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Reconstruction of the Eifel line, badly damaged by the flood in summer 2021, is making progress

 Last Thursday was a symbolic day for the Eifel region, which was particularly hard hit by the devastating floods of 2021. With a "premiere trip" in a Regio train, which itself had been severely damaged and restored at one point during the 2021 flood disaster, the last section of the rebuilt Eifelbahn line to date was inaugurated in Gerolstein, in the presence of Rhineland-Palatinate Minister President Malu Dreyer. "Today is a good day for Rhineland-Palatinate," said the Prime Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate (SPD) last Thursday during a "premiere trip" from Kyllburg, on the occasion of the recommissioning. Executive Vice President Regional Transport of Deutsche Bahn, Evelyn Palla, added during the celebration: "For the people here in the Eifel, this means another piece of normality and quality of life." 

The devastating flood disaster in the summer of 2021 had destroyed not only bridges and tracks, stations and vehicles, but also signaling technology and many signal boxes on the Eifel line. The masses of water had washed away many sections of the railroad's Eifel line, which is a good 150 years old. In Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia in particular, the damage amounted to around 1.3 billion euros, with the Ahr Valley and the West Eifel region being particularly hard hit. In Rhineland-Palatinate alone, the Eifel line from Trier-Ehrang to Nettersheim covers around 100 kilometers. In total, the line up to Hürth-Kalscheuren near Cologne is around 160 kilometers long.

In the same year, DB Netz AG decided to carry out the reconstruction together with Thales. In the first stages, the signal boxes, some of which were still in place, were provisionally repaired to enable at least basic operations to be resumed as quickly as possible. As early as last year, sections of the Eifel line were put back into operation: Trains initially ran again from Trier-Ehrang to Auw an der Kyll, and later to Kyllbur. With our help, Thales Transport  technology has now also been used to restore the Gerolstein ESTW control center and to equip the station itself with an electronic signal box (ESTW).

 As of today, operation is officially possible again on the Kyllburg and Gerolstein line sections. The PT1 planning is in our hands and will be realized by our subcontractor Safetrail. By the end of this year, the entire Eifel line will be equipped with ESTW and thus restore full operation.

 This project was and is a great challenge for all involved. A challenge that we have mastered together with DB and that in the face of some challenging framework conditions. We had maximum public attention, the plight of the population in front of our eyes every day, plus there was no detailed (pre)planning at the beginning of the project. Infrastructures necessary for implementation, such as a stable electricity supply or access to the construction sites, were de facto non-existent. None of this stopped us, and we can be proud of our success!

By late fall of this year at the latest, the Eifel line should be completely restored as far as Cologne. By then, this line should also be equipped with new electronic interlocking technology from Thales GTS Germany. Deutsche Bahn plans to electrify the entire Eifel line by the end of 2026, for which state funds will also be mobilized "on a large scale," Dreyer said.

Contact
Director Communications - Christopher Bach
christopher.bach@urbanandmainlines.com