Connections to and from Göttingen - Metrans Continues to Expand Domestic German Network

Metrans, the rail subsidiary of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), now calls at Göttingen, thereby providing even closer links within its domestic German network.
 
As the only rail operator to do so, Metrans provides four weekly connections between the Hamburg container terminals and Göttingen, as well as to the nearby ACT terminal in Adelebsen, since mid-January. Containers can be loaded and discharged here, with the terminal also being used for storage. This means that empty runs between Göttingen and Hamburg or Munich can be avoided. The new connection is particularly interesting because the Metrans trains had previously passed Göttingen on their way to Munich or Nuremberg. Now, they make a stopover in Göttingen, where they leave some of the carriages or pick up new ones for transport to Nuremberg, Munich or Hamburg. For doing so Metrans is using its own shunting engine. Until now, mainly trucks have been used for container transport on the approximately 260-kilometre route between Hamburg and Göttingen.
 
Jiri Samek, Managing Director of Metrans: “The new connections to and from Göttingen mean that we can offer our customers an attractive service, both operationally and in terms of costs, which is also much more environmentally friendly than using a truck. We are delighted that this service has been so well received by our customers right from the word go.”
 
According to preliminary, as yet unaudited figures, HHLA’s railway companies transported approximately 1.0 million standard containers (TEU) in 2015. This represents an increase in the transport volume of more than five percent on the previous year’s strong figure.