NEXT MONTH should see the completion of an initial study for creating a north-south corridor between Poland and Romania via Ukraine. The United Nations' Trans-European Rail Office has appointed Gibb Transportation Consulting to look at the feasibility of upgrading a 600 km route from Tarnow to Oradea to speed transit traffic.
Key to the scheme is a 100 km mixed-gauge line between Chop and Djakowo in southwestern Ukraine. This was used by occasional through trains until about four years ago, but the standard-gauge tracks are in poor condition, giving a 6h journey time. Gibb is facilitating discussions between the railways for refurbishing this line, to allow Slovak or Romanian trains to run through with UZ drivers.
Trains would run south from Tarnow to the Slovak border at Muszyna, and then to Kosice, turning east to reach Ukraine at Chop. Crossing into Romania at Djakowo/Halmeu, they would then run south through Santu Mare to Oradea. Improved data transfer is seen as a way of reducing delays at the three border crossings, speeding both passenger and freight services.
Freight traffic would run in sealed trains from Tarnow to Kosice and Kosice to Oradea or Santu Mare, with only minor technical checks at the borders. Target journey time for a Warszawa - Bucuresti passenger service is 19h, compared to the current 26h via Hungary.
