Projects timeline

ProRail holds various environmental permits for the management and operation of the yards along the harbour rail network (Havenspoor Line). These permits outline the requirements and obligations that ProRail must meet to ensure safety on the yards (compliance and safety).

In addition to managing 7,000 kilometres of track and approximately 400 stations, ProRail also oversees dozens of yards.

Railways points are sensitive to cold and snow and can freeze or block. Winter precipitation increases the risk of points malfunctioning.

The firefighting facilities at the Rotterdam harbour rail yards must be adapted by 1 January 2023. This is due to the stricter requirements of the Environmental Permit.

In a span of three years, ProRail is bringing the infrastructure in the Rotterdam harbour area in order. In total, we are replacing 92 points, 78 level crossings, and 20 kilometres of track on the over 40-kilometer-long freight railway line between the Kijfhoek and Maasvlakte rail yards. We have divided the work into three packages, each lasting one year.

The second Maasvlakte is located west of the (first) Maasvlakte. It is a new piece of land covering approximately 2,000 hectares. Due to its location, surrounded by the North Sea, elements such as wind and sand have free rein.

Kijfhoek is the largest rail freight yard in the Netherlands; it can be seen as a sorting centre for trains. Wagons carrying goods from various logistics centres are assembled here into trains bound for their final destinations.

Is a section of rail track occupied or not? Currently, the Jade detection system still ‘tells’ this with track circuits. However, this system is not always resistant to sand and salt, a combination common in the Rotterdam harbour area.