He maritime giant Maersk will start at the beginning of this November until four railway services between andhe port of Barcelona and the south of France from the hand of the operator Captrain. There will be three direct weekly links from maritime container with Toulouse and one with Lyon. These dedicated services constitute the beginning of a relevant operation for railway traffic between Spain and France, as it is the first time that a freight train is launched without intervention on the Spanish-French border. Captrain has been operating services without intervention on the border between Spain and Portugal for 15 years and now this mode of transport is arriving between Spain and France.

The 750 meter long trains will be powered by Captrain’s Stadler Euro6000 locomotives. In this way, maneuvers are reduced, which results in a reduction in operating costs. No intervention by train drivers or other rolling stock is required until the destination. The trains of this new service cross the border at Le Perthus on international gauge. Through Toulouse, the solution connects cargo to Bordeaux via the network operated by Naviland, according to Maersk. In addition, the shipping group plans to extend the service to its clients destined for Tarragona and Zaragoza in the future.

Transit times

Maersk sources assure that through Toulouse, the solution will connect cargo “without problems” with Bordeaux. According to shipping company calculations, this new offer can shorten transit times for import and export cargo in the Toulouse, Bordeaux and Lyon areas by up to 12 days (seven days on average) compared to traditional routes through ports. French or Northern European.

The creation of this railway service operated through APM Spain Railways, a subsidiary of the Danish group, allows the port of Barcelona to capture new maritime container flows that until now were transported through other European venues.

The analysis by Maersk experts suggests that thanks to shorter transport distances and the use of electric trains, there will be obvious environmental gains. Dedicated trains can also be reserved for intracontinental freight between Spain and France. Emilio de la Cruz, general director of Maersk’s Southwest Europe Area, believes that the new service also brings new doses of confidence to the supply chains for the industries in Catalonia and the south of France.

Thanks to new interoperable locomotives, dedicated trains do not have to stop to change locomotives or replace wheel sets on the Spanish-French border, so much more fluid freight transport operations are expected.

Maersk is an integrated logistics company that works to connect and simplify its customers’ supply chains. As a global leader in shipping services, the company operates in more than 130 countries and employs more than 110,000 people worldwide. Maersk aims to achieve net zero emissions by 2040 across the business with new technologies, new ships and green fuels.