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MANAGING H IGH-SPEED RAIL IN FRANCE A world leader in the development of high- speed rail (HSR), France offers lessons to other nations seeking to develop their HSR networks. Among the most important lessons is the need for functional institutional relationships that oversee the complex process of developing HSR megaprojects while facilitating excellence in engineering. By Scott L. Kunitani, P.E., M.ASCE IGH-SPEED RAIL (HSR) lines have been built in many countries in Asia and Europe, and many more countries want to join the “club.” However, the barrier to entry is quite high, frustrat- ing many newcomers in their quest. HAmong the hurdles to overcome are specialized technology, high financing requirements, and the need to obtain political con- sensus. But perhaps the greatest hurdle is the fact that HSR naturally lends itself to the definition of a megaproject. Simply put, constructing an HSR line between two major cities hundreds of kilometers apart—a typical HSR configuration—is a major endeavor. posts. If someone examined HSR lines from afar, they would Phasing helps, but the crux of the difficulty remains. all appear quite similar in that they operate at speeds of 250 This article examines how France has been able to build to 350 km/h, are configured with double tracks, and are elec- its HSR lines. In French, an HSR line is a ligne à grande vi- trified. But upon closer inspection subtle yet significant dif- tesse (LGV). Although the country’s HSR accomplishments ferences are discernible. are well known, less light has been shed on how France has Of course, successful HSR projects must meet multiple managed its HSR megaprojects. It is thus hoped that review- objectives involving safety, operating and maintenance costs, ing France’s achievements can assist those seeking to join the commercial image, revenues, and sustainable and techno- HSR club. When reviewing an accomplishment, it helps to logical development. As a transportation system, an HSR begin by examining the results—in essence to set the goal- line should provide optimum performance, which is more [62] Civil Engineering NOVEMBER 2012 0885-7024/12-0011-0062/$30.00 PER ARTICLE A train crosses the nearly 479 m long Jaulny via- duct, a major feature of the initial phase of the high-speed rail line known as the Est européenne. Owned by the Réseau Ferré de France (RFF), the line extends from near Paris to Baudrecourt, in northeastern France. easily said than done. However, this principle should serve as comparison purposes, though, these results should be viewed a technical guiding light, informing efforts from the initial as general indicators only. conception of an HSR line to its commissioning. Another indicator of the quality of the design and of the To minimize travel time, it is important to have as much overall transportation system is passenger traffic statistics. Ta- of a line as possible designed for the maximum speed. Table ble 2 depicts the ratio of the annual passenger figures to the 1 lists seven HSR lines in five European countries and notes total length of the HSR lines from selected countries. their average speeds and the percentage of each line capable Although construction cost is not a performance indica- of achieving the maximum speed. tor, it is naturally the most closely watched project indica- As the table indicates, the two French lines are exemplary, tor. Construction costs can vary greatly, as shown in table 3. RFF/RECOURA CHRISTOPHE reflecting their performance-oriented design philosophy. For Here again, comparisons of HSR costs in different nations NOVEMBER 2012 Civil Engineering [63] ing railway lines and stations, obviating the TABLE 1 Percentage need to construct new railway infrastructure PERFORMANCE Maximum of track in a dense, costly environment offering little COMPARISONA design Average capable of space. Distance speed speed maximum (km) (km/h) (km/h) design speed Ultimately, the French government de- cided to create a separate public authority to High Speed 1 (United Kingdom) 109 300 177 69 serve the owner of all railway lines, both con- Rome–Naples (Italy) 205 300 176 88 ventional and high-speed. (French law pre- cisely defines the term “owner” as an entity Neubaustrecke Erfurt– having a certain role in project development, Leipzig/Halle (Germany) 123 300 189 80 with corresponding rights, powers, and re- Méditerranée (France) 250 300 250 100 sponsibilities.) Thus, in 1997 the Réseau Fer- Madrid–Barcelona (Spain)b 621 350 236 86 ré de France (RFF) was created, and the SNCF was relegated to the role of railway operator. c Est européenne (France) 301 350 301 94 Although on paper the two appear as equals, Neubaustrecke Köln– in reality the RFF has 700 employees, com- Rhein/Main (Germany) 219 300 173 70 pared with 150,000 at the SNCF. As the owner of the conventional and HSR aSource: Comparison of High Speed Lines’ CAPEX, HS2 Ltd, 2009. b railway lines, the RFF assumed the important Current speed, 300 km/h. role of developing new lines. In a major break cExcludes starting and stopping times at termini. from the status quo, the RFF opened to com- petitive public bid the engineering work as- should be used only as a general indication. However, when sociated with rail projects. Previously, the SNCF had acted as the criterion of cost per kilometer is applied to projects in both the owner and the engineer—a term also precisely de- France, surprising results are obtained, as shown in table 4. fined under French law—for HSR projects, performing feasi- With its geography varying from flatlands to mountains, bility studies, design, construction supervision, testing, and combined with its stringent regulations and environmental commissioning. protection measures, France might not be expected to rank As a percentage of total HSR costs, engineering is rela- as low as it does in terms of HSR costs per kilometer. Over- tively small, yet its role is quite large. The design of an HSR all, one can conclude that France has done a fairly good job of line is technically complex, involving multiple engineering refining project objectives to maximize performance and de- disciplines and requiring a high level of safety to move large liver projects as cost-effectively as possible. numbers of people at high speed. From the project manage- Historically, the first HSR lines in France were developed ment perspective, the engineer plays a fundamental role on by the national railway company, SNCF (Société Nationale HSR projects. The engineer moves concepts forward in the des Chemins de Fer Français), under the aegis of the national early development stages, assists in obtaining the requisite government. This institutional framework is quite common, regulatory approvals, bears responsibility for overall program as reflected in the many national railway companies world- and schedule management, and oversees project completion. wide. By relying on an existing rail institution, a country Placing independent engineering firms in this pivotal role seeking to implement HSR has the advantage of needing only helped the RFF by introducing a competitive engineering to adapt existing approaches; it does not have to start from environment, opening the door to fresh ideas and methods, scratch. However, even then HSR was, and remains, a major and consequently providing tight control over overall proj- technological leap from conventional rail. For the SNCF, de- ect costs. As the train operator, the SNCF has retained the veloping HSR also brought new life to this long-established institution. TABLE 2 France has also benefited from USAGE OF the integration of the HSR lines into Total Passenger- Line length Passengers Passenger- HIGH-SPEED passengers kilometers (km) per kilometer kilometers the conventional railway network. The LINES* (thousands) (millions) of line per kilometer HSR lines have been designed to act (thousands) (millions) like the trunk of a tree, the HSR trains France 114,395 51,846 1,896 60.3 27.3 serving major cities but sometimes us- ing the conventional railway “branch- Germany 73,709 22,561 1,285 57.4 17.6 es” to serve secondary cities or resort Italy 33,377 10,746 923 36.2 11.6 towns. In such cases, the high-speed trains use the HSR line for most of a Japan 288,836 76,039 2,664 108.4 28.5 trip and then use conventional lines for Spain 28,751 11,505 2,056 14.0 5.6 direct station-to-station travel with- out transfers. Likewise, in the heart of *Source: International Union of Railways. major cities, the HSR trains use exist- [64] Civil Engineering NOVEMBER 2012 TABLE 3 earthworks, and drainage—on a separate layer. By super- imposing the layers, one can see the combined costs for a CONSTRUCTION COSTS PER large geographical region. With this tool, one can thus KILOMETER FOR SELECTED apply analytical methods to focus on variable costs and to NETWORKS* Cost per First compare costs in different corridors. In addition to being Length kilometer year of a design tool, it can improve communication with third (km) (€ millions) operation parties. Spain 2,057 12 1992 Cost mapping, then, can play a major role in the criti- Germany 1,284 32 1991 cal—and often highly politicized—process of selecting an HSR corridor. In some cases, projects can be delayed Eurostar (London–Paris–Brussels) 531 60 1994 for years by debate on such issues as technical concerns Japan 2,663 5.4** 1964 and geographical and environmental considerations. Cost mapping provides a neutral tool that an engineer can use *Source: The Benefits of High-Speed Rail in Comparative Perspective, in assessing corridor options and communicating findings Invensys Rail, 2012. to policy makers and the public. In this way, cost map- **For Tokyo–Osaka.