railway transport, as well as the potential of 40% of the transport between traffic and transit flow through the RepubEurope and Central Asia which makes us lic of Moldova. In order to redirect traffic to attract investments for the modernisation railways, we have to allocate investments to of infrastructure so as to face future de- railway infrastructure”, declared Popov. mands”, declared Andrei Popov, Deputy The railway system development proMinister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and gramme elaborated by the authorities European Integration in the Republic includes modernisation projects for inÎNTREPRINDEREA DE STATof“CALEA FERATĂ DIN MOLDOVA” Moldova, during the Moldovan Railway creasing speed, the introduction of quality ENTERPRISE “THE RAILWAY OF MOLDOVA” Summit, “RailwayPUBLIC Connections between standards and management in the market

Mărfuri transportate, milioane tone Călători transportați, milioane persoane

15

3600

14

3400

13

3200 3000

12

2800

11

2600

10

2400

9

2200

8

2000 1800

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1400

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3

600

2

400

1

200

0

Parcursul mărfurilor, milioane tone-km Parcursul călătorilor, milioane călători-km

TRAFICUL FEROVIAR DE MĂRFURI ŞI DE CĂLĂTORI FREIGHT AND PASSENGER TRAFFIC BY RAIL

0

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Mărfuri transportate, mil.tone Traficul de marfă, mil.tone-km Source: Public enterprise “THE RAILWAY OF MOLDOVA”

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

2007 ani

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

Călători transportaţi, mil.persoane Traficul de călători, mil.călători-km

6

of rail transport services in order to ensure quality services, the adoption of a strategic plan for the modernisation of CFM, the attraction of strategic investors by implementing the PPP concept, the modernisation of rolling stock. Apart from these objectives, the authorities want to make sure that they have the conditions necessary to the development of Chişinău container handling terminal.

“Over the next period, the Ministry of Transport will focus on the development of intermodal transport and the maximum exploitation of the railway freight transport potential, as well as on attracting investments for rolling stock modernization. We will also initiate the introduction of opinion polls to have an improved perspective on ensuring a quality railway transport. The Ministry of Transport will support the railway modernization projects”, declared the new Minister of Transport, Vasile Botnari, during the summit.

To prioritise and develop railway transport, Moldova plans to align its strategies and policies to European standards. “Consolidating cooperation in the transport sector between the European Union, the Caucasus and Central Asia is vital for the harmonisation of the international transport system and of the standards thus helping improve transport efficiency. This is the reason why the Government of the Republic of Moldova supports the increasing interoperability of railway transport. Aligning our objectives depends on the implementation of the reform on the restructuring and modernisation of the national railway system”, declared Andrei Popov.

He added that the country planned to implement CFM’s restructuring and modernisation process as fast as possible. “This means aligning the national standards and legislation to that of the EU, setting transport interoperability standards and encouraging the market liberalisation, a key factor

Market development

to the development of the entire railway system”, added Popov.

CFM’s restructuring programme has already been included in the government programme and is to be evaluated and adopted.

The activity departments have already been set on three segments, infrastructure, freight transport and passenger transport and several guidelines are currently elaborated to avoid crossed costs and to ensure the independence of each segment.

CFM participates in international freight transport projects As of 2012, the Republic of Moldova has implemented and has participated in programmes aimed to increase freight flows: as of November, CFM decided to collaboDE STAT “CALEA FERATĂ DIN MOLDOVA” rateÎNTREPRINDEREA within the container transport service PUBLIC ENTERPRISE “THE RAILWAY OF MOLDOVA” “Zubr”, whose route is the Black Sea and the PRINCIPALE SCADENTE Baltic LUNGIMEA Sea axis.LINIILOR “As part of the project, the LA REPARAŢII CAPITALE ŞI MIJLOCII, KM LA 1.01.2013 THE LENGTH OF MAIN LINES WITH EXPIRED TERMS FOR CAPITAL AND MIDDLE REPAIRS, KM AS OF 1.01.2013

204.5

747.2

136.0

SCADENTE LA REPARATII CAPITALE SCADENTE LA REPARATII MIJLOCII CORESPUND NORMELOR TEHNICE

12

transport time is significantly reduced due to border crossing procedures, which is very important for our customers. Also, the transhipment tariff of the wines shipped from Moldova to Belarus, via Ukraine, has been reduced by 25%. As a proof of transport efficiency, several shipments have been organised in the first months of 2013 and the freight volume has also increased”, declared representatives of the company.

Another international project launched at the end of 2012 is implemented together with the railway companies in Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine and concerns the organisation of container transport along corridor no. 12 of the OSJD organisation (MoldovaRomania-Bulgaria route, 1,461 km). One of the most important benefits of the project is the significant reduction of time and costs.

Compared to maritime transport, the train reached destination 2 weeks earlier and the cost of the transport was 12% lower than that of maritime transport.

Over the next period, CFM plans to expand freight transport routes by participating in the Viking project which ensures traffic between the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea on the route Iljichevsk/Odessa (Ukraine)- Berezhest (Ukraine) - Slovechno (Belarus)-Minsk-Gudogai (Belarus) – Kena (Lithuania)-Klaipeda (Lithuania). CFM will benefit from this service by increasing freight flows, especially due to its increasing

45

importance and scope which has also increased freight flows (10 years after launching the service, the volume of carried goods increased 100 times).

Республика Молдова относит к числу приоритетов приспособление железнодорожной политики к законодательству ЕС и выделение инвестиционных средств Для Республики Молдова развитие и модернизация железнодорожной инфраструктуры является решением для привлечения грузовых транспортных потоков по оси Европа-Азия. Для повышения статуса Республики Молдова в транспортной системе, власти намерены поощрять инвестиции в инфраструктуру и адаптировать свою политику к европейскими стандартам, в целях увеличения доли железнодорожного транспорта, и в этом отношении, на период 2013-2014 годов она запланировала реализацию нескольких проектов.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

46 Market development Quality targets

Europe seeks solutions to reduce rail noise

5 MOVE Quality DG could targets launch a study for the efficient reduction of freight wagon noise

[ by Pamela Luică ]

The problem of noise reduction represents a challenge for the railway freight sector, being approached by the European Commission through the adopted policies, by the specialised industry through the identification of new products and solutions which should be efficient in terms of the cost-benefit ratio, by the infrastructure managers, and for the railway freight transport system, the adopted measures must not affect the competitiveness level.

The limit values reported by this selection of Many countries have some form of noise policy

and management, and noise limit values form Member States have often a long history, so the basis of a noise control system. A number of the variation in values is not too surprising. It is interesting that limit values for industry are studies address the comparison of these limit n this Rail Forum Europe instrument for significantly reducing (source) the railway wagons lower,noise. and forby railway noisefreight higher.

The in use in the values to regard, see if athe mutual understanding exists members and stakeholders request Under these circumstances, in 2013 the European Union which aims at reducing average difference is 8 dB, and the maximum limit for a common noise quality level. Starting with the adoption of appropriate measures Noise Expert Group, which would assist in the noise level by 2020, but at the same xxix 57 dB for industrial noise, and 73 dB for ) for the preparation the study by INRETS ( for the reduction of rail noise, especially the preparation value of the is implementing acts time at maintaining the competitiveness railway noise. track ac- of the railway sector vis-à-vis other transof freight the EUwagons, Green which Paper,should the paper by laterelated Dieterto the noise-differentiated for minimise xxx Gottlob andrailway recently the competiInternational the impact( of) the sector cessInstitute charge (NDTAC), could be re-activat- port modes. The Commission will seek to tiveness. matterEngineering is highly important ed. Besides the retrofitting of address the problems related to the freight The Community Guidelines 2000 from the of NoiseThis Control (xxxi), all these studiesthis measure, especially theisdensely populated re- freight wagons isWHO vital for noise reduction. 50/55 wagons conforming with the TSI(xxxii ) recommends LAeq, not as health show thatinthis not an easy task. Firstly the noise 16 hrs gions and consequently the railwayand comTherefore, Europewhich Faci- is in Noise based threshold, line limit with (they earlierare the most important indicators differ considerably, secondly the the Connecting munity the EC areoftrying to identify litytaken offers the possibility to co-fund freight sourcefrom of railISO noise), recommendations and guidance andthe existing measures actual and enforcement the limits or actions viable solutions. wagon modernisation projects: the noise which are not sufficient to quickly reduce national and international environment agencies. may be quite different.

“The Commission wishes to avoid dis- reduction programmes by retrofitting of the level of rail noise, the risk of unilateral Although morethe than half ofmeasures the Lden leading limit values ruptions in the process of completing the existing rolling stock are among eligito barriers to railway inis close to these health based guidelines, some are market.

Recently the EU Member States reported to the Single ble actions that can receive EU aid in the teroperability and internal higher.

Commission any relevant limit valuesain force European Railway Area by ensuring formorof grants, considerably and the Member States, Within the study, several options will be common EU approach in tackling railEND international under preparation as requested by the Art. 5.4. organizations and public or considered referring to a baseline scenario, noise”, of Unit Single undertakings can submit financial support and Lnight , The same goes forproposthe nightincreased time levels, although it for retrofitting These Sian haveProut, to be Head expressed in for terms of Ldenprivate European RailatArea, declared als.bias.

EU financialseems aid forthat actions to lower' reduceruleofisexisting wagons with low-noise brake eliminating least DG one MOVE important source of '10 dB almost universally during noise:ofonL thefor planning rail freight noiseadopted: by retrofitting is set are at Lblocks, Figurethe 5.1seminar shows a“Wagon comparison the averages = 50 noise-differentiated dB for railway and track access den way to remove the last rail environmental 20% of eligible costs. At present, the grant night charges, mandatory application of TSIpurposes for 2013). residential areas from 14 Member States. roadfor noise, 46 forprojects aircraft noise and 42 for burden” (May The Communication of EUR 31.7 Billion transport Noise limits to industry. all existing railway wagons,

I

on the measures to reduce the rail noise: has been reduced to EUR 23 Billion. modernisation of freight wagons adopted Within the noise reduction policy, DG in July 2008 identifies the differentiated MOVE intends to launch a study on the track access as the most effective reduction of the noise generated Figure 5.1charges Comparison Ldenefficient limit values Comparison Lden limit values source

introduction of a noise limit along the TEN-T railway network, but also in relation to the density of population, and additionally, the introduction of a maximum transport-related cumulative noise exposure could be considered.

Lden planning values for residential area (as reported by 14 Member States) 75

Европа находится в поисках решений для снижения шума на железной дороге

70

Lden in dB

65

60

55

50

45

40

Rail

Road

Source: European Source: Data Environment reported inAgency accordance with END up to 2009.

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Airport

Industry

Для разработки мер по снижению железнодорожного шума на уровне ЕС, в 2013 году могут быть возобновлены работы Экспертной группы по шуму, для оказания помощи в осуществлении мероприятий, связанных с дифференцированным сбором за доступ к путям сообщения в зависимости от шума (НДТАК, NDTAC). Кроме того, DG MOVE намеревается провести исследование об эффективном снижении шума, создаваемого грузовыми вагонами, передвигающимися по Европейскому союзу.

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48 Products & Technologies

Europe will have more silent trains [ by Elena Ilie ]

New and more silent brake blocks, capable to reduce the noise of trains by up to 50% (especially for freight wagons) will soon be introduced in the European transport market; the measure will be possible due to the authorization of the European Railway Agency of the LL brake blocks manufactured of composite materials and mainly dedicated to freight wagons.

In fact, the authorization of these railway products is the final step after many years of research and technical trials conducted by the industry and by the International Union of Railways.

The LL brake blocks are made of composite materials meaning that these products will have a positive effect at the surface of the train wheels, grinding them and thus reducing the generated noise level. The traditional brake blocks, made of cast iron, harden the surface of the train wheels which intensifies the generated noise. By using brake blocks made of composite materials, especially together with quality rails, the noise level can be reduced by up to 10 dB which means 50% less noise perceived by people, the railway industry points out.

A

specifications for interoperability for wagons. This would permit manufacturers to develop new brake blocks and to certify them rapidly and efficiently in conformity with the EU harmonised procedures.

The EuropeTrain project was launched so as to speed up, but also to improve the testing in operation of the LL brake blocks. The train, including 30 specific wagons, has run in different countries along Europe with the sole purpose of testing the LL brake blocks 100% made of composite materials. In its “journey” throughout Europe, the train had to cover 200,000 km in 14 phases and had to “witness” all relevant operation conditions in Europe. Therefore, the train run on ramps with different operation modes, in regions with arctic snow in Scandinavia, as well as in areas with extremely high temperature.

The train crossed Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Poland, Slovakia, Switzer-

Photo: europetrain.uic.org

t present, most of the existing freight wagons running in the European Union don’t have to be compliant with the European standards on noise because these standards are only mandatory for new wagons. These “old” wagons are, therefore, the main source of railway noise which troubles the citizens and the development of railway transport. Today it is possible to replace the noisy cast iron brake blocks with LL brake blocks in a simple and quite profitable manner. Retechnologisation with LL brake blocks does not require changing the braking system and is far less expensive and complicated than modernisation with alternative K brake blocks.

At the moment, the European Railway Agency elaborates the requirements and the evaluation procedures for the European Union covering all types of brake blocks, requirements and procedures that will be integrated in a package of recast technical

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

land, Italy and Austria.

“The ‘EuropeTrain’ testing campaign will provide the railway community with an important basis for possible decision-taking in a strategic issue: the equipment of large fleets of freight wagons with “silent” composite brake blocks. This objective of the reduction of noise emissions by freight trains marks a new step towards more competitive and more sustainable rail freight transport in Europe”, declared UIC Director General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux during the presentation of the final report of the “EuropeTrain” campaign.

LL тормозные колодки – одним шагом ближе к освидетельствованию Железные дороги в скором времени будут ближе к значительному снижению последнего значительного препятствия для окружающей среды - это шум, производимый товарными вагонами. Снижение этого барьера - настолько враждебного для окружающей среды и контрпродуктивного, если рассматривать привлекательность железной дороги по сравнению с другими видами транспорта - может быть достигнуто в итоге положительных результатов полевых испытаний по внедрению композитных материалов в изготовление тормозных блоков (тормозные колодки LL). Исследования проводились в рамках проекта «EuropeTrain» под руководством Международного союза железных дорог (МСЖД) и при поддержке Сообщества европейских железных дорог (CER). Проект EuropeTrain был запущен с целью ускорить и улучшить тестирование в эксплуатации тормозных колодок LL.

50 Market development

Need for a new approach on intermodal transport [ by Elena Ilie ]

The freight transport in the EU is mostly performed by trucks (47.3%), followed by seagoing ships (37.8%), by trains (11.2%) and by ships using the inland waterways (3.7%). Trucks still dominate the inland EU freight transport with a 76.1% share of tonnes/kilometre and about 94% of the CO2 emissions. By comparison, the air freight transports hold a marginal part of the volumes, although this part is considerable in terms of value.

The figures belong to Eurostat.

O

ne of the great challenges for the transports consists in shifting a volume of freight as large as possible from the road to the railway. Although the specialised industry has developed railway vehicles adaptable to any type of freight, although the international railway freight transport market was completely liberalised in 2007 and although the EU policies equally converge to the promotion of the railway freight transport, there still is a series of impediments for the effective increase of the share of this type of transport.

The great project developers, shippers, logistics operators accuse the lack of crossborder interoperability, a fairly reduced speed of the freight transport in Eastern Europe but also the lack of prioritisation of certain railway sections exclusively for freight.

For the clients which are logistics operators, quality firstly means competitive transport times, safety of the freight transport and a capacity adapted to needs. In order to reach this objective, several factors must be considered, including an approach which should integrate operational procedures and processes coordinated on the entire territory of the Union. The availability of infrastructure represents in turn another www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

factor.

The key to efficient transport is the consolidation of large volumes for transfer over long distances, in between the so-called first and last miles. Waterborne and railway transport are particularly suitable for this objective, as it can be noticed in other countries such as Russia, Kazakhstan, Turkey or China. While encouraging the use of the most efficient solution in all distances, it is above some 300 km that a significant re-balancing should take place, with 30% of road freight shifting to multimodal solutions by 2030, and more than 50% by 2050.

A first basis for cross-border interoperability has been established in 2010 through the adoption of Regulation 913 on the set up of ten railway corridors exclusively for freight transport. However, for the moment actions were undertaken only for Corridor no. 7 “Orient” and for Corridors no. 1 and no. 2 in Western Europe. For the remaining corridors, things are moving slower.

We could still add a plus to freight transport interoperability through the EU agreement on the TEN-T network, an agreement establishing the creation of a core transport network which should rely on railway freight corridors.

Nevertheless, by 2030, when we should

have fully established this core network, the railway freight transport will have faced a series of difficulties which partially explains its incapacity to increase its market share. These difficulties affect mainly reliability, available capacities, information management, average speed, as well as flexibility.

Потребность в новом подходе к интермодальному транспорту Грузовые перевозки внутри ЕС в большинстве случаев осуществляется с помощью грузовиков (47,3%), затем морскими кораблями (37,8%), поездами (11,2%) и транспортными средствами, использующими внутренние водные пути (3,7%). Грузовики все еще преобладают в сфере внутриевропейских грузопотоков, составляя 76,1% от количества тонн / километр и примерно 94% выбросов CO2. Для сравнения, воздушный грузовой транспорт занимает крайнее значение по объему, хотя данное направление является значительным с точки зрения ценности. Данные цифры приведены Евростатом.

Policies & Strategies

51

European rail freight transport still needs firm development strategies [ by Elena Ilie ]

The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) published an extremely useful report providing a detailed perspective on the current stage of the European railway freight transport. The CER report analyses the last decade marked by many strategies and objectives dedicated to the revitalisation of the European railway transport market share but also for the consolidation of its position in relation to the other modes of transport.

I

n the published compendium, CER rather disappointing compared to the one mentions that more than ten years of the competitors, especially to the road ago a series of objectives and many transport. The reasons are multiple, startstrategies were established to increase ing with the poor quality of the infrastructhe competitiveness of the railway freight ture in some European states (particularly transport sector by publishing the White in Eastern Europe) which led to the reducPaper on Transport, the 2001 version. A tion of the speed of trains, the difficulty of series of policies have been implemented the access to intermodal terminals, the priand most likely, since they were not suffi- oritization of investments for conventional cient, a new White Paper on Transport was and high-speed railways for the passenger published in 2011. The difference between transport to the economic recession which the two consists in the fact that the latest led to the dramatic drop in the purchasing Paper contains more ambitious strategies power in most EU states and implicitly to for a more efficient and sustainable trans- the decrease of the freight volume and of 1.3 Environmental footprint rail and freight services port facing strong competition.

Moreover, of demand, the list could be easily comthe Fourth Railway Package completes the pleted as you read this article.

The environmental footprint of specific transport services is an important parameter of freight previous legislative packages and the EuroDespite a significant development of the quality, albeit a neglected surveys oncompetition customers’ in transport pean Commission hopes one and according wishes thattoitmost intra-modal the last priorities. decade, Itwill is an essential parameter for the sustainability of the transport sector, as emphasized be the last legislative package and that the highly desired modal shift to the rail-by the Commission in itsfor 2011 Transport White Paper. which would improve enerits European rules should be sufficient a Single way, a measure European Railway Area. gy efficiency and would reduce CO2 emisNevertheless, with all the measures and sions, is far from being a reality, according 1.3.1 rules inRail force,freight actors in environmental this market seem to performance to the CER report. The unbalance between be unsatisfied with the of the rail- COroad and railway transport increasing, in Rail transport generatesprogress the lowest specific emissions and is the mostis energy-efficient 2 way freight transport in relation to its coma fairly worrying manner for sustainability mode compared with road, air and even waterborne transport. Figures 2 and 3 present the petitors. The compendium elaborated by of the entire transport sector. primary energy consumption and total CO production during the transport of 100 tonnes CER confirms the same thing: the compet-2 The railways have proven their commitofitiveness freight6 of from Basel to the Port of Rotterdam, in November 2012. the railway freight transport is ment to quality and efficiency adhering to Figure 2 Transport ofof100 offreight, freight,Basel Basel Port of Rotterdam – Transport 100tonnes tonnes of to to Port of Rotterdam Energy consumption comparison (megajoules) – Energy consumption comparison - 2012 80 000

75 000

different quality management programmes and systems, and at present they are about to improve their procedures and products, both as sector and at company level. These positive evolutions must be acknowledged.

However, on their own, it is less likely that they prove sufficient to revitalise the railway freight transport.

The report drafted by CER approaches subjects that are useful to the entire European railway freight sector, as well as to the railway sector in the Eurasian platform. The chapters of the report refer to topics such as the improvement of the intermodality in the Eurasian transport and the efficiency of the CIM/SMGS consignment note, the x-Rail Freight project, noise reduction, the utility of longer freight trains, the solutions for infrastructure accessibility, the challenges of intermodal transport, the utility of transport in individual wagons, as well as the importance of the ERTMS implementation at a scale as large as possible in the European railway networks.

Европейские железнодорожные перевозки все еще нуждаются в жестких стратегиях развития

70 000 58 000

60 000 50 000 40 000

33 000

30 000 20 000 10 000 0

Source: CER

Road

Inland waterways

Rail

Сообщество европейских железнодорожных компаний (CER) опубликовало отчет, который предоставляет детальный взгляд на текущее состояние европейских грузовых железнодорожных перевозок. Доклад CER анализирует последнее десятилетие, отмеченное многочисленными стратегиями и целями, намеченными главным образом для того, чтобы оживить рыночную долю железнодорожного транспорта в Европе и укрепить свои позиции по отношению к другим видам транспорта.

Source: Ecological Transport Information Tool (EcoTransIT) 2012

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

52 Market development

Urban logistics can be redefined [ by Elena Ilie ]

The 2011 White Paper on Transport talks about a strategy for near- ‘zero-emission urban logistics’ by 2030. To achieve this, it is necessary to produce best practice guidelines to better monitor and manage urban freight flows (for example, consolidation centres, size of vehicles in old centres, regulatory limitations, delivery windows, unused potential of transport by river).

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lso, it is necessary to define a strategy for moving towards ‘zeroemission urban logistics’, bringing together aspects of land planning, rail and river access, business practices and information, charging and vehicle technology standards.

The optimization of national rail freight transport has significant chances of efficiency. EU policies on interoperability and noise reduction are mandatory and stimulate Member States to achieve these objectives.

A significant amount of investments will be necessary to expand the capacity of the railway network. Rail freight may grow by an additional 360 billion tonne-kilometres by 2050, that is, an 87% increase relative to 2005. Rather than building new lines, many objectives can be achieved by modernising the existing network and increas-

ing speed (especially in the east of the EU) by introducing the ERTMS, creating city by-pass routes, creating side tracking lines and terminals for 1,000 long trains and increasing the maximum loads on main corridors. New rolling stock with silent brakes and automatic coupling should be gradually introduced.

However, we have to be aware of the fact that a large part of the necessary goods we buy every day is carried inside the cities.

Here, we, the citizens, are (maybe without realising it) a little bit more affected by “urban logistics” than by domestic freight transport. EU policies cannot impose to every European city the way in which it should organise urban logistics. However, there are several cities which can boast with innovating ideas of rethinking urban logistics.

Within CIVITAS II, the cities analysed

the effects of urban freight transport and implemented measures aimed at reducing the negative effects of freight transport inside the cities. Within this project, six cities implemented measures concerning the logistics and the sustainable distribution of goods. Thus, the city of Burgos (Spain) implemented a new goods distribution, La Rochelle (France), the city logistics strategic extension, customers’ services associated to goods distribution and the development of partnership with logistics operators. Malmo (Sweden) granted freight driver support, while Norwich (United Kingdom) has customised traffic & travel information service for freight operators and urban transhipment centre. Preston (United Kingdom) applied city logistics partnerships and strategic planning and freight routing, signing, etc, while Venice (Italy) implemented clean urban logistics.

But maybe the most relevant measure is the CarGoTram project from Dresden where the German company Volkswagen carries all equipments from and to the plan with the CarGoTram, the freight tram.

Photo: www.cit-rail.org

Городская логистика может быть пересмотрена

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Белая карта Транспорта 2011 г. касается предмета реализации стратегии достижения “городской логистики (почти) нулевых выбросов» к 2030 году. Эта задача требует разработки руководящих принципов на основе передового опыта, в целях более эффективного мониторинга и управления городским грузопотоком (центрами консолидации, дозволенным размером транспортных средств в старых центрах городов, нормативными ограничениями, неиспользуемым потенциалом речного транспорта).

Market development

53

Galaţi and Iaşi, two important intermodal hubs on the Eurasian platform [ by Elena Ilie ]

The maritime Danube has the capacity and can become an Eastern gate of Europe.

Carmen Costache, Deputy General Manager of the Maritime Danube Ports Administration – Galaţi held during the Moldovan Railway Summit an interesting and useful presentation on the role of the maritime Danube in the revitalisation of intermodal waterborne-railway transport but also in the execution of the interoperability of European transport networks and the consolidation of transport links on the Eurasian platform. Likewise, the main development advantages for Iaşi Intermodal Regional Freight Transport Centre have been presented by Emilia Popescu from Iaşi County Council. and development of the ship transport infrastructure along the priority axis TEN-T 18 – Danube. Galaţi Port is the only Romanian port benefiting also from broad-gauge lines, as well as from possibilities of transposition/transhipment of wagons which confers it an advantagein the execution of the intermodal transport activity.

The development of the project “Iaşi Intermodal Regional Freight Transport Centre” implies a series of advantages for the revival of the intermodal transport in the North-Eastern area of Romania. Therefore, the Iaşi region is located strategically on the core TEN-T network and benefits from transport infrastructure on broadgauge line thus facilitating the railway connection with the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Russia.

The development of Iaşi intermodal freight centre supposes the creation of a pole of economic growth in the region of Moldova through the concentration of business structures in Iaşi, named “Future Hub Iaşi”. The objective will be financed by SOP-T, Priority Axis 3 – Promoting the in-

Photo: www.romanian-ports.ro

R

omania needs firm strategies for the execution of modernisation and development projects of river ports and of intermodal freight terminals.

Danube ports also need to develop their capacity in order to become logistics centres and integrate into the intermodal transport system, considering the vast extension of Corridor VII – Danube on the Romanian territory. The railway infrastructure is an advantage for the increase of the freight volume in these ports, so that financing the modernisation of port railway infrastructures proved to be necessary. Such a Danube port which needs the infrastructure and the freight terminal development is the one in Galaţi.

The attraction of freight flows, both to the Danube ports and to the freight terminals, is another objective to be met.

The development of the waterway network must be considered an essential element of the development of an intermodal transport system at the intra-European level. The Minister of Transport has announced that in 2013 about EUR 162 Million will be granted to the modernisation

termodal transport, the value of the investment reaching EUR 39.9 Million.

The Centre benefits from the proximity of railways, Holboca station.

Among the objectives of this investment project is the increase of the attractiveness of Iaşi region for international commercial activities by ensuring facilities related to the intermodal freight shift and the support of the development of “green corridors” for logistics transport, in accordance with the “White Paper on Transport”.

Another strategic objective of Iaşi project is to turn into account the existing freight transport infrastructure by attracting freight flows from the road sector to the railway sector .

The execution of the project “Future Hub Iaşi” aims at attracting companies which will offer integrated services in the fields of logistics and railway freight transport.

Галац и Яссы - два крупных интермодальных центра евразийской платформы Морской Дунай имеет возможность и может стать воротами в Восточную Европу. Кармен Костаке, заместитель генерального директора Морской администрации портов Дуная - Галац сделала интересную и полезную презентацию на Железнодорожном саммите в Республике Молдове об активизации интермодальных речных – железнодорожных перевозок, но и по реализации взаимодействия европейских транспортных сетей и консолидации транспортных отношений на Евразийской платформе. Кроме того, основные преимущества для развития регионального центра интермодальных грузовых перевозок в области Яссы были представлены Эмилией Попеску, которая является представителем уездного совета Яссы.

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

54 Policies & Strategies

The historical Silk Road… reinvented on railways [ by Elena Ilie ]

Kazakhstan wants to become a railway freight transport hub to facilitate the connection between China and Europe, hoping that the route inaugurated last year, the 293km long Zhetygen – Korgas, bordering China, would become the preferred route of the customers performing trade on the two continents. The Kazakh country wants to become an alternative to the only railway route which currently provides a rail freight transport link in the Eurasian platform.

Kazakhstan Temir Zholy (KTZ), the Kazakh national railway company, estimated that the cargo transiting its territory will amount to 35 million metric tonnes by 2020 and then even to 50 million metric tonnes.

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ne of the many attempts to revive railway freight transport in the Eurasian platform pertains to Russian Railways Logistics which, together with its subsidiary YuXinOu (Chongqing) Logistics, launched at the end of October 2012 the first container train between China and Europe using the single consignment note CIM/SMGS. Thus, trains leave Chongqing (China) and cross Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, and Poland to Duisburg (Germany). The network passes through vast and poorly inhabited regions of the six countries, has about 11,000 km and represents a new and modern Silk Road...on railways.

Centuries ago the caravans used to bring fine silk and spices from Asia to the West and today trains carry electronic products and computer elements. Transport takes 19 days.

“The introduction of the single CIM/ SMGS consignment note was the result of two years of efforts from the management of infrastructure companies in the countries transited by this train”, declared Pavel Sokolov, President of Russian Railways Logistics.

Kaztransservice (Kazakhstan) and Belintertrans (Belarus) companies have participated in this project as transport partners of Russian Railways Logistics.

Most of the governments, both European and those on the Central Asian platform, are trying to encourage the development of railway freight transport mainly due to the low level of pollution and reduced transport costs. However, we cannot but admit that the main disadvantage of this transport type is the lack of flexibility, but also the presence of the physical and nonphysical barriers which prevented the traf-

fic of freight on railways along the international borders.

But the establishment of railway freight dedicated routes in the Eurasian platform is intended to eliminate at least the administrative barriers in order to emphasize the advantages of railway compared to maritime routes on the long-distance.

The new political strategies refer to a more connected Eurasian platform through railway freight transport. Thus, whether we talk about the Trans-Siberian Network, the Trans-Asian Railway Network, the NorthSouth Corridor (Russia-Iran and then to India), the new (Iron) Silk Road or the recently inaugurated routes from Germany to Russia and then China, these are just few of the attempts of recovering and, at the same time, consolidating the position of long-distance freight transport in order to underline its advantages compared to maritime transport by relying on reduced travel times.

Photo: http://calink.kz

Исторический Шелковый путь ... вновь изобретен на железной дороге

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Казахстан намерен стать центром содействия по железнодорожной перевозке грузов между Китаем и Европой надеясь, что маршрут, открытый в прошлом году, Жетыген - Коргас длиной 293 км, на границе с Китаем, станет предпочтительным для клиентов, осуществляющих торговлю на двух континентах. Казахстанское государство хочет стать альтернативой всего одного маршрута, существующего в настоящее время для железнодорожных перевозок на Евразийской платформе.

Policies & Strategies

55

Better prepared to face climate change [ by Elena Ilie ]

“Even if all greenhouse-gas emissions were to stop today, we would still see major changes in the climate. We therefore have no choice but to deal with unavoidable climate impacts and their economic, environmental and social costs. Early action will save on damage costs later”, shows the recitals preceding “An EU Strategy on adaptation to climate change”, a document adopted by the European Commission in April 2013.

U

ntil January 2013, 15 member states have adopted an adaptation policy (strategy and/or plan) to climate change. Although these strategies and action plans are undoubtedly a good starting point for adaptation action, they are often not operationalised or only partly so.

The 2011 Commission proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2014-2020 recognises mainstreaming as the MFF’s favoured approach to facilitate the necessary contribution to a low-carbon and climate resilient economy.

The general purpose of the EU Adaptation Strategy is to contribute effectively to a more climate resilient Europe. Particular attention is given to cross-border issues and sectors that are closely integrated at EU level through common policies.

The infrastructure of all transport modes is subject to the pressures generated by climate change and, depending on the type of

infrastructure, railway, road, maritime or air, they are also submitted to specific adaptability strategies. Increasing temperatures and sea level, as well as the frequency and intensity of extreme weather conditions (storms, intense heat and floods) already have a significant negative impact on the transport infrastructures across the European Union. However, climate change doesn’t affect only the transport infrastructure, but also transport distribution and transport flows. Consequently, it can influence the needs of specific infrastructures. Moreover, the vulnerability of the transport sector is also influenced by human behaviour and social change. Just as transport modes are differently affected by climate change, the type of mobility that we choose influences the vulnerability of the entire transport sector. We can also support transport by choosing less polluting transport modes every day, such as the tram, metro or light metro. It would be interesting and, at the

same time, useful for the municipalities and urban operators to develop campaigns to support these measures and to encourage the citizens to choose public transport. At the end of the campaign, the level of polluting emissions could be made public and there would definitely be less pollution by using public transport.

The new technologies developed for railway vehicles and traffic management will be essential for reducing transport emissions.

Many European companies are world leaders in infrastructure, logistics, traffic management systems and transport equipment production, but keeping in mind that other regions in the world are launching important and ambitious programmes for the modernisation of transport and for infrastructure investments, it is essential that European transport would continue to develop and to invest so as to preserve its competitive position.

Насколько мы осознаем последствия климатических изменений?

Photo: Dreamstime

Европейская комиссия приняла документ - „Стратегия ЕС по адаптации к климатическим изменениям” - в своих попытках избежать наиболее серьезных рисков, вызванных климатическими изменениями, и особенно необратимых последствий крупного масштаба. Данные меры по интеграции приспособления к климатическим изменениям в политики ЕС будут продолжать осуществляться в таких приоритетных направлениях, как энергетика и транспорт. В 2013 году Комиссия запустит мандат для европейских учреждений в области стандартизации, для того, чтобы они приступили к проведению инвентаризации релевантных отраслевых стандартов в таких отраслях, как энергетика и транспорт. Существует несколько примеров общих проектов по адаптации к климатическим изменениям европейских стран или крупных городов. Некоторые из них получают ко-финансирование со стороны ЕС например, программа LIFE. July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

56 Market development

South-East Gateway programme, still in negotiations [ by Pamela Luică ]

South-East Europe programme (SEE) aims at developing strategic importance partnerships, supporting territorial, economic and social integration and helping increase the cohesion, stability and competitiveness of the regions. The programme seeks to develop quality, outcome-oriented projects with strategic character and relevant for the programme area.

T

his year, Bucharest hosted the event “SEE achievements in view of the new programmes in the area”, held on 19 June 2013. The event focused on analysing the connections between the current and the future programming period in the South-East Europe, while trying to turn into account the outcome of the projects approved in 2007-2013.

Under the EC proposal for 2014-2020, two programmes will be formed (the “Danube” and the “South East Gateway” programmes). The programmes are actually established following the restructuring of the SEE programme. Therefore, the achievements of the SEE programmes and projects have to be known and approached by the decision makers while preparing the two projects in the region: the Danube and the South East Gateway (SEG). “Creating a new programme for the Danube requires the establishment of a new trans-national programme in the south-east of Europe to ensure seamless cooperation and to guarantee the implementation of future strategies. Therefore, there are several problems: on the one hand, the proposal of the South

East Gateway cannot fulfil the macro-regional Adriatic-Ionian strategy, while carrying on the present SEE programme (for 2007-2013). Also, the other parties of the SEE programme will not have the capacity to continue and to turn into account the long-term achievements regarding the cooperation between Central Europe and the Balkans if an equivalent or compensated policy is not proposed”, declared Constantinos Christodoulou, Head of Unit B of the Managing Authority of ETC Programmes, Ministry of Economy and Finance (Greece).

Another problem of this division consists in the fact that the combined implementation of the transnational programme South East Gateway and of the oriented macro-regional programme for the Danube Region could disrupt a functional Development Multi-Centre Network between the metropolitan regions in Athens, Thessaloniki, Sofia, Bucharest, Budapest and Vienna, as well as the Trans-European and energy transport networks which are essential with the Europe 2020 Strategy.

To this end, in order to avoid problems,

“Greece has proposed two measures aimed at creating transnational Adriatic-Ionian programme to cover the same geographical area as the macro-regional strategy and the transnational programme “South East Europe” that would involve the SEE countries and regions in Austria and Hungary, to Greece, Cyprus and Malta”, said Christodoulou.

Nevertheless, in mid June, the call for application on hosting the future SEG programme by the Management Authority was announced, the deadline being the end of July. In October 2011, EC adopted the legislative project on the Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 and under the regulations, the European Territorial Cooperation will be continued and will be consolidated as separate cohesion objective – cross-border, transnational and inter-regional frontiers being kept. Under the EU proposal, the SEG programme will be formed of 12 countries (EU and non-EU). In addition, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania have also expressed interest in participating in the South East Gateway. At present, setting the objectives, the priorities and the value of the financing granted for 2014-2020 are still in negotiation.

Программа South East Gateway (Юго-Восточные Ворота) - еще на стадии переговоров

%29&) 786%8)+< %6)% (6-%8-' 6)%

SOURCE: South East Europe Transnational Cooperation Programme

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Программа Юго-Восточной Европы (ЮВЕ) направлено на развитие партнерства стратегического значения в целях поддержки территориальной, экономической и социальной целостности и внесения вклада в повышение степени сплоченности, стабильности и конкурентоспособности регионов. Согласно предложению Европейской комиссии на 2014-2020 гг., будет разработано две программы (Программа „Дунай” и „Юго-Восточные Ворота”). Они практически определены реструктуризацией программы ЮВЕ.

ELECTROPUTERE VFU SA

member of GRAMPET GROUP Calea Bucureşti, 80, C9, etaj 3, Craiova 200440, România Tel.: +40740900549 Tel./fax: +40251/439053 E-mail: office@electroputerevfu.ro

Tradition and Innovation

ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2004, OHSAS 18001:2007 Autorizatie de Furnizor Feroviar AFER seria AF nr. 5708

58

StatisticS

European Union and world trade in goods

1

International trade in goods

The value of world trade in goods, excluding intra-EU-27 trade, was about EUR 18 000 billion in 2010. The European Union is the leading trader, accounting for 16 % of total world trade. The United States was the second biggest trader with a share of 14 %, European Union and world followed by China (12 %), Japan1.1 (6 %)–and South Korea (4 %). The EU is the biggest trade exporter and importer in the world. In 2010, the value of extra-EU-27 exports was EURin 1 357 billion and value of imports EUR 1 531 billion. goods The United States is the second biggest importer in the world. It also records the biggest trade deficit, about EUR 520 billion in 2010. China has become a major global trader in recent years. In 2007 China overtook the USA as the second biggest exporter Table 1.1: The main players in the world market of goods in the world.

(EUR 1 000 million)

The main players in the world market of goods (EUR 1 000 million) Exports

EU-27

USA

China

Japan

South Korea

2006

1 161.9

825.9

771.7

515.1

259.2

2007

1 242.9

848.3

890.2

521.2

271.1

2008

1 317.5

883.8

972.7

531.3

286.9

2009

1 099.2

757.6

861.5

416.3

260.6

2010

1 356.7

963.3

1 190.5

580.7

351.8

2011

1 553.9

1 063.0

1 363.8

:

:

2006

1 363.9

1 528.4

630.3

461.2

246.4

2007

1 445.0

1 471.8

697.6

454.0

260.4

Imports

1

2008

1 582.9

1 471.9

770.0

518.4

295.9

2009

1 233.1

1 148.5

720.9

395.7

231.6

2010

1 530.8

1 483.4

1 051.7

522.5

320.7

1 252.4

:

:

141.3

53.9

12.8

International trade 2011 1 713.5 in goods 1 625.4 Balance 2006

– 202.0

– 702.4

10.7 Figure 1.1: Main players in the world market of goods, 2011 (1) 2007

– 623.6

192.6

67.2

– 265.4 – 588.1 (EUR2008 1 000 million) 2009 – 133.9 in goods – 390.9 International trade

202.7

12.8

– 9.0

140.6

20.6

29.0

1

– 202.1

2 0002010

– 174.2

– 520.0

138.8

58.2

31.1

2011

– 159.6

– 562.4

111.3

:

:

1 500 Figure 1.1: Main players in the world market of goods, 2011 (1) Source: Eurostat (online data code: ext_lt_introle) 1 000 million) Main(EUR Extra-EU-27 partner regions in 2011 by gross weight of goods handled 1 000 2 000

500

1 500

0

1 000

– 500500 –1 000 0 – 500

EU-27

–1 000 (1) 2010 for JP andEU-27 KR.

USA Exports USA

China

Japan

Imports China

Balance Japan

Source: Eurostat (online data code: ext_lt_introle) Exports

South Korea

Imports

South Korea

Balance

Figure 1.2: Share in world trade in goods (imports + exports), 2010 (1) 2010 for JP and KR.

Eurostat (online data code: ext_lt_introle) (%)Source: External trade, percentage change from pre-crisis peak Jun-08 Figure 1.2: International Share in world trade in direct goods (imports + exports), 2010 11 trade and foreign investment

EU-27 16 %

(%)

EU-27 16 %

Others 48 %

USA 14 %

Others 48 %

USA 14 %

China

China12 % 12 %

South Korea South Korea 4% 4%

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

Source: Eurostat code:ext_lt_introle) ext_lt_introle) Source: Eurostat(online (online data data code:

Japan

Japan6 % 6%

The value trade iningoods, goods,excluding excluding intra-EU-27 The valueofofworld world trade intra-EU-27 trade,trade,

1.2 – Extra European Union trade in goods

StatisticS

Table 1.2: EU-27 trade in goods by geographical areas (EUR 1trade 000 million) EU-27 in goods by geographical areas (EUR 1 000 million) Exports Total extra EU-27 Other European countries

2006 1 161.9 307.2

2007 1 242.9 346.1

2008 1 317.5 377.9

2009 1 099.2 288.8

2010 1 356.7 361.0

2011 1 553.9 440.4

Africa

92.6

103.7

120.6

108.5

125.9

136.2

301.5

292.1

280.6

230.1

275.7

296.7

63.2

71.5

79.5

63.8

86.8

99.0

346.3

371.3

393.8

357.1

449.5

513.6

Oceania

26.4

29.3

32.7

26.1

32.0

36.9

Non-specified

24.7

28.9

32.4

24.7

25.8

31.2

Imports

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

Total extra EU-27

North America Central and South America Asia

1 363.9

1 445.0

1 582.9

1 233.1

1 530.8

1 713.5

Other European countries

363.5

380.9

441.0

329.5

400.8

474.1

Africa

127.9

130.8

160.7

111.8

136.8

149.5

North America

198.0

205.8

214.3

178.2

203.2

226.0

80.2

89.1

97.6

71.9

92.9

109.1

559.2

601.6

632.3

510.8

661.1

721.8

Oceania

17.8

18.8

18.9

13.8

16.7

19.9

Non-specified

17.3

18.0

18.1

17.0

19.4

13.2

Balance

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

Total extra EU-27

Central and South America Asia

– 202.0

– 202.1

– 265.4

– 133.9

– 174.2

– 159.6

Other European countries

– 56.2

– 34.8

– 63.0

– 40.7

– 39.8

– 33.7

Africa

– 35.3

86.3

66.3

51.9

72.4

70.6

1

North America Asia

1

103.5

Central and South America

The rapid decline in both imports and exports recorded by the European Union in 2009, following the financial turmoil at the end of 2008, was completely reversed in 2011. Both EU exports and imports reached a record level, summing up to more than EUR 3 000 billion. EU trade is characterised by a permanent but generally limited trade deficit. In 2011 the deficit was valued at EUR 160 billion, which was a little less than the deficit registered in the previous year.

goods – 6.1 – 10.1 Figure 1.3:–EU-27 goods, 2006-2011 – 230.3 – 238.5 153.7 –trade 211.6 –in 208.2 (EUR 10.5 1 000 13.7 million) 12.3

8.6

Non-specified

Extra European Union trade in goods

in goods –International 27.1 – 40.1 –trade 3.3 – 10.8 – 13.3

– 17.0International – 17.6 – 18.1 trade – 8.0in

– 213.0

Oceania

59

15.3

EU-277.7trade6.4in 7.4Figure 10.9 1.3: 14.3 2 000

(EUR 1 000 Source: Eurostat (online data code: ext_lt_maineu)

17.0

goods, 2006-2011 18.0

million) EU-27 trade in goods, 2006-2011 (EUR 1 000 million) 000 1 500and exports recorded by the The rapid decline in both 2imports European Union in 2009, following the financial turmoil at the end of 2008, was completely reversed in 2011. Both EU exports and imports 1 500 1 000 reached a record level, summing up to more than EUR 3 000 billion.

EU trade is characterised by a1 000 permanent but generally limited trade 500 deficit. In 2011 the deficit was valued at EUR 160 billion, which was a little less than the deficit registered in the previous year.

500

0

0– 500

2006

2007

2008

Exports

International trade and foreign direct investment

– 500

2009

2010

13 Imports

Source:2006 Eurostat (online tet00018) 2007data code:2008

2011

Balance

2009

2010

2011

Exports Imports Balance Figure 1.4: EU-27 trade in goods by geographical zone, 2011

(EUR 1 000(online million) Source: data by code: tet00018) EU-27Eurostat trade in goods geographical zone, 2011 (EUR 1 000 million) 800 1.4: EU-27 trade in goods by geographical zone, 2011 Figure

(EUR700 1 000 million) 800 600 700 500 600 400 300 500 200 400 100 300 0 200

Asia

100 0

Asia

Other European countries

Other

North America

Africa

Central and South America

Exports Africa Imports Central and North

Oceania

Oceania

SOURCE: : © European Union, 2013,European EUROSTAT Pocketbooks, International trade and foreign direct investment ,2013 edition America South

Source: Eurostat (online data code: ext_lt_maineu)

countries

America

In 2011 over 40 % of EU imports came from Asian countries while Exports

Imports

July 2013 | www.railwaypro.com

60

Lex

European Union ratifies Transport Protocol within the Alpine Convention [ by Elena Ilie ]

The Alpine Convention is a framework agreement for the protection and sustainable development of the Alpine region designed to preserve and protect the Alps (from an environmental, economic and social viewpoint) by applying the principles of prevention, “polluter pays” and cooperation between its members. At the beginning of June, the European Union ratified the Transport Protocol within the Alpine Convention. Thus, it is now effective in EU and becomes a European law.

T

Even though the citizens living in the central and peripheral Alpine regions benefit from improved accessibility, the increasing environmental impact of transport is much higher than in plain regions. The narrow valleys accentuate the effects of polluting emissions and noise. Moreover, the construction and maintenance of the transport infrastructure high on the mountains are much more expensive, have a serious impact on the environment and are related to the consumption of limited natural resources. The intensification of road freight transport in the alpine transit areas has generated significant protests over the past years. Data show a much faster growth of road transport in the trans-alpine area than that of railway transport, the preferred mode of transport for environmental protection.

“The transport protocol is a very important instrument in protecting the sensitive Alpine environment and in promoting sustainable mobility in the Alps. It provides a pattern for international coordina-

Photo: ©SBB CFF FFS

he transport protocol was ratified by all the countries in the Alpine area: Germany, France, Italy, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Austria, Switzerland and Slovenia. In the administration of the alpine territory, the contracting parties of the Convention commit to consider transport-associated risks and dangers, such as pollution (phonic or chemical) and the safety of people and goods. In parallel, the signatories have to increase the profitability of transport, to improve the use of existing infrastructures, to consider the problems of transport in evaluating and implementing other policies and to involve territorial communities in the decision making. The objectives of the Protocol in the implementation of the Alpine Convention in transport include reducing the risks and dangers of the intra-alpine transport and helping habitats and economic areas develop thanks to a harmonised transport policy between different countries which integrates different transport modes, such as road-railway.

www.railwaypro.com | July 2013

tion and efficient trans-alpine transport management and strongly supports modal shift, especially by promoting the alternative modes of transport, other than road, mainly for freight transport”, declared Siim Kallas, the European Commissioner for transport.

The Alpine Convention also defines a number of specific measures and strategies such as a good coordination of the different modes of transport, the use of intermodality and the shift of cargo transport from roads to railways.

This September, Poland will host the Alpine-Carpathian Cooperation Forum, with the participation of the members of the Alpine and Carpathian conventions, the establishment of the latter being inspired by the Alpine Convention. Romania is member of the Carpathian Convention.

Европейский союз ратифицировал Транспортный протокол в рамках Альпийской конвенции Альпийская конвенция является рамочным договором, направленным на защиту и устойчивое развитие альпийского региона, и она касается консервирования и защиты горного массива (с экологической, экономической и социальной точек зрения) за счет применения принципов предупреждения «платит загрязнитель» и сотрудничества государств-членов. Текст перегруппирует девять протоколов - каждый покрывает другой сектор. В начале июня месяца Европейский союз ратифицировал Транспортный протокол в рамках Альпийской конвенции. Следовательно, она вступит в силу в ЕС и становится европейским законом.