Betuweroute

Betuweroute

Route (red) of the Betuweroute
Overview
Locale Netherlands
Website en.betuweroute.nl
Operation
Owner NS Railinfratrust
Operator(s) ProRail/KeyRail
Technical
Line length 159 km (99 mi)
Track gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 12 in) standard gauge
Electrification 25 kV 50 Hz

The Betuweroute is a double track freight railway from Rotterdam to Germany. Betuweroute is the official name, after the Betuwe area through which it passes, but the line is popularly referred to as Betuwelijn, after an older track in the same region. The Germans have named their part the Hollandstrecke. Together they form Project nr. 5 of Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T).[1] It is among the most costly and most controversial large scale government projects ever constructed in the country.

History

Preliminary investigations into the future of west-east transport began in 1985 by the Van Bonde commission. The main advocate of the line was the then minister Neelie Kroes, later Commissioner in the European Union until 2014. In 1992 the German and Dutch governments signed the Treaty of Warnemünde, a treaty on enhancing rail traffic, especially on the tracks from Amsterdam and Rotterdam to Duisburg. The original plans foresaw three branches towards Germany. However, the northern branch via Oldenzaal was abandoned in 1999 and the southernmost track via Venlo saw the axe in 2004. In the same year, the courts forbade the construction of a large logistics centre near Valburg.

Construction of the Betuweroute in Meteren in 2004
A Railion class 189 hauled train using the Betuweroute near Deil.

Work on the Dutch part of the track began in 1998 by the NS. Delayed by two years, the railway was finished mid-2007, at a cost of 4.7 billion euro, more than two times the original budget of 2.3 billion euro, and more than quadruple the initial 1.1 billion euro estimate from 1990. Private financing for the line, promoted by the government in a bid to offset the large and rising costs and to stifle criticism about government funding, never materialized.

On June 16, 2007, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands presided over the opening ceremony for the section connecting Rotterdam 160 kilometers (99 mi) to the German border.[2] Ignoring the TEN-T and bilateral agreements, the Germans will not complete reconstruction of their section before 2015.[3]

Usage

Project management hopes to reach within five years a daily average of 150 freight trains.[4] Due to problems with safety equipment, and the unfinished German connection, traffic was still slight as of December 2007.[5] However, it increased steeply over the years 2008-2011. By mid-2011, 78% of all freight trains between Rotterdam and the German border took the Betuweroute (the rest travelled via Venlo, via the conventional railway via Arnhem to Emmerich am Rhein, or via the border at Bad Bentheim.)[6] From 2009, 6.000 tonnes trains, the heaviest in Germany and the Netherlands, transport iron ore between Rotterdam port and Dillingen in Germany using Betuweroute.

Quarterly number of trains over the Betuweroute.
Q No. of trains
2008-I
1,000
2008-II
1,200
2008-III
1,250
2008-IV
1,900
2009-I
2,350
2009-II
2,200
2009-III
2,300
2009-IV
3,000
2010-I
3,900
2010-II
4,300
2010-III
4,400
2010-IV
5,000
2011-I
5,850
2011-II
6,300

[7]

Controversy

Before and during its construction many Dutch people, experts and politicians such as members of parliament were opposed to the Betuweroute. The Dutch Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management received 14,000 complaints against the northern branch alone, which was cancelled in 1999. GroenFront![8] (Green Front), one among dozens of activist groups, accounted for 35 confrontations in 1999-2001.[9] The role of the government and ministers concerned was heavily criticised by university professors and official institutions.

The main concerns about the Betuweroute were:

Several parts of this Controversy section are based on a Dutch scientific investigation.[11]

Specifications and features

Infrastructure

A tunnel for the Betuweroute near highway A15
A bridge near Tiel
Trajectory of the Betuweroute

A lot of infrastructure was built or reconstructed to get the trains rolling. The most striking works:

Route

The route is a direct line from the Maasvlakte to Zevenaar, connecting the Europoort to Germany.

Compared with the previous rail route between Barendrecht and Elst the main deviations are:

Municipalities

Municipalities along Betuweroute:

Train path tariff

Unlike other Dutch rail network tariffs, the tariff charged to train operators for the use of the Betuwe rail line is not calculated by train weight, but by the distance the train travels. Between 2008 and 2011 it has increased progressively from €1.41 per train kilometer to €2.33 per train kilometer.[16]

References

Several parts of this article are based on: "Decision process and construction of Betuweroute, 1985-2007" (in German).

  1. "Betuweroute and the TEN network" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  2. "First freight train on the Betuweroute". Dutchnews.nl. 2007-06-18. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  3. "Germany ignores Betuwelijn". Dutchnews.nl. 2007-09-05. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  4. "FAQ Keyrail". Keyrail.nl. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  5. "Marginal use of Betuweroute". Dutchnews.nl. 2007-08-01. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  6. Halfjaarbericht Keyrail, August 2011.
  7. Halfjaarbericht Keyrail, August 2010, Jaardienstverdeling Keyrail, May 2011.
  8. "Vrienden van GroenFront! | EarthFirst! Netherlands Support Group". Groenfront.nl. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  9. 35 actions by Groen Front against the Betuweroute, 1999-2001 Dutch
  10. River transportation: Market observation 2006 Dutch barge fleet accounts for more than 50% of total tonnage in Rhine and Meuse basins, (p42). And is the most modern, second only to the German fleet, (p55). (Dutch)
  11. Rail transport vs. river transport. Scientific investigation on costs, safety, environment. Dutch
  12. Features of Betuweroute Dutch
  13. "Expansion of Rail Infrastructure and Transfer Capacity". Retrieved 2010-10-31.
  14. Website Rail cargo information. "Document showing layout Kijfhoek" (in Dutch). Retrieved 2009-06-05.
  15. "Short video about new habitat for the Great crested newt, Dutch spoken". Betuweroute.nl. Retrieved 2011-11-13.
  16. Betuweroute: Start mit Schwierigkeiten. In: Schweizer Eisenbahn-Revue. Nr. 8/9, 2007, ISSN 1022-7113, S. 382.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Betuwelijn.