International Railway Journal - May 2008 - (Page 20)

News analysis Breakthrough in Malmö as Citytunnel enters crucial phase The boom in rail traffic between Denmark and Sweden has put a great strain on infrastructure in the Swedish city of Malmö. But as Keith Barrow reports, the construction of a cross-city tunnel is on schedule and on budget to bring urgently-needed extra capacity to this flourishing international crossroads. T HE CONSTRUCTION of a 6km rail tunnel beneath the Swedish city of Malmö reached a milestone on March 25, when tunnel boring machine (TBM) Anna burst into the daylight near Malmö Central station after a 500-day journey from Holma, south of the city. Anna completed boring of the final 1.9km section between Triangeln and Malmö Central in 130 days, at an average speed of 15m per day. Following closely behind Anna a second TBM, Katrin, has almost completed boring of the northbound tunnel, and was due to break through the final section of the second tunnel as IRJ went to press. The SKr 9.45 billion ($US 1.59 billion) Citytunnel is on budget and on schedule for a 2011 opening, which cannot come soon enough for operators who are clamouring Malmö Existing lines New lines to Helsingborg Central re su nd Ø Triangeln to Copenhagen Hyllie TBM Anna cuts through the final few metres of the tunnel at Malmö Central, nearly two years after setting out from Holma. N 0 km IRJ 1 South to Ystad to Trelleborg for additional capacity to relieve the city’s congested rail network. The project involves the construction of two parallel 7.9m diameter tunnels from a junction with the Malmö - Copenhagen Øresund line in the district of Holma, to Triangeln in the city centre and a new sub-surface station at Malmö Central, where the line will emerge to The success of the Øresund link with Denmark has squeezed capacity at Malmö Central. rejoin the existing lines to the north and east. Citytunnel will transform rail operations in the Swedish region of Skåne, which has witnessed a revival in its economic fortunes since the opening of the Øresund link to Denmark seven years ago. With Copenhagen now just 35 minutes by train from Malmö, many Danes are taking advantage of lower house prices in Sweden, while an increasing number of Swedes are commuting to jobs in the Danish capital. As a result, traffic on the Øresund line has exceeded all projections, growing 26% in 2007 to nearly 9.5 million passengers. Overall, passenger numbers in Skåne have risen from 13.2 million in 2000 to 32.8 million last year, and are forecast to reach 40.6 million in 2012, if traffic grows at the rather more sedate 6% per year predicted by regional transport authority Skånetrafiken. Nowhere is the need for the tunnel more apparent than at Malmö’s existing Central station, where a combination of the restrictive terminus layout and burgeoning 20 IRJ May 2008

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International Railway Journal - May 2008 Contents This Month News Transit News Market News Technology News News Analysis Italian Railways on the Road to Recovery High-Speed: On the Home Straight Korea Develops High-Speed Ambitions Setting New Standards for New Rolling Stock India Solves Traction Motor Conundrum Weathering the Storm with Climatic Testing Technology Drives US Train Inspections Rendezvous Full Contact List Advertisers Index The Last Word

International Railway Journal - May 2008

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