Le Havre unveils express rail link to Ludwigshafen, Germany

NAVILAND Cargo, a subsidiary of the SNCF Geodis group, and Port of Le Havre rail network owner GPMH have launched a new international rail service linking the French port with the state of Rhineland-Palatinate in south-west Germany via Strasbourg.


This new Le Havre-Ludwigshafen express rail link is designed for the shipping sector as well as companies involved in cross-continental traffic with the chemical and petrochemical industries located in Le Havre.


"This service provides companies in the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Hesse and Baden-Wuerttemberg with access to the major shipping lines calling at Le Havre and optimised transit times," said Herve Cornede, commercial and marketing director for GPMH.


With three round trips a week, the shuttle service will link the KTL terminal in Ludwigshafen with the French port of Le Havre in 24 hours. The service through Strasbourg doubles the frequency of rail shuttles between the port terminals in Le Havre and the Port of Strasbourg.


Transport services for dangerous goods, excluding storage, in compliance with European Union regulations and international standards for quality and safety (ADR/RID) are also available.


In addition, from spring 2011, long trains (850 metres in length) will run between Le Havre facilities and Paris, and then Lyons, a statement from Le Havre port authorities said.


It said in 2010 the port saw a rise in hinterland trade, with inland transport up 10 per cent compared to the previous year at 1.8 million TEU. Rail and river container traffic volumes accounted for 290,000 TEU, an increase of eight per cent against 2009. They account for 16 per cent of the hinterland container traffic.


The port handled 23 million tones of containerised cargoes last year, representing an increase of four per cent. Container throughput rose by five per cent, compared to 2009, to 2.4 million TEU.
(Source:http://www.schednet.com)