Half of the 27-kilometre railway upgrade in north-eastern Hungary already completed

The renovation of the railway line between Miskolc and Mezőkeresztes-Mezőnyárád began in September and will be carried out in two phases, as reported by our newspaper reported earlier. The first phase of the development has just been completed, and the second half of the project is now underway, as announced on the state railway company's website announcement published on the website of the state railway company. In terms of content, this project is part of the 5-point action plan announced by Építési és Közlekedési Minisztérium and will be implemented entirely from MÁV funds, they emphasise.

The three-month upgrade will make timetables more predictable and significantly reduce delays. Speed restrictions will be lifted on almost 20 kilometres and the chances of breakdowns in the technical installations on the track will be significantly reduced.

The MÁV renewed one (left) track between Miskolc-Rendező station and Nyékládháza and between Nyékládháza and Emőd from 2 September to 18 October, and at night between Miskolc and Nyékládháza the other track was also closed.

From 19 October to 4 December, machines will be working on the left track between Mezőkeresztes-Mezőnyárád and Emőd, and at night they will transport the materials and machines needed for the renovation on the other track pair.

So far, these tasks have been carried out

To summarise: in the first half of the renovation, the superstructure replacement was carried out on the 15 kilometres between Miskolc and Emőd, about 25,000 concrete sleepers were replaced and more than 58,000 tonnes of crushed stone were screened and installed using special railway machinery, including the giant 210-tonne SMD superstructure replacement machine, a rarity in Europe.

At work:

• the so-called superstructure, i.e. the rails and reinforced concrete beams, were replaced in nine days;
• Seven bridges have been insulated and 6 road crossings have been upgraded;
• following the replacement of the rails and 700 metres of ballast, the track regulation and ballast replacement work is also progressing;
• and carried out the necessary overhead line repairs, shrub and bush clearance, embankment clearing, and drainage ditch construction and cleaning.

The 210-tonne SMD machine is deployed again

Phase 2, which started on 19 October and covers 12 kilometres, will replace more than 20,000 concrete sleepers with new ones, including the replacement of rails. A total of 47,000 tonnes of crushed stone will be screened and installed, and the ballast will be completely replaced on 600 metres. In addition, 4 road crossings will be repaired and 5 bridges will be sealed to preserve their stability.

Work will continue to be carried out by 200-250 workers per shift, using large construction machinery, rail and road vehicles. And from 29 October, the state-of-the-art SMD superstructure replacement giant machine chain, which was already working in the first phase, will be back on the job.