Strabag SE through its Hungarian railway construction subsidiary Strabag Rail Kft has been awarded the contract to upgrade 30 km of rail section between Békéscsaba and Lőkösháza and to build the second track. The 30 km rail section in south-eastern Hungary is situated on the Orient/East-Mediterranean Corridor and provides transport connection to Romania, through the western city of Arad. The contract, which is worth a total of EUR 364 million will be executed in a consortium with a Hungarian partner, Strabag says, without naming the other company. 66% is Strabag share within the consortium.
After the financing phase will be agreed, the construction works will start and are expected to be completed in 33 months.
This section is currently single track, equipped for a maximum speed of 100 km/h and with a 21 tonne axle load. This 30 km rail section will be upgraded to double-track, fully electrified, to the extent necessary for electric train operations, equipped with ERTMS, Level 2, release 2.3.0d (or higher), with at least 22.5 tonne axle load and a speed equal to or greater than 160 km/h.
“The dual-track upgrade of this section of railway from Békéscsaba station to the national border will help to modernise an important link along the Trans-European Network. This improves the connection between internal markets and the Black Sea ports,” Thomas Birtel, CEO of Strabag SE said.
In addition to the track construction work the contract also includes the overhead lines, the safety and the deployment of the European Train Control System (ETCS) signalling systems. The works also cover the modernisation and modification of three stations, including the construction of park and ride facilities, as well as road construction and civil engineering works.
The stations Kétegyháza and Lökösháza will also be adapted to be barrier-free to provide increased access passengers with reduced mobility.
The project has received EUR 3.66 million from the CEF Transport financing through the 2014 call. EUR 5.23 million was the estimated value of the preparation for the construction of second track between Békéscsaba and Lőkösháza. The European funding covered the preparation of the full set of documentation and the land acquisition necessary to proceed with the physical upgrade of the Békéscsaba -Lőkösháza railway section, one of the last non-reconstructed sections along the Orient/East-Mediterranean Corridor.
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