{"id":152373,"date":"2024-11-27T19:18:38","date_gmt":"2024-11-27T09:18:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.railfreight.com\/?p=58166"},"modified":"2024-11-27T19:18:38","modified_gmt":"2024-11-27T09:18:38","slug":"sweden-saves-time-with-new-freight-braking-rules","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=152373","title":{"rendered":"Sweden saves time with new freight braking rules"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ten years after rail freight companies pressured the government to revise braking percentage tables, Sweden is now awaiting a new package of rules for 2025. On various routes, freight trains will be able to save dozens of minutes of travelling time and capacity for both freight and passenger trains will grow.<\/strong>
\n<\/span>Brake percentage tables determine how fast a train can drive, taking into account its braking ability and the signalling system in place on the railway in question. With the new system, 750-metre trains can drive at speeds up to 120 kilometres per hour under certain conditions. Moreover, once applicable, the system would also enable 835-metre trains all the way from Malm\u00f6 to Hamburg at that speed.<\/p>\n

However, the new regulations do not seem to be a magical solution for universal higher speeds. First, the new regulations will be introduced from 1 June on a limited number of rail sections in Sweden. Two more sections will follow later in the year. On many other rail lines, the signalling systems in place are not compatible with higher speeds. The introduction of ERTMS could make it possible, but Sweden is still looking at how to make those higher speeds a reality in the coming years.<\/p>\n

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Sections where the new regulations are supposed to enter into effect on 1 June 2025:<\/strong><\/p>\n

– Skymossen \u2013 Sk\u00e4nninge
\n– Lindekullen \u2013 N\u00e4ssj\u00f6 \u2013 Alvesta \u2013 H\u00e4ssleholm \u2013 Malm\u00f6 freight station
\n– M\u00f6lndals nedre \u2013 \u00c4ngelholm \u2013 \u00c5storp \u2013 Teckomatorp \u2013 K\u00e4vlinge \u2013 Malm\u00f6 freight station.
\n– Teckomatorp \u2013 Esl\u00f6v
\n– Malm\u00f6 freight station \u2013 Fosieby \u2013 Peberholm<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Faster and time-saving<\/h2>\n

Facilitating those higher speeds would nevertheless be advantageous, as especially the longest freight trains could then run faster and save time. \u201cWe have not made any calculations on the shorter journey times, but it is probably about dozens of minutes on both the S\u00f6dra stambanan and the V\u00e4stkustbanan\u201d, a source tells Swedish publication J\u00e4rnv\u00e4gar.nu.<\/p>\n

“Furthermore, the speed difference between passenger trains and freight trains decreases, which means that the capacity on the current lines increases. The passenger trains will not catch up with the freight trains as often as in the current situation, and there will be fewer overpasses, which slow down the freight trains and increase energy consumption.”<\/p>\n

Three decade-old rules<\/h2>\n

The latest revision of the Swedish table took place in the 1990s by the now-defunct Swedish State Railways. That company was split up into multiple companies in 2001, and no one has taken on the responsibility of managing the rules since then. In 2015, the government decided it was time to revise the tables, after the rail freight sector pressured it to do so. The now newly formulated brake percentage tables are a result of that effort.<\/p>\n