UIC gauge to Catalunya
DB subsidiary helps speed up Spain’s railway links to Europe. The need for variable gauge wheelsets for Iberia’s 1,668 mm broad-gauge at the Franco-Spanish border has put a brake on rail traffic across the Pyrenees so far. Now Transfesa has used a 1,435 mm UIC line between Perpignan and the port of Barcelona for the first time.
After rather intensive preparations a pretty special first journey took place between Perpignan (France) and the port of Barcelona (Catalunya, Spain) recently.
On 3 January Transfesa, a Spanish subsidiary of DB Cargo, used a UIC track, which runs largely parallel to existing lines, for the first time. This was made possible by an order for five new Euro 6000 locomotives, manufactured by Stadler.
The first two locomotives – the second one of which sports the programmatic name “I’m European” – were deployed recently, making the reloading of wagons or container transhipment from wagon to wagon, that was previously necessary, redundant. Cross-border railfreight traffic has thus been greatly accelerated.
The new engines can operate on the upgraded section of line as well as throughout France, which offers great opportunities for the DB Cargo Group and for international railfreight transport to and from Spain.
This is because Transfesa’s traction fleet is set to be expanded for standard-gauge operations in the coming years, and the standard gauge itself is set to be extended for goods trains in Spain, running via Tarragona as far south as Valencia.
DB Cargo France and Transfesa have plans to use the locomotives on journeys within France too.