TFG Transfracht and bayernhafen strengthen Lower Bavaria’s connection to the North Sea

Federal Minister of Transport Andreas Scheuer and the Bavarian State Minister for Housing, Construction and Transport, Kerstin Schreyer, praise the cooperative logistics partnership in the region: bayernhafen Passau and DB-Cargo subsidiary TFG Transfracht are expanding the freight train network from Passau to and from the North Sea ports. The project stems from an initiative in the IHK Transport Committee.

(Passau) The bayernhafen Passau is now connected to the German seaports with daily freight train services. The winners are import and export-oriented companies in Lower Bavaria. The initiative for this new, environmentally friendly connection in combined transport (KV) was taken by entrepreneurs from the region – the KV connection is being implemented without funding. The trains are operated by DB-Cargo subsidiary TFG Transfracht, which has been the market leader in so-called seaport hinterland transport with containers for over 50 years.

Passau is a hub and transshipment point

Since February 1, the AlbatrosExpress has been running daily from Passau towards the North Sea ports. The terminal of bayernhafen Passau serves as the hub and transshipment point. Containers with automotive components and trade goods primarily come from the north to Lower Bavaria. In exports, goods from the Lower Bavarian economy are transported north, including from the automotive, renewable technology, and agriculture sectors. The seaports of Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Bremen, and Wilhelmshaven are directly connected to Passau via environmentally friendly rail. Container handling is carried out by bayernhafen Passau using a reach stacker and a mobile harbor crane, which has been in operation since early 2019. In addition to transport in combined transport, the partners DB Cargo, TFG Transfracht, and bayernhafen offer the additional service of single wagon transport. The idea of implementing Passau as a hinterland port location originated in 2019 in the IHK Lower Bavaria’s Transport, Logistics, and Infrastructure Committee.

Federal Minister of Transport Andreas Scheuer present at the launch

Federal Minister of Transport Andreas Scheuer: “The arguments for combined transport are unbeatable: more goods on water and rail means fewer trucks on the roads. With the Albatros Express alone, we relieve the roads by around 10,000 trucks. This means less traffic, fewer traffic jams, fewer accidents, fewer emissions – and more quality of life for the people. This project is also a model in terms of implementation: from idea to completion in just one and a half years – real qualities of action have been demonstrated here.” “With the inclusion of bayernhafen Passau into the combined transport network of Transfracht, combined transport in Bavaria takes the next step,” says Kerstin Schreyer, Bavarian State Minister for Housing, Construction, and Transport. “Our ports include not only inland vessels but also trains: they transport goods further and ensure the supply of the population – even during the pandemic. We need to integrate rail and waterways much more into transport chains and combine them optimally. This way, we achieve the best possible balance of people, economy, and ecology in freight transport.” Dr. Sigrid Nikutta, Board Member for Freight Transport at DB AG and Chairwoman of the Board of DB Cargo AG: “Our partner bayernhafen and our customers have created a network into which we as a railway can bring our strengths: with maximum flexibility and at the same time predictability, we can offer competitive logistics solutions. And: every ton of freight that sets off from here emits 80 percent less CO₂ than a truck on the highway.”

Consolidating freight flows

“Our goal is to consolidate freight flows and shift traffic from the road to rail and inland shipping,” says bayernhafen Managing Director Joachim Zimmermann, “the new intermodal train connects Lower Bavarian companies with the German North Sea coast. This shows: our investment in the trimodal expansion at the bayernhafen location Passau-Schalding is bearing fruit. We thus offer maximum flexibility for the requirements of the Lower Bavarian economy.” All five trimodal bayernhafen locations Aschaffenburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Regensburg, and Passau are now regularly connected to the German seaports. “A strong signal for the economic location of Bavaria and climate protection.” “Each mode of transport has its own specific strengths. We need the combination of rail, ship, and truck to optimize the logistical processes in the region as much as possible. However, the advantages of a trimodal connection, as offered by Passau, have so far only been utilized to a limited extent,” says Jürgen Pfeil, freight forwarder and chairman of the IHK Committee on ‘Transport, Logistics, and Infrastructure’. That is now different: “Our companies now have an international container terminal at their doorstep, which opens up entirely new possibilities on the railways to and from the seaports,” says Pfeil. This has been made possible by the collaboration of several actors from the IHK Lower Bavaria Committee. “We have been advocating for decades for an improvement in transport connections in our region. But we do not only demand, we also deliver. In this case, and very concretely: a new offer from the economy – for the economy,” emphasizes Pfeil.

Strengthening the Bavarian economy

“We are very pleased to integrate Passau as a new hinterland port location into our comprehensive AlbatrosExpress network as of February 1,” says Frank Erschkat, spokesperson for the management of TFG Transfracht GmbH, “with this new offer for our customers, together with our partner bayernhafen, we connect the economic area of Passau with efficient rail connections to all major North German seaports. With ten departing and arriving trains per week between Passau and Regensburg, as well as the transfer there to our high-frequency axis from Regensburg to and from the German seaports with 46 trains, we further strengthen the Bavarian economy. On the way to achieving our sustainability goals, we are very pleased to shift further truck transports from the road to the rail with the product ‘TFGreen’ in connection with the expansion of rail transport in KV and EV. This allows us, together with our customers and partners, to make a significant contribution to our environment. For the Passau region, this means relieving the roads of around 10,000 trucks and a CO₂ saving of 4,000 tons per year.” “A very good piece of news for us Passau residents: bayernhafen Passau will be integrated into container rail transport,” says Passau’s Mayor Jürgen Dupper, “this gives the trimodal hub bayernhafen even more life and connects companies from the region with the large German North Sea ports. Through this integration into seaport hinterland transport, Lower Bavarian companies can now switch to the more environmentally friendly mode of transport, rail. This means there are winners on many sides. Thanks to everyone who contributed to realizing this offer in Passau.”

About TFG Transfracht

TFG Transfracht is a company of DB Cargo with a transport volume of over 900,000 TEU (2020). TFG Transfracht is the market leader in containerized seaport hinterland transport of the German seaports. With its comprehensive AlbatrosExpress network, TFG Transfracht connects the ports of Hamburg, Bremerhaven, Wilhelmshaven, Koper, Rotterdam, and Antwerp daily with over 15,000 locations in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

About bayernhafen

bayernhafen includes the six locations Aschaffenburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Roth, Regensburg, and Passau – hubs for global goods exchange that efficiently link the transport routes of water, rail, and road. Approximately 9 million tons of goods are transshipped annually by ship and rail. bayernhafen acts as a location architect, investing in infrastructure and jointly with port settlers unlocking new value creation potentials across companies and locations. 800 hectares of total port area and over 400 resident companies with more than 13,000 employees make bayernhafen one of the most powerful logistics networks in Europe. The operator of the locations Aschaffenburg, Bamberg, Regensburg, and Passau is Bayernhafen GmbH & Co. KG. The managing director is Joachim Zimmermann. The locations Nuremberg and Roth are operated by Hafen Nürnberg-Roth GmbH, in which Bayernhafen GmbH & Co. KG holds 80 percent, the city of Nuremberg holds 19 percent, and the city of Roth holds one percent. Photo: © DB / Image caption: from left to right: Mr. Frank Erschkat, spokesperson for the management of TFG Transfracht GmbH / Dr. Sigrid Nikutta, Board Member for Freight Transport DB AG and Chairwoman of the Board of DB Cargo AG / Federal Minister of Transport Andreas Scheuer / Mr. Joachim Zimmermann, Managing Director of bayernhafen / Mr. Jürgen Pfeil, freight forwarder and chairman of the IHK Committee on ‘Transport, Logistics, and Infrastructure’ / Mr. Christian Süß, Head of Regional Area South TFG Transfrachtwww.transfracht.com      www.bayernhafen.de