Big surprise for Peter: Mega-long freight trains in Port of Hamburg

My colleagues had already told me about it, but now I’ve seen it with my own eyes. The extra-ultra-mega-long freight train from Hamburg to Denmark. Since the end of last year these XXL freight trains have been running a regular service between Maschen and Padborg on the Danish side of the border and right into the Port of Hamburg at Hohe Schaar. These giant trains are 835 metres long – that’s like eight football pitches lined up end to end. Comparing that to the normal maximum permitted length of 740 metres, they can each transport up to ten railcars and 15 containers more. You can call that an efficient use of resources.  

Connecting the Port of Hamburg to the pioneering route between Maschen and Padborg is an important step towards mastering the growth in rail freight traffic. These extra-long trains first came into use between Maschen and Denmark at the end of 2012. A feasibility study on 1,500-metre-long trains has already been under way for some time.  The top rail people have a clear vision - the mega-liner on rails. And that’s mega-good, if you ask me!