Transrapid in Munich?
July 26, 2007
The German government reportedly no longer wants to block a high-speed train connection between Munich's city center and its airport. According to Thursday's edition of the daily Die Welt, German Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee and Bavaria's economics minister Erwin Huber will meet at the end of August to clarify the financing of the project.
"As soon as we've reached agreement on the financing, we want to wind up the project quickly," the paper quoted sources at the federal transport ministry.
It is expected to cost at least 1.85 billion euros ($2.54 billion).
The high-speed magnetic levitation ("maglev") train project had been called into question after a crash on a test track last year killed 23 people and injured 10.
EU funding could support Transrapid
The project's financing is, however, a major hurdle. The federal government has already earmarked 550 million euros in its budget for it. Bavaria would provide some 300 million euros and German railway Deutsche Bahn 185 million euros.
Tiefensee has said that the federal government was only prepared to foot half of the bill. According to transport experts, this left a financing gap of 350 million euros.
Bavaria's Premier Edmund Stoiber has therefore appealed to the European Union for subsidies. European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, who is currently on a three-day-visist to Bavaria, has agreed to examine the request. Bavaria hopes the EU could provide at least 100 million euros out of its fund for high-tech and transport projects.
Construction could be postponed
The Transrapid line would connect the Bavarian capital with its airport, just under 40 kilometers (25 miles) away. It would reduce the travel time from 40 to 10 minutes.
Once agreement has been reached on financing, the railway authorities could authorize construction at the end of 2007 at the earliest, Die Welt said. But opponents have already announced they will seek to block the project at the federal administrative court in Leipzig.
There has been much debate in Germany about a suitable location to build a line since the 1990s. The world's only commercial Transrapid line operates in China between Shanghai and its airport. A connection in Germany would be operated by Deutsche Bahn, the paper said.
The Transrapid, which floats on a magnetic cushion instead of riding on tracks, was developed by a joint venture between German industrial giants Siemens and ThyssenKrupp. It can reach top speeds of 450 kilometers per hour.