Railroad Development Corp.’s German subsidiary, RDC Deutschland, has bought two railway lines in northwestern Germany from the international freight business of French Railways (SNCF).
Both lines, acquired in a transaction completed at the beginning of November, have regional passenger service, or will shortly. This makes them potentially attractive as an investment, as much of the basic maintenance costs will be covered by contracts from local government, funding the operation of the passenger trains. These agreements, for up to 14 years, provide payments to the infrastructure owner as track access fees.
SNCF subsidiary Captrain obtained the lines in 2010 when it bought out the German freight business of another French rail operator, Veolia, which had acquired several short line railroads previously owned by local governments in 1997-2000. Captrain is selling, it confirmed in a press statement, because the lines will be mainly passenger and will have little freight; the company wants to focus on freight, so owning and maintaining passenger lines is not part of its core business.
In the northern city-state of Bremen, RDC Deutschland has bought the 10.4-kilometer/6.5-mile former Farge-Vegesacker Eisenbahn line in the north of the city. This line, which runs close to the River Weser and parts of Bremen’s harbor area, reopened to passenger service in 2007. It has a frequent commuter rail service run as part of the Regio-S-Bahn Bremen network and since 2011 has been electrified at the German standard 15kV AC, allowing EMU operation. The line also historically served multiple freight customers, but most have either closed or switched to alternative transport.
Around a hundred miles farther south, in the state of Nordrhein Westfalen, RDC Deutschland has bought the 25.1-km/15.75-mile Harsewinkel-Gütersloh-Verl section of the former Teutoburger Wald Eisenbahn (TWE). This line will regain passenger services in late 2027; work is already underway to make this happen, funded by regional transit authorities. In addition, RDC has bought the ex-TWE maintenance shop at Lengerich, in the same area but separate from either of its new rail lines. The shop facility is located on the main line route between Bremen/Hamburg and the Ruhr region, providing a well-placed maintenance location for much of western Germany.
RDC previously bought a rail line and maintenance facilities in the far north of the country [see “Railroad Development Corp. expands German business …,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 11, 2022]. However, these facilities are not well located for the more heavily trafficked parts of the German rail network.
Pittsburgh-based RDC also has operations in France, Belgium, and Peru, as well as the Iowa Interstate Railroad. It is also a partner in the Pop-Up Metro passenger project and in the RailPulse freight telematics program. More information is available at its website.
