Christian Lorenz
Press Officer
Telephone 0221 / 390 11 90
E-mail lorenzc(at)hgk.de
Häfen und Güterverkehr Köln AG
Press Office
Am Niehler Hafen 2
50735 Cologne
Strike break utilised: HGK AG brings forward necessary work on overhead lines
Cologne. Spontaneous, flexible, pragmatic: a specialist department from the Infrastructure & Maintenance division of Häfen und Güterverkehr Köln AG (HGK) used the strike-related forced break of the transport companies on light rail line 16 to bring forward planned construction work. In the Godorf area, employees carried out important work on the overhead lines during a shift lasting around ten hours on Monday.
HGK operates an extensive rail network in the Cologne region with around 250 kilometres of track on which the light rail lines 7, 15, 16 and 18 run. "When we learnt about the impending strike, we immediately checked which measures that were already planned could be brought forward at short notice. This included this work on the overhead lines," explains Berthold Suermann, Head of Network at HGK AG.
Using two so-called "two-way vehicles" - which can be used both on the road and on the railway - HGK teams travelled the route and carried out the necessary measures near Falderstraße and Wesselinger Straße. "Work on the overhead lines is complex. Normally, we can only carry out this work at night when the transport companies have breaks," reported HGK employee Dirk Heikamp on site.
According to Heikamp, the spontaneous work assignment saved "at least a week of night work". This is because the KVB and SWB's night-time time slots are very limited and only then can the traction current be switched off. Working during the day is also much more effective and results in less disruption for residents along the route.