Freight trains will return to the railway bridge over the Elbe tomorrow

First trains will start using the reconstructed line section between the stations Děčín východ (Děčín East) and Děčín-Prostřední Žleb tomorrow, which plays an important role in freight transport between the Czech Republic and Germany. One of the biggest challenges for the builders was the replacement of the more than 100-year-old steel structure of the bridge over the Elbe River and the complete rehabilitation of the Děčín Tunnel.

Reconstruction of the single-track section in question, which is approximately 1.4 kilometres long, began in August 2021. The builders carried out a complete renewal of the line, contact line and signalling and telecommunication systems. Approximately 700 metres of noise barriers were built to reduce the noise pollution in the surrounding area. The line speed will increase from 30 to 50 km/h when the construction is fully completed. From the point of view of freight traffic, it is important to allow the passage of larger and heavier trains.

Most watched part of the construction was the reconstruction of the 265 m long bridge over the Elbe. It consisted in replacing the steel supporting structure from 1916 with a similar shape. An important step towards its commissioning was a load test in November using fully loaded tipping trolleys and trolleys with road panels. Workers are now dismantling the original bridge structure, work will continue into the spring.

Recently, the builders have focused mainly on the Děčín Tunnel, which dates back to 1874 and is 395 metres long. The reason for this was the discovery of unforeseen changes in its sub-soil. The tunnel floor had to be excavated and modifications had to be made to allow the draining of water. The contractor is the company Společnost most Prostřední Žleb. Its administrator is STRABAG Rail, partners are DT Mostárna and STRABAG AG.

The total investment costs of the action called Optimisation of the line section Děčín východ – Děčín-Prostřední Žleb amount to CZK 1,343,895,546. The project is co-financed by the European Union from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). The total amount of eligible project costs is CZK 1,207,005,922. The EU support rate is 83.81% of the eligible costs, the maximum amount of the subsidy is CZK 1,011,591,663. National funding is provided by Státní fond dopravní infrastruktury (State Fund for Transport Infrastructure).

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