Rail freight traffic Betuweroute diverted till end of May
Rail freight traffic on the Betuweroute in the Netherlands will be diverted from Saturday 19 May until Sunday 27 May via the Brabantroute and the regular railway in the east of the Netherlands. In this period, construction works will be carried out on the third track between Zevenaar East and the border with Germany.
On this stretch of railway, a three-kilometre section of the third track is under construction. Due to these activities, three more closures are schedules this year, the closure starting this weekend being the first to divert traffic on the freight dedicated railway line. Contractor Dura Vermeer will build the sidings, catenary and cabling on the track.
Railway sidings
In the night from Monday to Tuesday, three ready-made sidings will be delivered from the factory of Voestalpine WBN in Hilversum to Zevenaar. According to infrastruture manager ProRail, there are only two trucks in the Netherlands permitted to transport the sidings, which are 38 metre long and weigh almost 38.000 kilogramme. In order to reach Zevenaar, the truck drivers will cut corners and cross pits through driving plates. In Zevenaar the sidings are put in place with a telecrane.
The construction of the third track between Emmerich and Oberhausen in Germany officially started in 2017. The 70-kilometre long railway line passes through several large cities and will take several more years. The third track will allow for more freight trains on the European corridors.