Germany/Poland metro duo eye streetcar
Written by William C. Vantuono, Editor-in-ChiefPTV AG, a German-based logistics company, says Frankfurt (Oder), Germany, and neighboring Slubice, Poland, are planning to offer a cross-border tram route which would connect the two cities by 2015.
A study entitled “VIATRAM Frankfurt (Oder)-Slubice” has endorsed the idea, which is expected to generate 3,200 rider trips per day. Both cities and countries would seek European Union funding to support the project. The project would utilize an existing bridge over the River Oder.
Slubice was part of Frankfurt (Oder) until 1945, when international boundaries were redrawn."The tram line can achieve positive economic results if the construction of the link is supported financially," says Gerald Schröter, a PTV representative and head of a working group analyzing the prospect.
PTV AG is based in Karlsruhe, Germany, a city known for its dual-system Stadtbahn “tram trains” that run both as streetcars and on railroad rights-of-way.
Germany and France already employ a cross-border rail service, the Saarbahn, connecting Saarbruecken, Germany, with Sarreguemines, France, also with tram-trains.
