Broad gauge to Vienna is ‘crucial’
Russian Railways (RZD) believes an over-reliance on the border crossing between Poland and Belarus at Brest is acting as “a major brake” on China-Europe freight traffic.
Containers must be transshipped from 1,520mm to 1,435mm gauge wagons, causing significant delays. It has led to RZD Vice President Alexander Misharin calling for an extension of broad gauge tracks into western Europe.
He says that freight services typically travel three times faster on Russian routes than in Europe, making a 1,520mm line to Vienna “very attractive to investors”.
We've read it in: Railway Gazette International, May 2019, p25
