The European Corridor:
If the trains run too slowly, growth and jobs will be threatened
Major investments are now being planned in the Swedish railway system. It entails improvements to existing tracks, as well as entirely new tracks. The debate often involves discussion of high speed trains without defining precisely what speeds are involved:
Gunnar Sibbmark, MD and vice chairman of Europakorridoren, would now like to emphasize and stress the significance of the speed:
– If Sweden invests in tracks that can only cope with 250 km/h we can’t talk about high speed trains. On the contrary, it would mean that we would be lumbering ourselves with technology that is already antiquated today.
– All the development is instead pointing towards the new railway technology that is being built for speeds of up to 350 km/h, considers Gunnar Sibbmark. And quite rightly, it is also this sort of track that is already being built throughout the rest of Europe.
For a city such as Göteborg it is easiest to describe what the difference in speed might mean in terms of time. With 250 km/h both Helsingborg and Linköping are in practice far more than an hour away. With 350 km/h both places can be reached in less than an hour, which means, for example, that is possible to commute on a daily basis.
– With 350 km/h the distances shrink and our ’home region’ – where we can live, work and study – becomes larger, says Gunnar Sibbmark. – We quite simply get more to choose from. And the increased accessibility acts as a stimulus for both companies and people. Companies acquire more new customers and can broaden their product range. They also find is easier to recruit. People gain access to a larger employment market and a greater range of study options. There is an increased freedom to choose where to live.
– However, if Sweden simply settles for upgrading the current railway network to 250 km/h, it would in many respects be missing out on this. Instead we would get left behind and both jobs and growth would be under threat.
During the summer and autumn Europakorridoren will be conducting a special information campaign to emphasis the significance of Sweden investing in the right level of technology now that the railway is to be modernised. – It is very important that Sweden makes the decision to build tracks that can deal with 300 – 350 km/h, says Gunnar Sibbmark, just as is now the case in the rest of Europe.
Europakorridoren is a federation of cities, municipalities and county councils, from Stockholm in the north, throughout the Öresund region and Copenhagen, to Hamburg in the south. A system of high speed trains is planned here that will link up Sweden, Denmark and Northern Germany.
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IS AVAILABLE FROM GUNNAR SIBBMARK, EUROPAKORRIDOREN, TELEPHONE +46 (0)705-62 94 33 |
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The European Corridor:
If the trains run too slowly, growth and jobs will be threatened
Comments by Gunnar Sibbmark, 1st vice chairman and MD, Europakorridoren AB, at the press conference in Stockholm 27-08-2003.
Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg, Falköping Municipality and Östergötland County Council are new members of Europakorridoren.
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