- La voie ferrée du train heurte un véhicule lourd dans la région de Cologne-Aachen.
Un véhicule de grande taille s'est retrouvé sur les voies ferrées entre Cologne et Aix-la-Chapelle, qui sont également utilisées pour les trains à grande vitesse à destination de Bruxelles. Les voies restent fermées indéfiniment. Les efforts pour récupérer le véhicule auront lieu pendant la nuit du vendredi, selon un porte-parole des chemins de fer vendredi soir.
Dans l'après-midi du vendredi, le camion est tombé d'un pont sur les voies à la gare de Kerpen, située à l'ouest de Cologne. Le conducteur, un homme de 42 ans, a subi des blessures graves et a été transféré dans une unité de soins intensifs à l'hôpital, selon la police. Un test de dépistage de drogues sur le conducteur s'est révélé positif, nécessitant la collecte d'un échantillon de sang.
Les lignes électriques aériennes de la voie ferrée ont été endommagées. "Le camion doit être récupéré en premier pour dégager les voies", a déclaré une porte-parole de Deutsche Bahn à l'agence de presse allemande. "Après cela, le nettoyage et la réparation des lignes peuvent commencer." Les dommages supplémentaires aux voies ou aux installations mécaniques ne peuvent être déterminés qu'après la récupération du véhicule.
Récupération programmée
"We are currently arranging to retrieve the truck using a crane and anticipate that the tracks will be reopened as soon as possible," a railway spokeswoman said. However, it is currently impossible to estimate when this will take place. The vehicle was transporting 40 metric tons of granulate, which also needs to be retrieved.
According to the police, the granulate does not pose a threat. However, the impact caused damage to the vehicle's fuel tank, leading to a fuel leakage.
As a result of the track closure, there are delays and cancellations in long-distance transportation. High-speed trains between Cologne and Brussels are being redirected, resulting in additional delays of about 90 minutes. IC and ICE trains with destinations or starting points in Aachen are commencing and ending in Cologne. The stops in Düren and Aachen are not being serviced.
Similar delays, partial cancellations, and cancellations are occurring in regional transportation. A substitute bus service has been instated between Düren and Cologne, along with Horrem and Cologne. The stop in Cologne-Ehrenfeld is not being catered to.
Track remains closed
"The truck accident in Kerpen is momentarily causing substantial disruptions to rail traffic," National Express stated in response to an inquiry. "Based on the disruption prediction from DB InfraGo, the track is expected to remain closed until at least the conclusion of the day. Nevertheless, it is likely that the disruptions will persist into tomorrow's operations and beyond."
The company is affected by the closure due to line RE 1 (RRX), which traverses between Aachen and Hamm. Trains are not running between Cologne and Düren. A substitute bus service has been launched. However, individual cancellations and reroutes might also take place on the remainder of the route.
Disruptions in both rail and road traffic
According to the police, a train carrying approximately 60 passengers was stationed near the crash site. The train was unable to proceed because the high-voltage line had to be grounded for safety reasons.
Police reported that witnesses observed the truck swerve off the road on an overpass at around 11:50 a.m., break through the bridge railing, and descend onto the tracks. The cause of the incident remains unclear, as a spokesperson said. Investigations are ongoing.
The retrieval of the truck from The Aachen-bound rail tracks, where it ended up after the accident near Kerpen station, is scheduled for recovery using a crane. Due to the vehicle's presence and the subsequent fuel leakage, the high-speed trains bound for Brussels via Cologne and Aachen continue to face delays and cancellations.
