Environmental measures
- After the successful tests of the cooling effect of white rails in summer 2019, we have, for the first time, tested the color coating during ongoing operation. For this purpose, 1,000 m of track on the high-speed line Hanover — Würzburg was coated with an environmentally friendly white paint. Sound results are expected at the earliest in 2020, and form the basis for a possible expansion of the project to other lines.
Retrofitting up to 600 older interlockings
DB Group is technically equipping older interlockings to support the traffic controllers in track monitoring. In January 2019, new technology was installed at the pilot sites of Utting in Bavaria and Nieukerk in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. In the year under review, the upgrading of all old interlockings began after successful test operations. Up to 600 interlockings should be equipped by 2024. The conversion will cost about € 90 million. In addition to the technical retrofitting of older interlockings, the planning and construction for renovation is unaffected by this additional measure.
