Rail Transport System

In this section, you will learn more about the rail transport system. After the activities, the goods, that are transported by rail are presented to you. Rail transport requires trains, railways and railway stations, so you will also learn more about those elements. To summarize the section of rail transport, some advantages and disadvantages of the rail transport system will be presented.

The figure "Rail system model" shows the structure of the content of this topic.

On this page, the element "Activities" is presented.

• We as consumer drive the system.
• The order is the steering medium.

The second element "Goods" of the conceptual system model relates to the goods transported by rail freight transport.

• bulk goods, e.g. iron, steel, etc.
• building materials as well as garbage and waste
• liquids, mineral oil and chemical products
• agricultural and forestry products 
• consumer goods
• food and therefore perishable goods which have to be temperature-controlled
• cars and car components
• hazardous goods 
• heavy load transports and special transports

Transport

On this page, the element "Trains" is introduced. We will discuss different types of trains and traffic volumes. In addition, we will show you, in which different ways trains are operating. 

• Type E: Open Top Freight Wagon
  • 2-axle and 4-axle
  • open, solid, high-resistance box wagon 
  • The wagon can be loaded from the top using mechanized loading devices.
  • This freight wagon is designed for the transport of weather-resisting bulk materials: Coal, ore, crushed rocks, etc. 
• Type F: Open Hopper Wagon (Bulk freight wagon)
  • The wagon takes advantage of gravity to unload its contents through two pairs of bottom doors.  
  •  The self-unloading wagon is designed to transport sand, stone and other aggregate materials.
• Type H: High Capacity Sliding Wall Wagon
  • A wagon with sliding walls, which permits easy side loading and unloading with forklifts.
  • The wagon is best suited to transport paper coils, cellulose, sawn timber, sheets of plywood and goods on palettes.
• Type K: 2-axle Flat Wagon
  • The wagon can be loaded and unloaded from the top and via side ramps.
  • Materials can be protected against the weather by a waterproof tarpaulin. 
• Type R: 4-axle bogie flat wagon
  • This freight wagon is designed for the transport of heavy loads of packaged materials or long loads, such as steel pipes, profiles or lumber.
• Type S: 6-axle bogie flat wagon
  • This freight wagon is particularly for heavy loads.
• Type T: Covered Hopper Wagon (Bulk freight wagon)
  • The wagon with swivel or roll roof and sidewall doors for heavy cargo.
• Type T: Wagon with opening roof
  • This freight wagon is particularly suitable for weather-sensitive goods.
• Type U: Tank wagon for forced air pressure discharge
  • This freight wagon is specifically for the transport of powdery, granular goods.
• Type Z: Tank wagon 
  • This freight wagon is for the transport of liquids and gases.
• Type L: Car Carrier Wagon
  • This freight wagon is designed to transport automobiles and vans.
• Combined Transport
  • Large containers and swap bodies

 

Traffic

• For safety reasons, railway lines are divided into sections known as blocks.
• Normally, only one train is permitted in each block at a time.
• The train length influences the block allocation. 
• The permissible maximum (total) train length is 740 metres; this corresponds to about 35 wagons (railcar length of 700 metres without driven head unit) and/or
• a regular train has a maximum of 250 axes. Under certain conditions it is up to 252 axes or/and
• the maximum permissible axle load is 22.5 t and/or the towing weight is 2,500 t.

• Bulk freight trains with special operational treatment up to 5,000 t.
• November 2008: For the first time, a 1,000 m freight train ran between Oberhausen and Rotterdam (Betuwe Route in the Netherlands only for freight trains).
• 2012: Freight trains between Padborg (DK) and Maschen (GER) with a length of 835 m (40 wagons), expanded 2016 to the Port of Hamburg (Hohe Schaar).
• In order to operate a train that exceeds the normal dimensions, some adjustments of infrastructure and operations are required:
  • extension of passing tracks
  • adjustment of control and safety technology
  • extension of block sections

 

• Rhine Graben:  ARA-ports-Duisburg-Koblenz-Mainz-Mannheim-Karlsruhe-Basel
• North-south route:  Hamburg-Hanover-Fulda-Würzburg-Munich-Brenner  (incl. Würzburg-Nuremberg-Passau-Vienna)

• Block trains are the fastest product in the rail system because of the comparatively short transport times without stopping at the marshalling yard.
• The organization of block trains is less complex.
• The coordination of departure and arrival times of block trains is more flexible.

• DB Cargo AG: 
  • DBplantrain is planning the transport requirements a long time in advance, leading to a cost-effective planning. It regularly transports large volumes on fixed routes for fixed transport dates and times. 
  • DBflextrain arranges transport volumes, connections and operating times at short notice, offering a last-minute block train. Customers have maximum flexibility upon order placement.   
• NYK Line Amsterdam-Duisburg: 
  • 80 TEU capacity per train, 6 trains per week (NYK Line)
  • Transit time: Amsterdam - Duisburg in 7 hours 
• Trans-Sibirian container train for BMW: 
  • Regular since 2011, this new transport product enables shorter transport durations for 10,000 -12,000 km of 14-16 days. Compared to maritime transport, only half the time is needed.  
  • 75% cost advantages in comparison to air transport, but 50% above costs for maritime transport.
  • 400 trains with 35,000 containers in 2015
  • Use of customer specific trains as "dedicated company trains“
  • E.g. Trans-Siberian container train for BMW from Leipzig to Shenyang 

• available at short notice
• full network coverage in Europe
• flexible management of freight wagon loading and unloading processes

• accompanied combined transport („Rollende Landstraße“ / „rolling highway“)
• unaccompanied combined transport

The next element of the conceptual system model is infrastructure. In the rail transport system, the infrastructure is called "Railways". Those railways are needed for the realization of rail traffic.

On this page we deal with topics such as the infrastructural structure, interoperability and technical characteristics of the railway track.

• The 1435 millimeters gauge accounts for about 60% of the total gauge kilometers and was introduced in North America and most of Western Europe, for example.
• The 1520 millimeters gauge accounts for about 17% of the total gauge mileage and has been introduced in Russia and some parts of Eastern Europe (Baltic States, Belarus, Ukraine).
• The Iberian broad gauge of 1668 millimeters is unique in Western Europe and was created by averaging the Spanish (1672 millimeters) and Portuguese (1665 millimeters) broad gauge.

• power systems (voltage and safety systems, pantographs width),
• track gauges,
• clearance profiles and loading gauges profiles.

• Since 1960, two-and multi-system locomotives are used in transnational rail traffic, eliminating the time-consuming need to change locomotives.
• Multi-system trains are used in particular in the high-speed rail system (e.g. Thalys operated between Cologne and Paris (1997)). 
• Currently, the ICE 3M (406 series; "M" for multi-system capable) operates between Germany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands.
• Since June 2007, the TGV POS runs between Paris, Eastern France and Southern Germany.

 

 

In the figure "Pantograph width", you can see the different pantograph widths of the railway network in Europe, which is varying from 1450 mm, over 1800 mm and 1900 mm up to 2050 mm. 

In addition, a barrier-free rail network requires common technical standards such as track gauge and direction of travel, which are presented below. 

Driving direction

The figure "Driving directions" shows the different driving directions of the trains in Europe. In some countries, trains run on either the right or the left track, while in some countries, trains run on both the right and left track.

 

 

 

 

 

While the right structure gauge (G1 profile) can be used throughout Europe, the large volume wagons on the left (G2 profile) are too big for some countries and therefore can’t be used in UK, France, Italy, Belgium and Switzerland. 

Loading gauge profile

Defines the maximum height and width for railway vehicles and loads and ensures the safe passage through bridges, tunnels and other structures. The figure shows the different loading gauges for the UK, France, Germany and the Eurotunnel. In the UK, the headroom above rail level is only 3.96 m, while the Eurotunnel has a headroom above rail level of 5.60 m.

This page deals with the last element of the conceptual system model facilities. In the rail transport system, the facilities are called "Railway Stations".

• In operation since 1977, underwent major modernization between 2009 and 2013.
• Largest marshalling yard in Europe for regional, national and international freight train formation. 
• Hub for hinterland transport of maritime ports of Hamburg and Bremerhaven as well as Scandinavia traffics.
• Currently, around 1 million freight wagons are treated (150 trains / 3.500 wagons daily).
• Maschen is a hump yard. 
• Lead track on a hill (hump) that an engine pushes the cars over. Cars are uncoupled just before the hump, and roll by gravity into their destination tracks.

Accession

 

 

Overall Rail transport is safe and reliable. The high environmental friendliness and, in addition, the high transport capacity make rail transport attractive. What speaks against it, however, are the high costs and the general inflexibility.

More advantages and disadvantages of rail transport are listed below.

• safe transport
• exact time tables, reliable
• hazardous goods permissible
• no general driving ban on Sundays
• heavy lift traffic handling
• economy of scale → advantage only for block-trains and direct trains
• high transport capacity 
• higher single loading weight compared to trucks
• own infrastructure → certain level of independence (e.g. no traffic jam)
• relatively fast point to point delivery
• if electrified, best ecological performance compared to other transport modes
• low energy consumption per tkm, based on transported unit 
• opportunities for automation

• no complete coverage and in most countries reduction of the track network
• inflexible operations through binding timetable 
• inflexible due to high expenditures of time and costs for the preparation and implementation of transportation
• capital-intensive set-up, operation and maintenance costs
• high external costs
• exclusion of certain dangerous goods
• no seamless interfaces between competing railway networks under separate ownership (interoperability and non-discrimination)