Page 12 - Hafen Hamburg | Broschüre | Port of Hamburg Magazine 4.2020

■ INFRASTRUCTURE PORT
New Kattwyk bridge improves traffic flow
The new Kattwyk rail bridge is a minor technology marvel and among Europe’s largest lift bridges.
In future, two freight trains will be able to roll over the new Kattwyk Rail Bridge simultaneously. This has so far been impossible. Trains, cars, cyclists and pedes- trians had to share the former bridge. That is now his- tory, since the new bridge is for trains, cyclists and pedestrians. Cars can continue to use the old one. The lift bridges span the Süderelbe, linking the W and E areas of the port. That makes them an element of its central traffic artery, serving as a strategic hub. By enlarging the rail segment to twin-track operation, Hamburg Port Authority is eliminating a bottleneck.
The height of the structure totals 110 metres. Of this, 30 metres are invisible. This is because the river pillars are sunk 20 metres into the Elbe sub- soil and an additional ten metres are below the surface of the water. The pillars are linked by a walk-through culvert. Carrying the cabling, this has a diameter of 2.5 metres.
The movable lift section is 140 metres long, alone weighing 2,000 tons. The trains reach it via two foreland bridges, each 80 metres long and together weighing 1,600 tons.
This landmark infrastructure project truly represents a sustained disentangling of port traffic. (jh)
12 | Port of Hamburg Magazine | December 2020
IDENTIFYING RAILCARS PRECISELY
A further service from the wayside monitoring sector is offered by HPA‘s Rail Data Gate. At the port transit point between Hausbruch and Alte Süderelbe rail ter- minal there is an identification station, consisting of two camera posts. The unit positively identifies each railcar, compares advance notifications with the actu- al railcar sequence and checks the wheels for dam- age. Rail transport companies, operators, railcar owners and other users can gain data access via the central HPA rail portal ‘transPORT rail’. The potential
for applications is diverse, e.g. railcar sequences and axle weights can be checked and inaccurate labelling on railcars and containers discovered. Wheel dam- age, too, in the form of flat spots that are often caused during rail operations, when blocked wheels slide on the rail, are also recognizable. By acting in good time, breakdowns in rail-freight transport logis- tics can be avoided. The unit is still in the test phase. However, the Hamburg Port Railway service will be available to all customers in the coming year at the latest. ■ Ralf Johanning (jh)
© HPA