LG Cargo, a subsidiary of Lithuanian Railways, PKP CARGO, and CargoBeamer are trialling the carriage of trailers by rail between Kaldenkirchen and Šeštokai via Poland.

The pilot eastbound shipment comprised 22 trailers, while in the opposite direction - 23. It takes two days to cover the approx. 3,000 km-long route.

PKP CARGO has been responsible for the rail haulage in Germany and Poland; LG Cargo for operations to and from the Polish-Lithuanian border.

CargoBeamer, in turn, has supplied the technology for parallel horizontal loading of non-craneable trailers.

"This pilot is of great importance to us as it will make it possible to test new possibilities for freight transport from Lithuania via Poland to Western Europe and in the opposite direction. This route is currently dominated by road transport and we want to change this unfavourable structure. Therefore, together with our partners, we work on preparing a competitive transport offer," Czesław Warsewicz, CEO, PKP CARGO, emphasized.

According to the parties, emitting up to 100t of CO₂ can be avoided by taking the rail service over road transport. "In addition, trains provide safe transport of goods, compared to lorries, as the accident rate on railways is many times lower than on roads," Warsewicz added.

Hans-Jürgen Weidemann, CEO, CargoBeamer, also said, "CargoBeamer has been interested in a train between Lithuania and the Rhein-Ruhr region in Germany since its first visit to Kaunas ten years ago. It is an exciting opportunity, and thanks to a great cooperation with Lithuanian Railways we can see this initial vision materialize now. Lithuania is the home of several big logistics players and we see a future market for sustainable rail transportation of road trailers from Central Europe into the Baltics."

Photo: LG Cargo