Scientists: New rail can be cheap – Östgöta Correspondenten

No one can know exactly what a new railway line between Stockholm and Malmö and Stockholm and Gothenburg would cost. The only thing that is certain is that those who do not want the new rail line argue that it is too expensive, while proponents claim that the benefits outweigh the cost.

In the spring announced the Swedish transport administration that they counted the cost again. From having had a range between 190 and 320 billion, and they became more precise and stated 230 billion, plus/minus 30 billion.

Professor Sebastian Stichel, who is the head of the railway group at KTH in Stockholm, think that the Dmv should count again. According to KTH’s calculations, the rail can be built for between 160 and 190 billion.

” I’m not saying that the Dmv is wrong, but we would ask them to count again. They have relatively early decided to use a technique with a concrete deck, we want them to count on to build the ballast, ” he says.

He is invited to Linköping by the Swedish järnvägsklubben to tell us about his and KTH’s research. Järnvägsklubben is an association of special-interest, and this Saturday they got to hear more details than what the officials at the ministry of industry received when Sebastian Stichel was there and told me about KTH’s research.

To build the ballast means that the crushed rock is laid out and so betongslipers and rails on it. This method is cheaper than to pour concrete, but requires on the other hand, a little more maintenance. It is precisely the cost of maintenance, which is the Swedish transport administration’s strongest counterarguments.

Sebastian Stichel argue, however, that the Dmv made a mistake. The ground in the south of Sweden consists to a large part of the clay and to be able to pour a solid concrete structure, they must first påla down to the bedrock.

It will be expensive.

the technology Used with crushed rock so it will be instead relatively cheap to build and relatively cheap to fix the tracks the day it is needed.

KTH has also done research on what high speed rail line cost in other countries – they have worked together 13 railway construction in Europe. On average, it cost 230 million per kilometre.

In Spain and France used the technology with the ballast and where was the cost in an average of 200 million per kilometre. If the calculus would also apply in Sweden, so would the 720-kilometre-long railway, which is planned to cost around $ 144 billion.

Since Sweden generally have poorer soil conditions for the construction of the rail so will be the KTH estimate that a Swedish high speed rail line will cost anywhere between 160 and 190 billion.

According to Sebastian Stichel is moreover a further opportunity to bring down the cost. A high speed rail line to cope with speeds of up to 320 kilometres an hour. It means extremely large curve radii. If, instead, on the most demanding passages, lowering the speed to 280 or 300 km / h, so can the rails be laid with the tighter curves right there. It would mean reduced cost, but only 2 or 3 minutes longer travel time on the route Stockholm–Malmö.