Romania’s most complex infrastructure project can go ahead

A comprehensive refurbishment of the approximately 113-kilometre-long, double-track, electrified railway line has been underway since 2020 between Brașov, with a population of 208,000, and Sighișoara, with a population of 24,000. This is one of Romania’s most complex infrastructure projects, as this section of the Main Line 300 is a key element of the TEN-T trans-European network – specifically, the Rhine–Danube and the Baltic Sea–Black Sea–Aegean Sea corridors – yet the project faces numerous challenges – ranging from topographical conditions to financing. The modernisation will eliminate a critical bottleneck on European rail corridors and will also strengthen Romania’s links with the international network.

New funding could give the project a further boost

The total investment will cost 2.25 billion euros, and its implementation is now being supported by Európai Beruházási Bank (EBB) is currently providing €630 million in funding.

The aim is to achieve a travelling speed of 160 km/h for passenger trains and 120 km/h for freight trains, which far exceeds the capabilities of the current track – built as far back as the 19th century, running alongside river valleys and full of tight curves.

Consequently, radical engineering work was required in the hilly and mountainous terrain. Due to the large curve radii required for the new speed, dozens of new railway bridges and steel and prestressed reinforced concrete viaducts are being built over the tributaries of the Olt and Küküllő rivers and across the deep valleys, fundamentally reshaping the railway geometry of the region.

Two tunnels are needed

Construction is taking place in three stages: on the two outlying, gentler sections – the Brașov–Apáca and Kaca–Sighișoara sections – the Alstom–Aktor–Arcada consortium is making good progress with the embankment and structural works, and certain sections have already been opened to traffic.

The greatest challenge, however, is the central mountain section between Apáca and Kaca, where a completely new route is being built.

Here, two large-scale twin tunnels are being constructed using TBM shields: the Ürmösi tunnel will be approximately 6.9 kilometres long, whilst the Homoródi tunnel will be approximately 5.1 kilometres long. Although the works are significantly behind schedule due to the transport and assembly of the TBMs at the site, bureaucratic difficulties and geological conditions, full completion is currently expected by the end of the decade, in 2029.

The whole region will feel the difference once it’s finished

Once it has been handed over, the line’s capacity, journey time efficiency and safety will increase dramatically. The railway line will enable the safe and reliable operation of up to 29 passenger trains and 22 freight trains per day, which could ensure that 4 million passengers and 6 million tonnes of freight reach their destinations more quickly each year. The modernised infrastructure will not only provide a competitive alternative for passenger transport, but will also significantly facilitate the environmentally friendly shift of freight transport from road to rail.