The yielding of the railway line to Rastatt has caused to losses for the railway logistic chain pairs to beyond two billions of euro



The yielding of the railway line to Rastatt, in Germany, that it has happened last summer and that between on 12 August and on 2 October has caused remarkable obstacles to the rail shipment in Europe, has determined losses for the railway logistic chain of the transport goods piled to a total of 2.048 million euros. It on behalf emphasizes a study realized from the society Hanseatic Transport Consultancy (HTC) of the railway associations European Rail Freight Association (ERFA), Netzwerk Europäischer Eisenbahnen (NEE) and International Union for Rail-Road Combined Transport (UIRR), specifying that losses for 969 million euros are recorded by the railway and logistic societies, for 771 million in the manifacturing field and other 308 million euros in other sections of activity, between which those of the societies of management of infrastructures and the operators of the terminals.

The relationship evidences that these damages are caused by the necessity to characterize lines alternatives of transport and by an increase of the costs, as railway lines were not available plans of emergency neither practicable alternatives, and denunciation that the interruption to Rastatt demonstrates the absolute inadequacy of the coordination of the activities and the projects of infrastructure construction. Although many flows of railway traffic goods are international - the study observes - the managers of infrastructures still behave, first of all, as if the "rules of the game" were national. Moreover the study emphasizes that the majority of lines alternatives that to reason are demanded after the happened yielding to Rastatt is refused because considered too much expensive.

The interruption of the line - specific the study - has had an immediate impact on the economies of Germany, Switzerland and Italy and such impact have not been negative as could have been since the operators are confronted however daily with events that hinder the railway traffic of the goods and therefore is prepared to face difficulties that unfortunately take part of the daily business. Moreover an impact negative on the operators and the market is determined also by the clarity lack on how much time it would have been necessary in order to restore the traffic on the interrupted line.

The president of the UIRR, Ralf-Charley Schultze, has rimarcato that the confidence of the markets in confronts of the rail shipment and of the arranged transport can be restored single adopting to European level adapted procedures of management of the emergencies, procedures - he has specified - that they must include an instrument financial in order to immediately assist the interested parts that they must support additional costs, companies that do not have of resources such from being able to support these expenses for a lingering period.

Also Carole Coune, temporary acting general secretary of the ERFA, has evidenced the necessity to reimburse ready the enterprises damaged from these events, has sped up the drawing up of emergency plans and has asked an improvement for the activity of the societies that manage railway infrastructures.

The managing director of the NEE, Peter Westenberger, has admonished not to too much record in a hurry the incident of Rastatt, as the list of the remedies to such events it is incomplete and it is not still clear if the managers of national infrastructures have indeed put into practice them. In particular, Westenberger has found that in this directory important requirements of the railway logistics are not included, in the first instance that of a transboundary coordination of the work of construction of the railway nets, but also the necessity to reimburse the additional costs determined from shunting lines of the railway traffic and to develop ulterior railway lines in a position to receiving the flow of turned aside traffic because of the opening of yards. "Every single day of inactivity during the incident of Rastatt - it has concluded Westenberger - has caused damages for about 40 million euros in Europe. Therefore it must be clearly that an analogous incident to that of Rastatt does not have to happen never more".