Rail connection as a location factor

Everyone agreed in their assessment of the situation: The connection of the industrial and technology region to the long-distance transport network of Deutsche Bahn AG is not satisfactory. In talks with the CEO of Deutsche Bahn AG, Dr Rüdiger Grube, and Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig as well as representatives from business, science, politics, culture and society in Chemnitz today, the focus was therefore on the question of how this situation can be changed.

Electrification and the double-track expansion of the Chemnitz - Leipzig line have top priority. At the same time, the Saxony-Franconia Main Line, which will continue to run until 2014, should not be overlooked.

After the state of Saxony promised to take over the preliminary planning for the Chemnitz - Leipzig line at the rail summit on 7 June, a further task for the Free State is to register the project in the upcoming Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan via the current state transport development plan. At the same time, the urgent priority of the project must be determined in this list.

As the application for the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan must be submitted by the end of the year, the committee will invite Saxony's Minister of Economic Affairs, Sven Morlok, to a meeting in the autumn. The committee also intends to contribute to the joint strategy paper on transport infrastructure announced by the Free State of Saxony and Deutsche Bahn AG. "Even if it takes a long time to achieve success here, we will keep at it with vigour," said Lord Mayor Barbara Ludwig. "We are doing a lot to make local transport attractive, including with the further expansion of the Chemnitz model, for which funding was promised by the Free State a few days ago. However, these customers, which will increase considerably with the relocation of the university library to the Alte Aktienspinnerei and various faculties in the city centre, also expect modern, efficient long-distance transport connections."

The entrepreneurs and chamber presidents present, as well as TU Rector Arnold van Zyl, emphasised the importance of an attractive rail connection as a location factor that is essential for attracting customers and skilled workers.

"We have over 850 companies here with a turnover of between five and 20 million euros - that's the SME sector," said IHK Regional President Gunnar Bertram. "A convenient connection is a must here."

"We have established almost 140 new companies from within the university with the help of the Chemnitz Technology Centre and the SAXEED start-up network, and we are also building a cluster of excellence for lightweight construction that is unique in Germany," emphasised the Rector of Chemnitz University of Technology, Prof. Arnold van Zyl. "This also brings congresses to Chemnitz, whose participants are potential rail customers." Added to this are the university's students, around 4,000 of whom come from other federal states or from abroad.

"For our business partners, the poor connections are often incomprehensible," explains Prof Nils Kroemer, Plant Manager at Siemens AG. "In view of the successful economic development of the region, the demand is certainly different today than it was in the 1990s."

"The train compartment becomes a workplace with mobile technology. Rail time is productive time, unlike travelling by car. It is therefore common for our clients and customers throughout Germany and abroad to travel to appointments by train, except to Chemnitz," emphasised Uwe Bauer, CEO of Hartmannsdorf-based aetka AG.

The more than 12,000 signatures that have been collected in recent weeks show that the region is behind the project. Citizens from Chemnitz and the region signed the appeal to the federal government, the state and Deutsche Bahn AG to improve the long-distance transport connection.

Railway boss Dr Rüdiger Grube showed great understanding for the concerns of the people of Chemnitz. "We take the issue of rail connections in the West Saxony region very seriously. However, the expansion of the infrastructure is a mandatory prerequisite for a qualified long-distance transport connection, whereby we are currently focussing primarily on the route between Chemnitz and Leipzig. We are currently in intensive talks with the Free State of Saxony to initiate preliminary planning for this." DB and the Free State signed a declaration of intent at the rail summit with the aim of finalising the preliminary planning for a possible expansion of the Chemnitz - Leipzig line by 2013. The focus of the infrastructure investment would be the continuous electrification, the extension of the double track and the straightening of curves in order to enable qualified long-distance transport in terms of infrastructure. The infrastructure project must be registered for the 2015 Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan by the end of 2012.

Grube added: "However, a holistic transport concept for the Free State is also very important for the further transport development of the entire Saxon economic area. Such a concept has been lacking to date. I am therefore very pleased that we agreed with the Free State at the rail summit to jointly present a stringent concept for local, long-distance and freight transport throughout Saxony by the end of this year. This is because the long-distance transport so strongly demanded by the people of Chemnitz must be operated by DB on its own account. Therefore, only an economically viable concept in harmony with the existing local transport services can ensure a long-term service."

With regard to the Nuremberg-Chemnitz Dresden connection, Grube emphasised: "At the recent rail summit, DB gave its assurance that it would continue to operate the self-funded IRE until 2014 despite high annual losses. Negotiations are already underway with the two Free States to develop sustainable solutions for the period after that."

Another topic discussed today was the condition of the station building. While 120 million euros are currently being invested in the Chemnitz hub, the station building also needs to be upgraded. Railway boss Dr Grube intends to address this issue once again.