Fertagus

FERTAGUS is a Portuguese transport company located in Almada, which operates as the only private transport company trains in the Portuguese rail network in addition to the state railway company CP, 21.4 million passengers use the blue and white trains in 2006, averaging about 85,000 passengers per day. In addition to the local trains for the transport group in Barraqueiro belonging FERTAGUS also operates numerous bus routes. The company name FERTAGUS is a portmanteau word from the shortening of the Portuguese word for rail, Caminhos -de- ferro, and the Latin name of the river Tagus, tagus.

History

Liberalization of the rail market

After the Portuguese Government had decided in 1997 to curtail the functions of the Portuguese state railway, numerous changes in the Portuguese railway system were needed. The state railway company CP kept from then on only the operation of trains, the rail network itself transferred the government of the newly formed public operator REFER, workshops and Zuginstandhaltungen went to the EMEF over, the control and regulatory function of the rail network transferred the government by reform at the Instituto Nacional do Transporte Ferroviário, now reformed and renamed Instituto da mobilidade e dos Transportes Terrestres. In the wake of this opening of the railway network was also private transport companies possible to operate in the railway network in Portugal.

Tender the Eixo Norte / Sul

Between 1996 and 1999, had the Portuguese Department of Transportation to expand the 25th of April Bridge with a railway deck, so as to bring more commuters from road to rail. First time in 1998, the traffic on the so-called new line Eixo Norte / Sul, the new link between Lisbon was about the 25th of April Bridge and the suburbs on the other side of the Tagus, advertised. The tender for a 30-year transportation contract won the neugründete FERTAGUS company, a subsidiary of Lisbon's transport company Barraqueiro, which took over the traffic between Lisbon and Entrecampos Fogueteiro from 30 July 1999. While FERTAGUS pay for the Lisbon Stations fees to the state infrastructure operators REFER, it operates the stations south of the Tagus itself, even if the Pragal station is also served by CP trains. 2000 promoted FERTAGUS eleven million passengers a year.

Extension of traffic to Setúbal and Roma Areeiro

From September 2003, extended FERTAGUS the running of trains in the Lisbon area around a station for Lisbon converted railway station Roma Areeiro so that Fertagusvorortzüge received another to transfer to the Lisbon Metro. Since October 2004, the FERTAGUS trains now drove to the south across Pinhal Novo to the district capital of Setúbal, before the connector between the railway line Eixo Norte / Sul and the Linha do Sado had been completed between Barreiro and Setúbal. The extension of the line to Setúbal led to a sharp increase in passengers on the route to Lisbon, in just the first year timetable drove two million additional passengers on the trains of the private rail operator. Since FERTAGUS but not enough vehicles had to perform a continuous 15 -minute intervals to Setúbal and the projected ridership not justify it, since only runs every third train to Setúbal, the other trains terminate before the Coina station. 2005 was amended in the concession agreement with FERTAGUS, the government reduced the traffic contract later on a total of 15 years with the possibility of renewal from 2019; for seven years, from 2004 to 2010, FERTAGUS receive a total of EUR 57.6 million as compensation, 2010-2019 FERTAGUS will have to drive on their own account and without compensation. This Novelleriung the contract was made ​​possible by a safeguard clause that allows a revision if fewer passengers should go as planned with the trains. Since 30 percent fewer passengers traveled as planned with the trains, this case occurred.

With FERTAGUS thus the first and so far only private train operator runs in the Portuguese rail network, and for the first time a private transport company must also direct charges for the use of the stations on the route between Lisbon and Setúbal to the state infrastructure operators speech FERROVIARIA Nacional ( REFER) pay, 2006 payments amounted to 3.147 million euros, 2007 to 3.102 million euros. Partial FERTAGUS operates in cooperation with TST additional shuttle buses connecting the surrounding villages and towns with train stations, these operate under the name SulFertagus.

In particular, the Partido Comunista Português opposition party (PCP ) criticized the traffic of private enterprise on the important north -south connection for several years. Thus, prices for FERTAGUS rides were much higher than comparable the Portuguese state railway. For this reason, the PCP requires that the FERTAGUS concession of the state railway passed, included the track in the Lisbon Social ticket, promoted the construction of the station Valle de Flores and regular service will be extended to Gare de Oriente.

Between 1999 and 2009 a total of 180 million passengers carried FERTAGUS. In 2008, the railway company made ​​a profit of 5.8 million euros, 4.9 million euros in 2009.

Future

In the medium term, be installed in consultation with the Portuguese Ministry of Transport and the network operator REFER, in Corroios station switches to use in rush hour inserter trains between Lisbon and Corroios can. At the same time, only drive four-car trains to Setúbal instead of the previous double traction ( eight- car trains ).

In the future, the operator FERTAGUS wanted to take over the transport on the neuzubauenden, third Tagus bridge between chelas and Barreiro. The bridge that should connect to the available railway lines Linha de Cintura and Linha do Alentejo, was originally planned that they should both a standard gauge high speed line to Porto and Madrid, as well as to record a new transport link between Lisbon and Setúbal. FERTAGUS calculated here with a journey time of seven minutes between Barreiro stations and Entrecampos. FERTAGUS suggested, similar to the distance over the Ponte 25 de Abril, in rush hour, a 20 -minute clock to drive a 40 -minute intervals during low traffic time. For a total of twelve new double-decker trains would have been needed. Meanwhile, the Portuguese Government has placed the construction of the new high- speed line and the third Tagus River Bridge on hold due to the parlous fiscal position.

Rolling stock

FERTAGUS operates the route between Lissabon-Roma/Areeiro and Setúbal with 22 double -decker trains of the type X'TRAPOLIS Tagus or the 3500 series, the GEC Alstom produced in the years 1999 and 2000, each consisting of four cars. The built along the lines of the Spanish RENFE series 450 cars offer in a wagon passenger capacity of 1210, of which 476 seats. The trains are also equipped with air conditioning and passenger information systems. Were the trains initially owned by FERTAGUS, these are now part of the state, which in turn leased it to the operator for a monthly payment.

The trains stop at 14 stations for the entire route they need 57 minutes.