Following the projects at Rostock-Seehafen station at the Baltic Sea, DB Engineering & Consulting was also able to win the tender for the “Line upgrade Lübeck-Schwerin with new construction of the Bad Kleinen connecting curve” in Northern Germany.
Creating acceptance by upgrading the route
The 63-km route from Lübeck to Bad Kleinen is a single-track, non-electrified main line with a maximum line speed of 120 km/h. The conditions are inadequate for handling interregional transport operations. Besides the lack of electrification, the crossing tracks in the stations are too short. Transport operations between Lübeck and Schwerin can currently only be run with time-consuming “reversing” in Bad Kleinen. This means the route does not find the necessary acceptance among freight operating companies despite its excellent geographical location.
For this reason, the line is being electrified and a connecting curve is being built near Bad Kleinen for transport between Lübeck and Schwerin. The crossing stations of Herrnburg, Grevesmühlen, and Bobitz will be equipped with 750 m long tracks. In addition, the control-command and signaling is being renewed; the electronic interlocking technology is being expanded and supplemented with digital signaling technology in the operating locations of Bobitz station and the Gallentin junction near Bad Kleinen.
Engineering services handled with the BIM method
DB Engineering & Consulting was commissioned by DB Netz AG to carry out the following services:
- Final design and planning for
- Building permit application for facility planning of the transport facilities and the stations as well as the road planning
- Facility and supporting structure planning for engineering structures
- Rail engineering equipment
The engineering services for the connecting curve and the stations were planned by DB Engineering & Consulting using the BIM method. To this end, the BIM execution plan was already developed as part of the bid preparation.
Relief of lines to the Eastern European neighbors
An additional effect of this upgrade measure will be the relief of the Hamburg conurbation by shifting rail freight transport performance to and from Scandinavia.
National and international long distance transport will be able to expand its offer on account of the upgrade, as it will be possible to route some of the traffic from the Scandinavian region to the German and European hinterland via less frequented areas by bypassing the Hamburg rail hub. This will create an important additional feeder line to the so-called eastern corridor.
With the upgrade of the line between the Lübeck and Bad Kleinen operating locations, a rail infrastructure is being created for the first time that can provide a practicable alternative for bypassing the Hamburg hub for interregional rail transport in terms of rail freight transport (SGV) and long distance rail passenger transport (SPFV).
The following measures on the rail infrastructure make a significant contribution to this:
- The establishment of continuous electrification of the lines, which eliminates the need for time-consuming, cost-intensive and logistically unmanageable traction unit changes in the SGV.
- Creation of a direct connection between two railway lines through the construction of the curve at Bad Kleinen, making the time-consuming change of direction for railway traffic at Bad Kleinen station unnecessary.
- Construction of 750-m long tracks at the operating locations, allowing the line to be used with mixed traffic by enabling meetings and passing.