The Swiss operators ask ulterior measures in order to stimulate the transalpine transport goods railway



The main Helvetic operators of intermodal transport and the associations of the field have exhorted the Swiss federal Council to adopt ulterior measures in order to promote the transfer of the transport of the goods from the road to the track on the transalpine axis north-south. Today, in a communication turned to the Helvetic government, operators Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB International Cargo and associations VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG have explained that, "with the opening of the Gallery of base of Ashes in December 2020, another dowel of the jigsaw puzzle for a efficient connection will be completed north-south through Switzerland. However - they have denounced - the potenziamento of the international corridor goods is behind schedule at least a decade. The increases of productivity in the arranged transport international turn out therefore halved regarding how much initially previewed".

Remembering that 13th November the Swiss government has adopted the relationship on the transfer of the traffic of 2019, recognizing in principle the delay in the performance of the specific program and introducing a "package of measures in order to strengthen the modal transfer", operators and associations of the field they have complained that however, from the point of view of the field of the Swiss transport goods, "the proposed measures are not sufficient. In order to maintain to the competitiveness of the TCNA (transport arranged not accompanied) in the transalpine transport and to continue the modal transfer - they have specified - the field demands ulterior measures".

Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB International Cargo, VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG have observed that, "with the opening of the Gallery of base of Ashes in December 2020, the Alptransit project officially will be completed. However, the advantages for the traffic goods in the alpine transit through Switzerland will be realized alone with a remarkable delay. Numerous factors contribute to the fact that the productivity of the used resources - railway locomotives, staff, cars, etc - cannot be increased in the measure and the times originally previewed: the delay in the widening of the ways of access to north - they have evidenced - returns the circulation of trains of 740 meters of length impossible. Frequent and not coordinated yards to international level, with shunting lines and temporary reductions of ability, prevent the previewed reduction of the times of distance and determine a continuous worsening of the quality. The consequences are delays and inefficient use of the resources".

"Because of the international planning coordinated of the railway traces - they have still found - the benefits in terms of time of travel in Switzerland will not go lost to the frontiers. The remaining slopes of the line and the concept of exercise of the Gallery of base of Saint Gottardo continue to demand the employment of a second locomotive for the heavy trains. In these conditions, the operators of the arranged transport can reach to the maximum the half of the effects on the productivity initially previewed".

"Al fine to maintain the current volume of the arranged transport transalpine and to increase in the mid term to the volumes of traffic in perspective of the attainment of the objective of modal transfer - Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB have restated International Cargo, VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG - the Swiss field of the transport goods proposes politics of modal transfer in the long term until 2030 with additional measures".

In particular, operators and associations of the field have proposed the "delay until 2030 of the duration of the picture of payment for the support to the transalpine TCNA. In order not to compromise the positive results of the current politics of modal transfer - they have explained - the promotion of the arranged transport transalpine does not have to be suspended prematurely. From the point of view of the market, it is necessary to postpone the duration of the measures of support until 2030 not being been expectable ulterior effects on the productivity until that year".

The operators of intermodal transport and the associations of the field have specify moreover that, "according to the monitoring of the federal Office of the transports, the deficits of quality of the trains constantly are increased. While in 2009 75% of the trains have had less than an hour than delay, in the first half of the 2019 solo 55% of all the trains quickly have inferior delays to the 60 minutes. 12% of the trains today are quite behind schedule at least 12 hours. These deficits of qualities, which had to the potenziamento of the infrastructure of the corridor with numerous yards and limitations of ability - they have observed - will continue to heavy weigh on the productivity at least until 2030. The temporal horizon of 2030 supplies also necessary safety of the investment. The transport enterprises will invest in gruabili container and towings, the operators in railway cars and the terminals and the railway enterprises in locomotives if a use of this capital goods is guaranteed in the long term".

Finding that "a efficient railway infrastructure, arranged with prices of the railway traces at the level of Germany and of Italy, allows to manage the transport arranged through Switzerland in sustainable way", enterprises and associations have emphasized that if "this guiding principle is still valid", "however the operating and infrastructural conditions of the corridor north-south through Switzerland do not satisfy these requirements neither now neither in the years to come". Moreover they have restated that "during this period the operators of the arranged transport and the railway enterprises will be able to increase the productivity not beyond the half of the value initially previewed for the completion of Alptransit".

Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB International Cargo, VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG have specified then that if "the review of the price of the Swiss railway traces for 2021, that it winds down the base price for the traffic goods and introduces reductions in price for the long trains, contributes in meaningful way to the support of the arranged transport", "however, relatively per year of reference 2018, remain a refuse of about the half of the contributions of exercise pairs to 110 million franchi Swiss. On the base of this analysis, the field of the transport goods asks that the arranged transport accompanied is not supported until 2030 with contributions of exercise pairs to 55 million franchi per year. This will allow with the arranged transport to maintain the current volume of transfer of the traffic and to absorb in wide measure the increase of the traffic. If the conditions picture had to improve more quickly of the previewed one, for example improving the quality meaningfully or optimizing in sustainable way the international timetables, they could be continued to acquire ulterior volumes of traffic for the track".

According to the companies and the associations of the field, "with previewed the ulterior increase of the TCNA until 2030, the trend of reduction of the subsidies for each shipment could be newly meaningfully improved. If in the 2011 they are paid in average 173 franchi Swiss of contributions of exercise for every transferred truck, in the 2018 - they have remembered - figure it was of 116 franchi. According to the forecasts of the field of the transport goods, within the 2030 such amount it would have to come down ulteriorly to 40-45 franchi for every transferred truck".

Evidencing that, for the promotion of the traffic goods on track, the success of the Alptransit project, face to create an alpine railway cross-sectional new on the axis of Saint Gottardo, he depends on covered of access efficient to the base galleries, operators and associations have emphasized that regarding the deficit of access to the infrastructure to north "it is necessary to create an alternative urgently". According to the company, "solo the line to the left of the Rhine through France can be considered a efficient alternative distance (plain line)". For Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB International Cargo, VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG, "is ideal for the director to high Belgium-Italy volume". Moreover they have specified that "a connection directed with the corridor exists also on the right river Rhenish, that affords to reduce the risks of interruptions", even if, "however, these routes still do not correspond to the parameters of the transit corridors through Switzerland and therefore currently they transport only a modest volume of traffic". Therefore they have proposed that, "in order to at best take advantage of the abilities on these lines alternatives for the traffic through Switzerland, the drafts Zeebrugge/Antwerp - Strasbourg - Basel and the connection Wörth - Lauterbourg - Strasbourg must be adequate to the parameters 740 meters of length of the train, 4 meters of height to the edge, 2,000 tons with a locomotive, ETCS. In this way a system to north with two ways of access and an alternative would be created also on the left river Rhenish”.

Hupac, BLS Cargo and SBB International Cargo, VAP, VÖV UTP and ASTAG have concluded finding that this “is absolutely in the interest of Switzerland and its politics of transfer of the transit traffic” and that “for its performance a political initiative of Switzerland with France and Belgium is necessary that would have to lead to a treaty of State on the development of infrastructures”.