The course of the Port Railway Line will be altered in the port of Rotterdam
The Port of Rotterdam Authority says Sharon Dijksma, the State Secretary for Infrastructure and Environment, has approved the Theemsweg Route decision. This involves altering the course of the Port Railway Line in the port of Rotterdam.
The Port of Rotterdam Authority and ProRail will reroute the line over a section of around 4.5 km. The new Theemsweg Route will be completed in 2021, when the Calandbrug reaches the end of its technical service life. This alteration represents a response to the expected capacity bottleneck due to an increase in rail and shipping traffic. Rerouting the line via the Theemsweg means that rail traffic will no longer travel across the Calandbrug and will no longer be held up when the bridge is raised for shipping.
A number of amendments of the draft have been incorporated in the Theemsweg Route decision. These partly reflect the views on the draft that were submitted. The two most important changes are design optimisations concerning the raised edge along the entire length of the concrete structure standing on pillars. The inner side of this edge will now be made to a sound-absorbing design. Furthermore, the height of this raised edge has been increased from 1.40 to 1.70 metres above the surface of the track. Both measures will help reduce noise levels in the vicinity of the line.
The Port of Rotterdam Authority, ProRail and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment will hold an open meeting at Dorpscentrum De Gaffelaar in Zwartewaal on 13 June. Experts will be present to answer questions. People may show up at any time to the meeting, which runs from 7 to 9 pm.
The route decree was published in the Staatscourant of 23 May 2017, and together with the accompanying documents is available for inspection for a period of six weeks at five locations and via www.platformparticipatie.nl/theemswegtrace, where details of the procedure for submitting an appeal can also be found. Interested parties who submitted a view on the draft decree may submit an appeal to the Council of State from 24 May to 4 July 2017. This also applies to interested parties with a reasonable justification for not expressing their views on the draft decree.
