Annual Report of the Coordinator Péter Balázs Brussels October 2013
Transport
TEN-T Trans-European Transport Networks Annual Activity Report 2012-2013 for PriorityProject 17 Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien- Bratislava Brussels October 2013 Péter Balázs European Coordinator
This report only represents the opinion of the European Coordinator and does not prejudice the official position of the European Commission. 2 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Summary 3
1. Introduction 5
2. The Examples of significant progress 2009-2013 6
3. The Development in 2012/2013 along the sections 7
3.1. Baudrecourt - Strasbourg 7
3.2. Strasbourg - Kehl - Appenweier 7
3.3. Appenweier - Stuttgart 7
3.4. Stuttgart - Ulm 7
3.5. Ulm - Augsburg 9
3.6. Munich - Salzburg 9
3.7. Salzburg - Vienna 12
3.8. Vienna - Bratislava 13
4. Intermodality 14
5. The Development of the travelling time 14
6. Activities in 2012/2013 15
7. TEN-T and CEF 16
8. Conclusions and recommendations at the end of the mandate 17
Annex 18
European Commission
3 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
SUMMARY
The Priority Project 17 Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Vienna-Bratislava (PP17) is one out of only three east-west oriented railway axis crossing very densely populated areas in the centre of Europe. It stretches over 1,254 km and touches upon four Member States: France, Germany, Austria and Slovakia. It was designated in 20041.
After the signature of a declaration of intent by the ministers for transport of the four Member States on 9 June 2006 and several bilateral treaties on cross-border sections, the implementation of PP17 made progress on most segments. Important sections are in service, others on their way to completion during the next years:
• In France, the works on the section Baudrecourt-Vendenheim started in October 2010. The whole section shall be in service by 2016
• Works on the section Stuttgart-Ulm started in 2010 and the section shall be fully operational not before December 2021
• Munich-Salzburg: The planned three track Freilassing-Salzburg section and the dual track section between Mühldorf and Tüßling are expected to be completed by 2016/2017
• Works on the Wels-Linz section are on-going and expected to be finished by 2021/2025
• The four-track Linz-Vienna section (including the freight rail bypass St. Pölten) shall be in operation by 2017
• The St. Pölten-Vienna section – including Lainzer Tunnel - was finished in December 2012, allowing a 17 minute reduction in travel time from 41 to 24 minutes on that section and further savings for the east-west services of freight (2012) and passengers (2014)
• Vienna-Bratislava: The new Vienna Main Station was partly opened in December 2012. The Station will be fully operational by 2014
The development along the axis and related projects are co-funded by the European Commission with up to € 776.44 million (1995-2015) through the TEN-T budget (€691 million), the European Recovery Plan (€85.4 million) and – in the Slovak Republic – also some contributions from the Cohesion Fund
Even though progress along this railway axis is good, it should be pointed out that there are still problems to be tackled:
• Works required to finish the Kehl-Appenweier section were stopped after the inauguration of the bridge in 2010. Further planning steps are not in sight.
• The implementation of the section Munich – Mühldorf- Freilassing - Salzburg is behind schedule in Germany.
• In Munich an efficient integration of the airport into the national rail net is still not scheduled.
• The improvement of the connections between Vienna and Bratislava is lagging behind.
1 Decision No 884/2004/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on "Community guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network", http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:167:0001:0038:EN:PDF European Commission
4 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
At the end of the mandate, the European Coordinator considers that a solid examination of alternatives, profound cost estimations and risk assessment are as important as continuous and efficient information of the different stakeholders and the public before and especially during the implementation. The examples of the different projects in Stuttgart or the improvement of the “Westbahn” in Austria show that the decision making processes, the legal steps and the implementation might last for more than 25 years. The communication has to be based on a coordinated and continuous approach of the national and regional ministries, the infrastructure managers, the cities and the affected citizens to avoid huge disruptions during implementation - like those which took place in Stuttgart.
With regards to intermodality, the Coordinator emphasises the need of improved connections to the ports and the airports. He expects that improved rail-air connections will be realised in Vienna by 2015 and in Stuttgart by 2021. He stresses the need to improve the national rail connection at Munich airport and better connections between Bratislava and Vienna Airport as soon as possible.
European Commission
5 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
1. INTRODUCTION
In July 2005, the European Commission designated a first group of Coordinators to evaluate progress on certain TEN-T Priority Projects and to make recommendations for the effective implementation of these projects, in 2007 two further Coordinators for Motorways of the Sea and Inland Waterways followed. In July 2009, the Commission adopted a decision launching a second mandate. Since 2010, nine European Coordinators are now responsible for promoting eleven Priority Projects. The mandates are going to finish in December 2013 and will be replaced by new mandates according to the new TEN-T guidelines.
In 2005, Péter Balázs was appointed European Coordinator for TEN-T Priority Project 17 (Paris- Stuttgart-Vienna-Bratislava), a role he held until April 2009 when he became Minister for Foreign Affairs in Hungary. In June 2010, he was re-appointed by the European Commission to continue the coordination of the development along the axis.
Priority Project 17 Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart- Vienna-Bratislava (PP17) is one out of only three east-west oriented railway axes crossing very densely populated areas in the centre of Europe. It stretches over 1,254 km and touches upon four Member States: France, Germany, Austria and Slovakia. It was designated in 2004. In general the implementation of PP17 made good progress on most sections: Nearly half of the alignment is in service on the initially planned level. Works are on- going along about 450 km (36%) of the axis.
The European Union has contributed, and will continue to contribute, financially to several projects with grants of up to 50% for studies in all four States and up to 25% for works in France, Germany and Austria. The contribution totals up to € 776.44 million until 2015: €691 million from the TEN-T budget and €85.4 million from the European Recovery Plan (EERP). Investments attributed to the high speed axis east (PP4), the railway axis Lyon/Genova-Basel-Duisburg-Rotterdam/Antwerpen (PP24) in Baden-Württemberg and in the European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS) along different axes touching upon PP17 also positively affected the development of the railway axis. Especially with the TEN-T calls 2011 and 2012 additional funding was made available for works in Austria (€42.68 million) and for works and a study in Germany (€63.5 million).
Between 2007, the start of TGV services, and June 20122 more than 6 million travellers used the TGV-Est, 3.6 million of them on the Paris-Frankfurt route and 2.7 million on the route Paris- Stuttgart-Munich. On the Paris-Strasbourg and the Paris-Stuttgart routes, TGV gained market leadership (90% and 56%).
A recent PROGNOS study3 concerning the German subsections of PP17 corridor confirms that the parts of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria along PP17 are very productive and innovative regions: Not only with regard to the national average in R&D employment and investments but also to the number of patents. They belong to the top regions in Germany: The regions stand for 30% of the German patent registrations and 30% of R&D investments. The regions attract migration of qualified employees. An efficient rail line with attractive connections and efficient regional- and urban transport are substantial along this corridor.
In 2012 and 2013 the Coordinator considered that the most important implementing steps for the entire Priority Project were:
1. The inauguration of the new line Wien- St. Pölten in November 2011 allowing a 17 minute reduction in travel time from 41 to 24 minutes since December 2012
2. The tunnel cut-through of the Saverne Tunnel in France on 25 February 2013
2 Stuttgarter Zeitung, 09 June 2012 (http://www.stuttgarter-zeitung.de/inhalt.von-stuttgart-nach-paris-der-tgv-hat-das- flugzeug-abgehaengt.e172b638-b541-4af6-bb0d-be84bc453766.html#) 3 prognos progtrans for IHK Schwaben „Bewertung der ökonomischen und verkehrlichen Bedeutung des TEN-17-Korridors“, Stuttgart, 2013 European Commission
6 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
2. THE EXAMPLES OF SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS 2009-2013
In general the implementation of PP17 made good progress on most sections. The most important milestones which were achieved during the 2nd mandate of the EU coordinator were:
• April 2009: Financial agreement to implement the section Stuttgart-Ulm and the start of the works in February 2010. The project shall be finished by December 2021
• September 2009: Financial agreement to implement the last part of TGV Est Baudrecourt- Vendenheim and the start of the works in October 2010
• January 2010: The start of works at Vienna Central Station to improve the east-west connections in Vienna and beyond
• December 2010: The opening of Kehl bridge. The new dual track bridge (max 160 km/h) increases the capacity and offering new international as well as regional services
• December 2011: The Augsburg-Munich section (61 km) was put into service allowing 230 km/h along this four track section after 13 years of work
• May 2012: Start of works for the new high speed line Wendlingen-Ulm (60 km)
• November 2012: Inauguration of the new line Wien- St.Pölten and putting into service part of new Vienna main station in December. The EU-contribution to these sections adds up to more than €200 million, mainly between 2007 and 2015
• July 2013: The airport connection in Munich made some steps to implementation: The planning and permission documents will be prepared until end 2015, 50% co-funded by TEN-T
European Commission
7 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
3. THE DEVELOPMENT IN 2012/2013 ALONG THE SECTIONS
3.1. Baudrecourt - Strasbourg
In France, the works on the Baudrecourt-Vendenheim started in October 2010. The whole section should be in service by 2016, bringing a 30 minutes reduction of travel time between Paris and Strasbourg.
3.2. Strasbourg - Kehl – Appenweier
The Kehl Bridge crossing the river Rhine was opened in December 2010. The realisation of the Kehl-Appenweier subsection as a whole is going to be postponed beyond 2015. The building of a non-level-crossing (“Karlsruher Kurve”) is planned to facilitate connections with the Rhine axis in times of a growing number of regional, national and international trains along the upper Rhine valley. DB Netz started preliminary planning for the curve allowing 180 km/h; the financing and an implementation schedule are still open. The project is going to be evaluated in preparation of the next Federal Transport Masterplan (Bundesverkehrswegeplan 2015).
3.3. Appenweier – Stuttgart
Important sections between Appenweier-Karlsruhe and Stuttgart have already been completed except a 17km-section south of Karlsruhe including the Rastatter Tunnel4. In this section, the capacity for passenger and freight trains is still limited on the existing 2-tracks. A separate 2-track line for 250 km/h max is planned - partly in parallel alignment with the expressway B36 -to overcome this bottleneck. The ground breaking ceremony took place on 30 July 2013. The excavation-works for the 4,270 m Rastatter-Tunnel are expected to start end 2015. The works shall last about seven years.
3.4. Stuttgart - Ulm
After more than 20 years of debating and spatial planning a political agreement was signed between the German Minister of Transport, Deutsche Bahn AG and the regional authorities on 19 July 2007. The financial agreement followed in April 2009. The project incorporates the construction of the new Stuttgart central railway station, the complex new planning of the surrounding Stuttgart railway junction and a new high speed line to connect the two cities of Stuttgart and Ulm. The works for the new station are on-going since 2010, the works at the new high-speed line to Ulm started on 2012. In 2013, ten of 15 final permits were issued by the responsible authorities, the permissions 2.1 a/b and 2.5a1 are expected for 2014 at the latest5.
Outstanding final permits
PFA6 1.3 1.6b 2.1a/2.1b 2.5a1
Flughafen Ober-/ Untertürkheim, Abstellbhf. Albvorland Knoten Ulm, Donaubrücke
Along the section Wendlingen-Ulm the works are on-going, including 15km – out of 30km in total - tunnel sections and other works parallel to the motorway A8. In August 2013 Deutsche Bahn AG commissioned the work to build the “Filstalbrücke” which will be 500 meters long.
In Stuttgart, DB AG wanted to start the ground water management in August 2013 to enable works for the tunnels to start by autumn 2013, but the permission needed is not adopted yet. Officially
4 DBAG “Ausbau- und Neubaustrecke Karlsruhe-Basel, Planfeststellungsaschnitte 1.1 und 1.2“, http://www.rastatt.de/fileadmin/Stadt_Rastatt/Bilder/Bilder_PM/Broschuere_DB_AG_PfA_1.1_1.2.pdf 5 Deutscher Bundestag, Drs. 17/13846: Antwort der Bundesregierung auf ein kleine Anfrage (Drs. 17/13198) 6 PFA=Planfeststellungsabschnitt (planning section) European Commission
8 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
the section shall be put into operation by December 2021. According to recent press information this might be delayed for example because the changes in the groundwater management in Stuttgart City need to be confirmed by the planning authorities, the final permission needs to be adapted and is not issued yet. This might lead to further delays in Stuttgart.
In the “Filder-Dialog S21” the different options of how to connect the airport, the trade fair center and the “Filder” region best with the national rail system were discussed. The participants from civil society were randomly selected. The participants voted for a new approach combining the alignment with the motorway, a combined station for the new high-speed line and the existing regional and local services – not two like in the original approach (see map). The revised plans would have exceeded the cap for the project. The project partners could not agree how to finance it. Thus Deutsche Bahn started the more detailed planning on the basis of the original plans.
The discussions about the new underground railway station in Stuttgart - “S21” - continued because of new cost estimates published end 2012. The estimated costs increased from about €2.8 billion in 2010 to €5.987 billion in 2013. The discussions on the sharing of the additional costs between Deutsche Bahn, federal, regional and local level are on-going. Land Baden-Württemberg insists of only covering the maximum share (20%) agreed referring to maximum costs of €4.526 billion (i. e. €930 million). The EU contribution is limited to the maximum shares and the maximum amount fixed in the respective funding decisions. Possible cost overruns will not be covered.
European Commission
9 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
3.5. Ulm – Augsburg
There is no news to be reported on the upgrading of the section Ulm-Augsburg – especially Dinkelscherben–Augsburg. For the next Federal Transport Masterplan (Bundesverkehrswegeplan 2015) the capacity improvements have to be examined again (upgrading to 200 km/h and/or a 3rd track).
3.6. Munich – Salzburg
In July 2007, the German and Austrian ministries of transport agreed on developing the cross- border section together to improve the capacity of the 150km stretch Munich-Mühldorf-Freilassing- Salzburg by a 2nd track7 or 3rd track8, an upgrade to 160 km/h and the electrification of the whole stretch. Deutsche Bahn AG estimates the cost at 2,8 billion Euros, 1,6 billion Euros needed for the most urgent measures to comply with the expected traffic volume, especially for freight.
The implementation of the German side is heavily delayed because of political priority setting and the limitations to the transport budget:
• The new bridge over the river Saalach which should have been ready by 2012 at the latest – according to the above mentioned agreement of 2007 - will not be finished before 2016
• On 29 July 2013, the ground breaking ceremony took place at Mühldorf for the 2nd track and an upgrade to 160 km/h (non-electrified) for an 11 km section towards Tüßling. About €127 million are expected to be invested until 2017 for tracks, switches, eleven bridges and noise protection measures
• The preliminary planning for the whole section including electrification is expected to be finished by 2014, followed by the detailed planning until 2016 and the implementation which is not expected to be finalised before 2023, according to recent press information
On the Austrian side, the bulk part of works is already finished and overall completion expected by 2015 including the adaptation of the stations.
Raising the capacity is not only important for passenger transport along the line but also of high importance for freight transport to and from the “Chemdelta Bavaria” around Burghausen, Gendorf, Trostberg and Mühldorf: 25,000 people work in the chemical industry in this region and an additional 50,000 jobs are indirectly connected to the regional chemical industry. Today’s single track line between Markt Schwaben, Mühldorf and Tüßling handles more than 1% of Germany’s total rail freight tonnage. The yearly freight volume is expected to rise from 3 million tonnes in 2010 to 6 million tonnes in 2017. A second track between Mühldorf and Tüßling has been requested by 2016 at the latest, followed by an upgrade and complete electrification of the whole Munich-Salzburg section.
7 Markt Schwaben-Ampfing, 45 km 8 Freilassing-Salzburg incl. Saalach Bridge European Commission
10 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
Section Length
Truderinger Kurve 1-track, electrified study
Munich-Markt Schwaben 20 km 2-tracks, electrified in service
Markt Schwaben-Freilassing about 130 km 1-track, non-electrified in service
2-3 tracks, electrified studies
Including:
• Markt Schwaben- 46 km 2-tracks, electrified Study Ampfing
• Ampfing-Altmühldorf 7 km 2-tracks, electrified In service
2-tracks, non- electrified Study
• Altmühldorf-Mühldorf 2 km 2-tracks, electrified 2016
2-tracks, non- electrified Study
• Mühldorf-Tüßling 11 km 2-tracks, electrified 2017
2-tracks, non- electrified study
• Tüßling-Freilassing 60 km 1-track, electrified study
incl. Kirchweihdach- 2-tracks, electrified study Tittmoning-Wiesmühl (11 km)
Tüßling- Burghausen 25 km 1 track, electrified study
Freilassing-Salzburg 7 km 2-tracks, electrified in service
3-tracks, electrified 2016
• Saalach Bridge 2016
• Liefering Station 2013
• Salzburg Main Station 2015
• Salzach Bridge, in service Aiglhof, Mülln-Altstadt and Taxham stations
European Commission
11 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
Also around Munich the projects are delayed: At the beginning of 2010, the Bavarian government and the parliament (Landtag) agreed on a development concept for the rail node Munich (see map9) to improve the regional connectivity and the connection to Munich Airport. The investment needed to implement these measures adds up to about €4.5 billion, partly related to PP17 and/or the airport connection.
In October 2012, the final planning permission was issued for a 2-track- electrified “Neufahrner Kurve” east of Munich airport to improve the connections to Regensburg (see map10). In February 2013, the Bavarian minister for economic affairs, infrastructure, transport and technology and the CEO of Deutsche Bahn signed an agreement on the financing (about €8511-10012 million). The works are expected to start in 2014 and to be finished in 2018.
In the annual TEN-T call 2012, the proposal from the Bavarian ministry for economic affairs, infrastructure, transport and technology succeeded to pass the selection for funding for the planning of the airport connection. This planning project includes the construction of an electrified single-track section ready for use by long-distance services between Walpertskirchen and Erding („Walpertskirchener Spange“) and the construction of an electrified double-track section ready for use by long-distance services between Erding and Munich Airport („Erdinger Ringschluss“). The EU contribution will add up to €12.5 million (50%) until 31.12.2015. The project aims at obtaining the building permit for the construction of a new railway connection from the Munich Airport towards the east and farther to Priority Project 17. It shall deliver the basic examinations, preliminary planning, draft planning and the planning to get the building permits for the sections Munich Airport-Erding and Erding-Walpertskirchen (Walpertskirchener Spange). Since the Walpertskirchener Spange could not achieve economic feasibility in a cost-benefit-analysis conducted by the German Transport Ministry in 2010 (Überprüfung des Bedarfsplans für die Bundesschienenwege 2010), this analysis has to be repeated, including the second track between Erding and Munich Airport, in the ongoing works to the new Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan (Bundesverkehrswegeplan 2015).
9 Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Infrastruktur, Verkehr und Technologie 10 Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Infrastruktur, Verkehr und Technologie 11 www.merkur-online.de“, 11 March 2013: „Neufarner Kurve: ein Zug mit 20 Jahren Verspätung 12 www.inn-sider.de, 14 March 2013: “Nordbayern an den Flughafen angebunden: Mühldorf hinkt hinterher“ European Commission
12 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
3.7. Salzburg - Vienna
In Austria the work to improve the “Westbahn” between Salzburg and Vienna (312 km) started in 199013. The former dual track line has been modernised in several sections to a four track high capacity axis for east-west traffic: more than 50% of the section Wels-Vienna has already been completed. Important milestones have been achieved yet and the current works are progressing according to schedule:
• Vienna-St. Pölten: Opening in December 2012
• On 9 December 2012 also the Lainzer Tunnel (see map) was opened allowing improved east-west connections in Vienna. Currently the tunnel is used by freight trains, with the full opening of Vienna Main Station (2014/15) also the passenger services will benefit
• St. Pölten-Loosdorf (freight-rail-bypass): Some bridges have already been finished to close the gap the tunnel cut-through at Pummersdorf was in July 2013. The whole section should be finished by 2017
• Ybbs-Amstetten: At the end of 2008 the works started including the “Burgstallertunnel” between Hubertendorf and Blindenmarkt. Along the line, sixteen railway bridges and nine road bridges will be built and the railway stations adapted. The works at Amstetten Station shall be finished by 2016. The overall commissioning is scheduled for 2014 increasing freight and passenger capacities and allowing speed up to 250km/h for passenger trains
For the inauguration of the new line Wien- St. Pölten (100 km) a whole day (23 November) was dedicated to the ÖBB passengers: Shuttle trains between the two cities attracted more than 1600 passengers during the day. The new line passes the new Wienerwald Tunnel and the Lainzer Tunnel allowing 230 km/h and a reduction of travel time by about 17 minutes from 41 to 24 minutes. On the same day about 10,000 visitors took the opportunity to visit the new central station and the construction site.
Some further improvements between Salzburg and Linz (125 km) are planned, and include the following:
• Adding two new tracks between Linz and Wels until 2025 and making improvements along the Salzburg-Wels section (95 km)
• A short gap closure and upgrade (230 km/h) south-west of Wels (Lambach- Breitenschützing)
• Along the Salzburg-Neumarkt-Köstendorf section (22 km) the planning is on-going and should be finished by 2014
13 European Parliament, Policy Department B: Structural and Cohesion Policies, Committee for transport and tourism “Update of the costs of the TEN-T Priority projects”, Brussels, 2008 European Commission
13 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
3.8. Vienna - Bratislava
In July 2007 the Austrian and Slovakian ministries of transport agreed to develop the cross-border section together. The declaration included several projects in Slovakia and Austria and dates for their finalisation. The new Vienna central station was partly opened in December 2012. The station will be fully operational in December 2014 but further works will continue until December 2015. The works to connect to the central station with the airport are on track for completion by 2014.
The “Götzendorfer Spange” – east of the airport and the projects in Slovakia did not materialise both due to discussions on the economic feasibility. Austria committed themselves to improvements of the non-electrified 1-track line via Stadlau and Marchegg to Bratislava hlavná stanica between 2015 and 2030 (see map from TEN tec). The planning is finished, the EIA on- going. These concrete actions led to the inclusion of the northern alignment into the TEN-T core network rail to connect the two TEN-T nodes Vienna and Bratislava.
On the southern alignment the three neighbouring States Austria, Slovakia and Hungary want to study between 2014 and 2020 alternatives to connect the rail lines and the airports best with view to the future TEN-T Core Network Corridor “Rhine-Danube”.
European Commission
14 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
4. INTERMODALITY
The White Paper "Roadmap to a single European Transport Area" presents a vision for the transport system of 2050, and includes ten goals for competitive and resource efficient transport. Connecting all core network airports to the national rail network by 2050, preferably using high speed links is one of the top priorities. The new TEN-T guidelines take this on board. Along PP17 the airports of Paris, Stuttgart, Munich and Vienna are obliged to be connected to national rail by 2050. Paris CDG already has a national rail connection; in Vienna it will be realised by 2014; in Stuttgart it should be realised by 2021. Only in Munich the schedule is not fixed yet. But not only the rail-air link is important also TEN-T inland waterways, roads and ports needed to be better linked at intermodal terminals for passengers and/or freight.
An efficient air-rail connection can help reducing congestion, reducing the CO2-footprint and enlarge the catchment area of an airport. Efficient high-speed connections city-to-city can replace short haul flights. Despite of this a common understanding that intermodality and seamless travel could induce a win-win situation for airports, airlines and rail operators - not only for passengers - are needed. But not only "hard ware" is important for travellers also innovative mobility patterns like multi-modal travel planners and "smart inter-modal ticketing" play a growing role. The Commission will continue to promote the development of air-rail connections and services from various perspectives. For example: Financial support for intermodal infrastructures, working- groups, development of interoperable standards for information and ticketing through the European rules.
5. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRAVELLING TIME
In 2005 after the adoption of the revised Community guidelines for the development of the trans- European transport network (TEN-T)14 and the identification of PP 17 as one of 30 ‘priority projects’ the theoretical travelling time from Paris to Bratislava was at about 14 hours. With putting into service important sections in France and Austria it is now down to 12 hours. With the full operation of the new Vienna central station in 2015 another quarter of an hour or more can be saved to Bratislava and Budapest. With the opening the new last TGV-Est stretch 30 minutes will be gained in France by 2016. Further time savings will be possible with putting into service Stuttgart- Wendlingen-Ulm (minus 25 minutes) and some smaller sections in Austria (minus 5-10 minutes each) during the 2020ies.
Even if there will be most likely no direct passenger service along the whole alignment the subsections profit from improvements and might replace short distance flights or bringing new opportunities to the airports along the line: Today it takes 02 hrs 20 min from Paris to Strasbourg (2016: 1hr 50 min), 3 hrs 10 min from Paris to Stuttgart (2016: 02 hrs 40 min) and the rail connections are very accepted. After the opening of the Stuttgart-Ulm stretch it will take 5 hrs to go from Munich City to Paris, Strasbourg-Munich will then be down to less than 3 hrs, Stuttgart- Vienna to 5 hrs 30 min. The traveling time between Vienna and Munich will be reduced to 3h by 2015. Salzburg-Hegyeshalom (HU) is now 3 hours 53 minutes. With the on-going and planned improvements in Austria it can be reduced to 3 hours 19 Minutes in 2025.
But the improvement of line parameters and new lines can only materialise for the passengers using international services in case of international coordination of the schedules. This was recently again proved by a study “Optimization of transport links between Eastern France and West Germany” published by “Association TGV Est Européen”15 in cooperation with “Magistrale für Europa”16.
14 DECISION No 884/2004/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 29 April 2004 http://eur- lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:167:0001:0038:EN:PDF 15 Association TGV Est Européen : Members in France (Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, de Lorraine, Ile-de-France) and Germany (Karlsruhe) 16 Magistrale für Europa: 33 members from cities, regions and chambers of commerce in France, Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary European Commission
15 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
6. ACTIVITIES IN 2012/2013 Péter Balázs’ participated in several meetings and conferences:
• 12 September 2012: During the first meeting between the EU Coordinator and the new Slovakian minister of transport Mr Potiacek the planned Danube tunnel was a major issue. This project was still under examination at that time. A feasibility study later in the year 2012 showed that other solutions are more cost efficient to connect the two parts of the city then a tunnel. In October 2012, the minister announced to prefer a new tram line crossing Danube instead of a tunnel
• 23 November 2012: Inauguration of the new line Wien- St. Pölten accompanying a member of Vice-president Kallas’ cabinet
• 18 January 2013: The annual conference of the initiative „Magistrale für Europa” took place in Karlsruhe. The presentations and discussions took stock of the state-of-play along the axis and looked forward to the options for the initiative to develop
• 20 February 2013: During the workshop of Munich airport and Deutsche Bahn on „Benefit of Intermodality rail-air for economy and traffic” a recent study was presented. The study was a joint project of Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Munich Airport together with Lufthansa, German air traffic control, Deutsche Bahn AG and the federal ministry for transport. The results show that an intermodal air-rail-link brings significant economic effects which are to date not adequately taken into account in the national assessment procedures to prepare the next Federal Transportmasterplan17
• 25 April 2013: Conference “The Rhine-Rhône TGV: key to European development” with a presentation on the development along PP17 and the future role of multi-modal core network corridors18
• 05 September 2013: Meeting with CEO Dr. Grube from Deutsche Bahn AG to take stock of the development of the German sections
17 Links http://www.bdl.aero/media/filer_public/2013/01/08/2012-06-18_itp_nutzen_intermodalitat_schiene- luft_schlussbericht.pdf and http://www.bdl.aero/media/filer_public/2013/01/08/management-summary_intermodalitat.pdf 18 Link to the program and the videos: http://www.transeuropetgv.net/colloque-2013/programme/ European Commission
16 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
7. TEN-T AND CEF
On 19 October, the Commission adopted a package of proposals, made of the Connecting Europe Facility, the revised TEN-T guidelines, as well as a proposal to launch a pilot phase of the Project Bonds initiative. The political debate was concluded mid-2013, the formal approval by the Institutions is expected for October 2013.
The new TEN-T network will include a Core Network to be completed by 2030 and a comprehensive network feeding into this, to be completed by 2050. The implementation of the Core Network will be facilitated using a corridor approach. Nine multi-modal corridors will provide the basis for the co-ordinated development of infrastructure within the Core Network. The core network corridors are an instrument to facilitate the implementation of the core network. In order to lead to resource-efficient multimodal transport, thereby contributing to cohesion through improved territorial cooperation, the core network corridors shall be focused on:
• modal integration;
• interoperability;
• as well as on a coordinated development of infrastructure, in particular on cross border sections and bottlenecks.
The core network corridors shall support the comprehensive deployment of interoperable traffic management systems and, where appropriate, making use of innovation and new technologies. They shall apply and further develop the governance structure proven already in the previous concept of the TEN-T Priority Projects. The instruments to safeguard this shall be the "European Coordinator", the “Corridor Forum” and the “work plan”.
• The mandate of the “European Coordinator” will not only be changed in geographical scope but also to the tasks to fulfil: The new core network corridors will be multi-modal including rail, inland waterways, road, air and the maritime ports. It will be a major challenge for future management to coordinate the activities and investments with regards to the needs and obligations of the different modes
• The “Corridor Forum” will be a consultative body, chaired by the European Coordinator, involving Member States and – upon agreement of the Member States concerned – selected other members representing for example regions, infrastructure managers, ports, airports, rail-road terminals, users and other stakeholders depending on the specific corridor
• The “work plan” shall analyse the needs for the development of the corridor in the Member States concerned including the projects for the extension, renewal or redeployment of transport infrastructure for each of the transport modes involved in the core network corridor and the options for funding and financing. It has to be developed within one year of the entry into force of the TEN-T regulation. The European commission recently tendered studies to give inputs for the development of the work plan which has to be developed in 2014 in order to comply with the new TEN-T guidelines starting with identifying the members of the “Corridor Forum”
European Commission
17 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
PP17 will be mainly integrated into the new “Rhine-Danube Corridor” from Strasbourg to Sulina at the Black Sea with one branch following PP 17 (Stuttgart, München), a second via Frankfurt- Nürnberg-Regensburg following Main and Danube (now PP18) both arriving at Wien and a 3rd branch from Nürnberg via Praha to Košice at the Ukrainian border. The shorter part Paris-Metz- Strasbourg will be part of the “Atlantic Corridor”.
The “Rhine-Danube Corridor” will provide the main east–west link between continental European countries, connecting France, Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria all along the Main and Danube rivers to the Black Sea by improving rail and inland waterway interconnections. It includes sections of Priority Projects 7, 17, 18 and 22. The parts in CZ and SR are also covered by the Rail Freight corridor 9.
Along these corridors pre-identified rail projects19, projects along the inland waterways20 but also port interconnections21 and the cross-border road project Zlín – Žilina can be co-financed from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) by up to 40% for the works – in the cohesion countries up to 85% - and up to 50% for ERTMS and studies.
8. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS AT THE END OF THE MANDATE
The development of an international rail axis like Paris-Bratislava serves different goals in order to bring the greatest benefit:
• Going beyond national borders;
• Going beyond rail (intermodality);
• Connecting with other international axes (such as the Brenner and Rotterdam-Genova).
Thus, its implementation needs the support of all Member States and regions affected and a long- term commitment. With the signature of a declaration of intent this commitment for PP17 was given in 2006. But each Member State is not only responsible for the development and financing on its own territory, it should also take responsibility for the implementation of the axis as a whole for the benefit of all the countries and regions affected. France and Austria are very consistent in their efforts to develop the line on their territory and to the neighbouring countries. In Germany, especially the cross-border sections to France and Austria, and in Slovakia the projects in Bratislava are facing severe delays compared to the original plans.
At the end of the mandate, the European Coordinator considers that a solid examination of alternatives, profound cost estimations and risk assessments are as important as continuous and efficient information of the public before and especially during the implementation phase which might last 10-15, sometimes more than 20 years. The communication has to be based on a coordinated and continuous approach of the national and regional ministries, the infrastructure managers, the cities and the affected citizens to avoid huge disruptions during implementation - like those witnessed in Stuttgart. Initiatives like the “Association TGV Est” and “Magistrale für Europa” are crucial to be fully integrated in the communication. The European coordinator appreciates much the pro-active approach of these associations and their different activities. The first corridor study22 of “Magistrale für Europa” followed by the “Planning Atlas”23 were a basis and an important reference for the European Coordinator.
19 Rail connections: Strasbourg - Kehl Appenweier, Karlsruhe - Stuttgart – München, Ostrava/Prerov – Žilina – Košice – UA border, München – Praha, Nürnberg – Praha, München - Mühldorf - Freilassing – Salzburg, Salzburg – Wels, Wels – Wien, Nürnberg - Regensburg - Passau – Wels, Wien – Bratislava / Wien – Budapest / Bratislava – Budapest, Budapest – Arad, Arad - Brašov - Bucurešti – Constanta, Craiova – Bucharest 20 IWW: Komárom – Komárno, Main – Main-Donau-Canal, Danube (Kehlheim - Constanța/Midia/Sulina), Bucharest – Danube Canal, Sava 21 Slavonski Brod, Giurgiu, Galați, Constanta 22 Magistrale für Europa „Integrationswirkung, Wirtschaftsimpulse, Standorteffekte“, Karlsruhe, 2001 (co-funded by European Commission - INTERREG IIc) 23 Magistrale für Europa „Planungsatlas”, Karlsruhe, 2006 European Commission
Priority Project No 17 OCTOBER 2013 Railway axis PARIS - STRASBOURG - STUTTGART - WIEN - BRATISLAVA Trans-European transport network. Achievement of the Priority projects
Completed Completion Date Completed in 2012 Priority sections Works ongoing Works to start between 2013 and 2015 Works to start after 2015 Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
max. EC YEAR of max. Section PROJECT contribution DECISION share in €Mio
Vaires-Baudrecourt ERTMS Corridor C: High speed railway line "LGV Est" (Vaires- FR 2006 Baudrecourt-Saarbrücken)* 8 50.0% 2007 Baudrecourt- Vendenheim 18 19.1% 2009 Baudrecourt- Vendenheim TGV-Est studies and works (EERP) 76 12.0% DE 1996 Kehl- Appenweier works on Kehl- Appenweier 5
2007 Kehl- Appenweier works on Kehl Station, Kork, "Karlsruher Kurve" 13.6 25.0% 1997 Stuttgart- Ulm Geological and hydrological exploration 3.5 50.0%
2000 Stuttgart-Ulm rail access to airport (S-bahn, regional rail, HST in future) 1.6 2001 Stuttgart- Ulm studies on high-speed 2.5 2002 Stuttgart- Ulm studies on high-speed 5 2004 Stuttgart- Ulm studies on high-speed 4.9 45.0% 2006 Stuttgart- Ulm studies on high-speed 2.6 44.0% 2006 Stuttgart studies on Stuttgart node 2 2007 Stuttgart- Wendlingen works on high-speed-line 114.5 11.6% 2012 Stuttgart- Wendlingen works on high-speed-line 20.62 2.7% 2007 Wendlingen- Ulm works on high-speed-line 101.5 14.4% 2012 Wendlingen- Ulm works on high-speed-line 30.38 5.7% 2001 Augsburg - Mering works 3.5 25.0% 2002 Augsburg- Olching works on high-speed-line 5 2004 Augsburg - Olching works on high-speed-line 5 9.7% 2005 Augsburg - Olching works on high-speed-line 5 8.0% 2006 Augsburg - Olching works on high-speed-line 2.76 5.7% München-Mühldorf- 2001 Freilassing studies 1 München-Mühldorf- study: preliminary planning for the electrification Markt 2008 Freilassing Schwaben-Tüßling-Freilassing 8 50.0%
München-Mühldorf- 2012 Freilassing Planning new railway connection Munich airport 12.5 50.0% 2007 Freilassing- Salzburg works on bridges, tracks and a station 8.5 25.0% AT 2006 Freilassing-Salzburg works on tracks 4.5 12.9% 2007 Freilassing- Salzburg works on bridges, tracks and a station 37.8 25.0% ERTMS Corridor E: Equipment of a Network with ETCS Level 2005 Salzburg-Linz 1 Phase 1 (Linz-Salzburg and Wels-Passau) 3 9.4% 2011 Salzburg-Linz Lambach-Breitenschützing 2.79 20.0% 2002 Enns Enns deviation/Rohr node: works 0.5 2003 Enns Enns deviation/Rohr node: works 1.3 2004 Enns Enns deviation/Rohr node: works 4 2005 Enns Enns deviation/Rohr node: works 7.65 2011 Linz Linz Trimodal 3.37 10.0% 1999 St. Valentin- Amstetten works on tracks 8 2000 St. Valentin- Amstetten works on tracks 8 2011 Amstetten gap closure Amstetten 4.84 20.0% 2009 Amstetten- Ybbs Amstetten- Ybbs: works on Burgstaller-Tunnel (EERP) 3.4 20.0% 2009 Melk Melk: works at station (EERP) 3.4 20.0% 2009 Loosdorf- St. Pölten St.Pölten: works on freight tracks (EERP) 2.6 20.0% 1997 St Pölten-Vienna EIA- studies 0.9
European Commission
Priority Project 17: Railway axis Paris-Strasbourg-Stuttgart-Wien-Bratislava
1998 St Pölten-Vienna works 3.6 1999 St Pölten-Vienna works 5.6 2000 St Pölten-Vienna design studies 3 2000 St Pölten-Vienna works on double track tunnel 8 2001 St Pölten-Vienna works 3.5 2001 St Pölten-Vienna upgrading of node Wagram 1 2002 St Pölten-Vienna upgrading of node Wagram 4 2003 St Pölten-Vienna upgrading of node Wagram 3.1 2004 St Pölten-Vienna upgrading of node Wagram 4.8 2004 St Pölten-Vienna works on high-speed-line 9 2005 St Pölten-Vienna works on high-speed-line 3 2006 St Pölten-Vienna works e.g. Wienerwald Tunnel 4 2011 St Pölten-Vienna Freight by-pass St.Pölten 5 20.0% 2012 St Pölten-Vienna Freight by-pass St.Pölten 13.28 20.0% 2012 St Pölten-Vienna Freight by-pass St.Pölten 13.4 20.0% 2010 Vienna Terminal Wien Inzersdorf - Planning 2.1 50.0% 1997 Vienna-Bratislava upgrading Parndorf-Kittsee 3 1998 Vienna-Bratislava works 2.4 2007 Vienna-Bratislava works 118.78 14.0%
Studies on the railway interconnection of the TEN-T rail SK 2005 Vienna-Bratislava corridor with the airport and Bratislava rail network 8.8 38.0%
SUM 776.37
European Commission
Priority Project No 17 OCTOBER 2013 Railway axis PARIS - STRASBOURG - STUTTGART - WIEN - BRATISLAVA Trans-European transport network. Achievement of the Priority projects Publication date: November 2013 Contact details: European Commission - Directorate General for Mobility and Transport Directorate B - European Mobility Network Unit B.1 – Trans-European Networks and Investment Strategy Sector B.1.001 – Open Method of Coordination: TENtec & Innovation http://ec.europa.eu/transport Trans-European Transport Network Executive Agency T0 – Office of the Executive Director, Information & Communication Department T4 – Technical & Financial Engineering, GIS & Monitoring
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