February 2010

ERS Railways Speaker at Logistainable - Prague
On January 27th 2010 ERS Railways was one of the speakers at the Czech - Dutch conference ‘Logistainable’, a conference on transport, logistics and sustainability. The conference, under the joint auspices of The Embassy Of The Kingdom Of The Netherlands and The Ministry Of Transport Of The Czech Republic, was supported by the Dutch Ministry Of Economic Affairs. On the conference speakers from several industries spoke about new trends and developments in multimodal transport and warehousing. ERS highlighted its rail services connecting Rotterdam and Melnik (north of Prague) and further elaborated on the sustainability of transport per rail compared to the traditional transport by truck.

Please find the presentation of this conference under the following link: ERSR Presentation 27 Jan 2010

For information about this conference please go to: www.logistainable.com

January 2010

Transport & Logistics Fair 7th & 8th April 2010 in s'-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands
On 7th & 8th April 2010, the annual Transport & Logistics Fair 2010 will take place at the Brabanthallen in 's-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands. The main theme of this fair is intermodal transport and logistics with special focus on the Dutch market. ERS Railways will attend the fair as an exhibitor. We would like to take this great opportunity to meet our potential clients and partners.

We are looking forward to seeing you at the fair on stand No. T1310.

For information about the Transport & Logistics Fair, please click on the logo below.

ERS Railways and Green Cargo launch cooperation
ERS Railways has selected Green Cargo as traction provider for a new intermodal shuttle service between the ports of Norrköping and Gothenburg. With this new service, ERS Railways is able to continue its growth in Sweden. ERSR now offers rail transport of containers between four major ports in Sweden.

ERS Railways has become a major player in rail transport on the continent and connects 25 locations in eight countries by shuttle trains carrying containers and swap bodies.

"We offer eco-friendly transportation solutions and Green Cargo has developed the best operational solution to start container trains between the ports of Gothenburg and Norrköping. The first train will already run on January 12", says Johan Engdahl, General Manager of ERS Railways in Sweden.



Initially, there will be two round trips between Gothenburg and Norrköping per week, with a possible extension to Södertälje.

"ERS Railways is a dynamic company with a strong knowledge of customers and the requirements of maritime transportation companies in the European hinterland. We are excited about this collaboration and we consider ERS Railways as an important player both in Sweden and on the continent", says Richard Kirchner, sales manager at Green Cargo Indirect Accounts. The start-up freight train service between the ports of Norrköping and Gothenburg will be equivalent to about 120 lorry journeys each week.

Contact: Johan Engdahl, General Manager ERS Railways Sweden, tel.: +46 706195412 Mats Hollander, Director of Communications Green Cargo, tel.: + 46 70 762 46 14

Green Cargo is a transport and logistics company with the rail transport as a base. They run about 65 percent of the Swedish freight trains and with partners they reach across Europe. Customers are offered environmentally friendly transport solutions. Green Cargo is owned by the Swedish state. The Group has approximately 3 000 employees and its annual sales reach about 6.4 billion USD.

www.greencargo.com / www.ersrail.com

December 2009

Rail Net Europe Business Conference
ERS Railways joined the annual Rail Net Europe Business Conference in Vienna on 04 December 2009. As a guest speaker, ERS Railways shared its feedback on the current economic situation with several experts of the rail industry.

Rail Net Europe was established in 2004 by a number of European Rail Infrastructure Managers to shape the business of European rail infrastructure. The main objective of that company is to improve operational issues in the field of international rail traffic, e.g. by introducing One Stop Shop (OSS), a system that allows to order international train paths from only one contact person. This is of key importance for ERS Railways to guarantee fast transit times of its block trains throughout Europe.

Please find the presentation of this conference under the following link: http://www.ersrail.com/downloads/ERSR_Presentation_04Dec2009_Vienna.pdf

November 2009

4th European Conference and Exhibition on Inland Terminals
The European Conference and Exhibition on Inland Terminals is held annually in one of the transport and logistical hotspots of Europe. This year's conference took place on  16-17 November in Amsterdam. Its main theme was the strategy of seaports, deep sea terminal operators and liner shipping companies to include inland ports and terminals in their overall business development. ERS Railways joined this event as a speaker to share its experience on the rail connections between seaports and inland terminals, which is one of the key businesses of our company.

Please find the presentation of this conference under the following link: http://www.ersrail.com/downloads/ERSRPR3.pdf

October 2009

ERS Railways containers
ERS Railways recently acquired ten 20 foot containers to promote the company. All have been painted in a base white and then ordained with the company logo and motto. On the photo you can see two newly released ERS Railways containers being picked by Peeman Transport B.V. to be delivered to the Rail Center Waalhaven. All containers will primarily be used for commercial purposes on the various routes of ERS rail network.

October 2009

Future of rail freight conference
On the 23rd and 24th of November 2009 the 5th Annual conference "The Future of Rail Freight in Europe" will be held in Berlin. This conference, organized by MarketForce and the Adam Smith Institute is one of the key events of the rail industry. ERS Railways Managing Director, Alan Gibson, has been invited as one of the keynote speakers at this forum. ERS Railways is an active player of these conferences and has already participated in previous events at Brussels (November 2008) and Vienna (March 2009).

For information about this conference please go to: www.marketforce.eu.com/railfreight/

September 2009

Train Incident
At approximately 22:45 hours local time on Thursday 24 September, an ERS locomotive was involved in a frontal collision with another cargo train.

The incident occured at Barendrecht near the Port of Rotterdam in The Netherlands as the ERS locomotive was departing Rotterdam on its way to Warsaw.

The driver of the ERS locomotive was injured and taken to hospital where he is now in a stable condition. Tragically, the driver of the other locomotive was fatally injured in the collision.

Extensive damage has occurred to the locomotives & wagons of both trains. Rail lines and overhead cables have also been damaged.

Emergency services and local authorities are attending the scene. As yet there is no indication as the cause of the collision. Rail authorities will be conducting a thorough investigation. We will continue to work with the authorities and provide every assistance to their enquiries.

Our deepest sympathy lies with the families of both drivers at this time.

August 2009

ERS Railways enhances its network with new product Hamburg – Warsaw on 8th of September 2009
In an effort to provide the most comprehensive rail solutions to the customers, ERS Railways has been working steadily on the expansion of its multi-modal network. ERS Railways is pleased to announce the introduction of its new direct shuttle train connection between Hamburg and Warsaw with three departures per week. The first train is scheduled to run on 8th of September 2009.

This new product demonstrates the strong commitment of ERS Railways to enhance the rail connection between European ports and Eastern Europe inland area and to promote green transportation solutions.

For more information, please contact your ERS Railways Sales Representative or e-mail us at info-eu@ersrail.com

July 2009

ERS Railways renews its fleet with more electric locomotives
As part of its "Green Policy", ERS Railways has taken delivery of five Siemens ES64F4 electric locomotives during the past few months. Those locomotives are currently used on the shuttle trains between Rotterdam, Italy, and the Czech Republic. ERS Railways is proud of its accomplishments to reduce its carbon foot-print and recently branded these modern locomotives with its logo to promote this visually.

More electric locomotives will be delivered before end 2009 to replace more of the remaining diesel locomotives and to further expand ERS Railways product offering throughout Europe.

© H. de Groot

July 2009

ERS Railways suspends energy surcharge for 3rd Quarter 2009
In this situation of economic turbulence, ERS Railways continues to explore every opportunity to present its customers with the best value proposition. As a demonstration of this commitment, ERS Railways is pleased to inform you that in spite of increasing fuel costs, the energy surcharge has been suspended for 3rd Quarter 2009.

Please contact our Customer Service departments or your ERS Railways sales representative if you have any questions concerning this announcement.

June 2009

Warsaw
On June the 1st the Polish branch office of ERS Railways moved to a new location in Warsaw. The office is now situated in the new Northgate building which is an 87 m high "class A" office skyscraper with 24 upper floors and three underground levels. For contact details please view the "Offices" page on this website.

May 2009

ERS Railways Opens New HeadQuarters
ERS Railways BV last month moved into its new Rotterdam-based European headquarters within the "Waalstaete" office complex.

The company made the move to accommodate European growth and the need for improved representation. The new interior of the 400-square-meter ground floor office was designed by Adcom2000 Architects & Engineers BV. The Kantoortotaal group implemented the design. Dijkshoorn Euromovers facilitated the move. The Rotterdam office will house the company'’s main management, legal, financial, sales, product, security and IT operations.

ERS Railways new headquarters is located at "Waalstaete", 2-B Waalhaven Zuid-Zijde in Rotterdam. The operational division for ERS Railways Netherlands remains at 61 Albert Plesmanweg, Rotterdam.

May 2009

Transport logistic exhibition Munich
As a key player in international freight transport in Europe, ERS Railways joined the 12th transport logistic exhibition that has been held in Munich from 12 to 15 May 2009. This exhibition is the world's largest trade exhibition for logistics, telematics and transport with about 48.000 trade visitors in 2009. ERS participated with a stand and benefitted from the exhibition as a very good opportunity to meet potential customers and business partners.

The next transport logistic will be held on 10-13 May 2011.

For information about this exhibition please go to: http://www.transportlogistic.de/en

April 2009

TransRussia exhibition Moscow
TransRussia 2009 took place on 21-24 April 2009 at the Expocentre Moscow. This annual exhibition is the largest event for the transport and logistics industry in Russia. As ERS is looking towards East including rail developments in the fast-growing business of the Moscow area, ERS Railways participated together with TSES (Trans Siberian Express Service) in a joint stand. For information about this exhibition please go to: http://www.transrussia.ru/eng

April 2009

First trains from Bremerhaven to Katy Wroclawskie
In April 2009 ERS Railways drove 2 block trains loaded with electronics for Schavemaker from Bremerhaven to Katy Wroclawskie terminal in Poland. These were the first trains of ERS Railways between the German ports and Poland, which were successful trials to develop the ERS network on this important East-West rail corridor. Regular service between the German ports and selected destinations in Poland is expected to start before end 2009. This will complete logically our network in Poland which already has 3 weekly roundtrips between Rotterdam and Warsaw.

February 2009

Cool Transport
It's been called the "Grease" of our time. Disney's High School Musical: The Ice Tour is a fusion of songs, dance and ice skating inspired by the smash hit Disney Channel original movie High School Musical and High School Musical 2.

ERS Railways, on behalf of one of it's clients, transports the show in a total of 12 containers to Warsaw, Poland. The Ice Tour will play in Warsaw from February 25 until March 2nd and will then continue to Wroclaw, as part of a big European Tour.

January 2009

New Czech Subcontractor

As of January 1st, 2009, ERS Railways has changed the Czech subcontractor for the regular scheduled trains on the route Rotterdam – Mêlník v.v.

The transport company "OKD, Doprava, a.s." now ensures the traction in the Czech territory from – and up to the border station Bad Schandau.
"OKD, Doprava" Will use it's class 753.7 diesel locomotives for the transport of these trains and will also handle the shunting of trains at Mêlník's Intermodal Terminal yard. The terminal is connected by unelectrified track to the station in Mêlník.

Link: www.okd-doprava.cz

November 2008

ERS Railways takes a huge step forward in implementing its "Green Policy"

On 11 November 2008 ERS Railways took delivery of three Siemens ES64F4 electric locomotives from Mitsui Rail Capital Europe in Mönchengladbach, Germany.

These locomotives mark an important step in ERS Railways’ history, which had hitherto exclusively operated diesel locomotives. It is also a further step in ERS Railways’ expanding program of Corporate Responsibility measures which make a positive contribution to the environment by reducing carbon foot-print.

Three more locomotives of the same type are scheduled for delivery before end 2008. All six locomotives will be deployed in The Netherlands and Germany.

May 2008

Incident drill

ERS Railways together with R.M.I. International took part in an incident drill which occurred May 14 2008. Both were invited by the Rotterdam Fire Department to participate in a car crash accident with a locomotive and as a result a leaking tank container.

April 2008

Railz Miniworld open for public

On 29 March 2008 it was one year ago that Ivo Opstelten, Major of Rotterdam, officially opened the biggest indoor miniature rail exhibition in The Netherlands. Since its opening , Railz Miniworld has expanded from 200m2 to 280m2. Begin 2009 the new “ Wereldstad Rotterdam“ exhibition, with a surface of 190m2 , will be opened. As one of the sponsors, ERS Railways is very proud of these milestones.

For a full press release and photo's please click on this link www.railzminiworld.nl

March 2008

Hector Rail and ERS Railways sign new agreement

Hector Rail and ERS Railways have signed an agreement for rail transports between Gävle and Göteborg. The transports consist of containers and link Gävle with global shipping routes. The period of the agreement is three years with an option for an additional two years. Initially, two trains per week will be operated but the parties hope to increase this frequency.

Tetra Pak has entrusted Maersk to handle a major portion of its transportation of cardboard produced in Gävle for further shipment to Tetra Pak’s customers around the world. To be able to carry out this undertaking, Maersk needed a land connection between Gävle and the Port of Göteborg that fulfilled the stipulated demands for cost efficiency and quality. Maersk commissioned ERS Railways to create such a transport solution.

After careful market and service level evaluation Hector Rail was chosen as the traction provider for their excellent proven track record.

Service has already begun.

Picture taken in Gävle from the initial test runs.

Purchase of two shunters

Hector Rail AB is an independent line haul provider, active in Scandinavia and Germany. Independent means that Hector Rail is not associated with any State or other transport entity.

To make the ERS Railways operations possible Hector Rail has invested in two small two axle shunters.

Hector Rail currently produces about 10,000 train-kilometres daily. Hector Rail’s locomotive fleet currently consists of 25 locomotives, but an additional six have been ordered for delivery during 2008.

January 2008

Mark Harbers visited ERS Railways

On Thursday 24^th of January 2008 Mark Harbers (Alderman Economy, Port and Enviroment of the Rotterdam City Town Hall) visited ERS Railways. After a presentation of ERS Railways activities and discussion, Mark Harbers accompanied Harold de Groot on a ERS Railways train to the Maasvlakte.

December 2007

Kinderen kleuren de Betuweroute!

Op rangeerterrein Kijfhoek zijn acht winnaars van de Rail Cargo tekenwedstrijd verblijd met hun tekening op de zijkant van een locomotief van ITL, ERS, ACTS en Rail4chem.

Naar aanleiding van de opening van de Betuweroute op 16 juni 2007, heeft Rail Cargo information Netherlands een tekenwedstrijd georganiseerd. Kinderen uit gemeenten gelegen langs de Betuweroute kregen de kans om hun beeld te schetsen van het spoorvervoer. Het leverde een kleurrijk resultaat op.

De deelname-formulieren voor de wedstrijd zijn de afgelopen maanden verspreid in de containerbios, een speciale mobiele bioscoop die alle gemeentes langs de Betuweroute heeft aangedaan. Hierin werd een bijzondere film getoond over het totstandkomen van de Betuweroute.
Directeur Max Philips van Rail Cargo information Netherlands:” De tekenwedstrijd is werkelijk uniek, de kindertekeningen met een afbeelding van een goederentrein zijn nu uitvergroot op de zijkant van de locomotief geplakt. De komende maanden kunnen de winnende kinderen hun tekening langs zien rijden over de Betuweroute”

De railgoederenvervoerders, de eigenaren van de locomotieven, reageerden enthousiast op de tekenwedstrijd en de meeste van hen hebben direct een locomotief beschikbaar gesteld. Veel kinderen en ook scholen hebben aan de tekenwedstrijd meegedaan en in totaal ontving Rail Cargo zo’n 350 tekeningen.

Max Philips:”Het is mooi om te zien hoe kinderen telkens weer een andere invulling hebben gegeven aan een goederentrein. Speelgoed, eten, dieren en kleding waren veel terugkomende elementen in de tekeningen. Als je die trotse kopjes ziet dan realiseer je je dat het spoorvervoer niet een eigen wereld is,  maar midden in de maatschappij staat!”.

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October 2007

Keyrail initieert inzameling voor het goede doel

Keyrail, de exploitant van de Betuweroute, heeft tijdens de open dag van de Johan Cruyff Foundation een cheque ter waarde van € 100.000,- aan Johan Cruyff overhandigd. De allereerste rit van de Betuweroute heeft initiator Keyrail benut om geld in te zamelen voor een goed doel in Nederland. Vanuit het bedrijfsleven, o.a. ERS, was er veel interesse om aan deze ‘openingsrit’ deel te nemen. De trein was speciaal door Keyrail samengesteld, met als doel een substantieel bedrag voor de Johan Cruyff Foundation in te zamelen.

De Johan Cruyff Foundation steunt sportprojecten voor kinderen met en zonder handicap in Nederland en daarbuiten. Sjoerd Sjoerdsma, een van de twee directeuren van Keyrail, over de donatie aan dit goede doel: "Keyrail is een jonge en jeugdige organisatie en krijgt de kans een mooi, succesvol bedrijf neer te zetten. Keyrail wil door middel van deze donatie een soortgelijke kans aan de jeugd doorgeven". Cees Tommel, mededirecteur van Keyrail, voegt hier aan toe: “Het bedrijfsleven heeft vertrouwen in Betuweroute. Daarom zijn wij in staat geweest om alle betrokken partijen te interesseren en een aanzienlijke bijdrage aan de Johan Cruyff Foundation te laten leveren.

Keyrail haalde een bedrag van € 100.000,- op bij de 40 deelnemers die aan deze eerste rit participeerden. Hieronder vielen onder andere railgoederenvervoerders, verladers, rederijen, operators en transporteurs.

De open dag van de Cruyff Foundation staat zoals altijd in het teken van bewustwording en integratie, waarbij kinderen met en zonder beperking de mogelijkheid wordt geboden om samen te sporten en te spelen. Als altijd was Johan Cruyff gastheer van deze dag en er was een recordaantal ambassadeurs aanwezig.

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August 2007

Hans Smits drives ERS train

On Friday 17th August, Hans Smits, the President and CEO of the Port of Rotterdam, visited ERS Railways.

After a tour at the ECT, Smits drove, in close cooperation with our driver Martin Speksnijder, train 41751 with destination Germersheim from the ECTW to the RSC in the Waalhaven.

As an experienced driver Hans drove the train in the right slot to the Waalhaven terminal, where he arrived ahead of schedule time.

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July 2007

PERSBERICHT

Rotterdam, 11 juli 2007

‘Railvervoerders slaan de handen ineen’

Om de congestie op het spoor in het Rotterdamse havengebied tegen te gaan en daarmee de terminalcapaciteit beter te benutten heeft een aantal railvervoerders besloten de handen ineen te slaan. Vanaf 1 juli 2007 zullen de railvervoerders onderling locomotieven met machinist ter beschikking stellen om treinstellen die in de weg staan te verplaatsen.

Frans Zoetmulder, directeur van ERS Railways, namens de betrokken railvervoerders: 'Het komt regelmatig voor dat een goederentrein van een railvervoerder in de weg staat, daar deze op dat moment geen locomotief beschikbaar heeft om de goederentrein te verplaatsen. Dat leidt tot onnodige wachttijden. Wij hebben nu afgesproken, dat een ter plekke aanwezige locomotief van de ene railvervoerder het treinstel van de andere railvervoerder mag verplaatsen naar een plek waar het treinstel niet in de weg staan. Deze samenwerking is uniek te noemen, omdat tot op heden vervoerders elkaars treinen niet mochten verplaatsen'

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June 2007

Container train connects 3 continents over 12,229 km
ERS connects China by rail with Europe

Prague, 15 June – European Rail Shuttle (ERS) is once again responsible for a new achievement which will go down in the railway history book. The first container train from Shenzhen (China) delivered fifty-two 40" containers with computer components to one of its customers in Pardubice, near Czech Republic's capital Prague. This unique transport took only 17 days to reach its destination; more than twice as fast as by sea. ERS expects that the success of this new transport may be the beginning of a new regular service between China and Europe.

"We are not the first operators driving this route by rail", advises ERS' director Frans Zoetmulder. "Deutsche Bahn already drove some trial trains, but this is the first time that an import train crossed from China to Europe." ERS executed this unique service together with its sister companies Trans Siberian Express Service (TSES) in Russia and Tie Yang transportation (TMT) in China. Also the railway companies of the countries the train had to cross, including China, Mongolia, Russia, Poland and the Czech Republic, have been very cooperative.

Major time saving
Intercontinental container transport by rail can offer a good alternative to sea transport. "Surely with the current congestion, rail transport could be an interesting new alternative", Zoetmulder states. "Although the transport costs are surely higher than these of sea freight, a vast time saving can be accomplished by carrying the cargo over land. Rail may be a very good alternative for the sea-air concept".

The joint pilot was six months in the making with many obstacles to be overcome, such as different rail gauges between the transit countries which required trans-loading to different trains twice, customs clearance at six different border crossings, and train length limitations in Europe, requiring the train be split into two portions for its final leg into Pardubice.

ERS appreciates the cooperation of the customs, the railways the terminals and the other rail authorities of the countries along the 12,229 km long route. "All in all, we are very content with the way this transport was handled", claims Zoetmulder. "The success of this alternative route will surely attract other volumes."

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June 2007

Transport logistic Fair for ERS was a great success Transport logistic 2007 reflects booming business in the sector – new records Total 47,000 trade visitors: + 18 percent | 1,580 exhibitors: + 19 percent | 86,000 square metres of space: + 15 percent Globalisation and booming business in the sector have been reflected in full at transport logistic 2007. This 11th International Trade Fair for Logistics, Telematics and Transport, which took place between 12 and 15 June 2007, attracted 47,000 trade visitors from 113 countries. This is a rise of 18 percent over the last transport logistic trade fair. "Transport logistic has recorded impressive growth in the numbers of exhibitors and visitors, and in exhibition space. It addressed all the trend themes – across international borders – that are affecting the sector," said Eugen Egetenmeir, a Member of the Management Board of Messe München. Michael Kubenz, President of the Deutscher Speditions- und Logistikverband (DSLV) and Chairman of the Advisory Board of transport logistic, commented: "Logistics is in the overtaking lane worldwide. Never before has transport logistic had so many visitors, never before has this event been so international in scope." This was also confirmed by the exhibitors side: "transport logistic has visibly achieved its goal of being the world's leading trade fair for the sector," confirmed Detthold Aden, President of the BLG Logistics Group. After Germany, the top ten countries of origin among the visitors were (in number order): Austria, Netherlands, Italy, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Poland, France, Belgium, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Slovenia. There was a noticeable rise in interest from the countries of east and southeastern Europe, and from the Middle East. June 2007 ERS at Transport Logistic fair in Munich Transport Logistic presents the entire world of transport at a glance. Logistics and telematics, inhouse transport and material flows as well as freight transport. With its special overall concept, transport logistics illustrates the extensive networking and interactions between these fields. At the same time, it gives the qualified public the chance of direct discussions with the exhibitors. The aim of the fair is to present practical experiences of the very complex sector of transportation, on road and rail, on water and in the air. European Rail Shuttle invites you to join us at our stand, Hall B6, stand 305/ 404. February 2007 New appointment The Supervisory Board of European Rail Shuttle appointed Alan J. Gibson, formerly Director Area Operations with Maersk Line, as Managing Director of ERS effective 1 February 2007. Alan Gibson has held various senior positions in finance, strategic planning, infrastructure development and operations in Sea-Land Service, APM Terminals and Maersk Line since joining Sea-Land in 1974. Frans Zoetmulder, former ERS MD, transferred to the position of Chief Commercial Officer on 1 February. February 2007 ERS also active on the Belgian tracks On 8th February 2007 ERS Railways, received the security certificate from the Belgian infrastructure manager Infrabel which makes it possible to run its own trains on the Belgian rail network. The process for the application was handled very rapidly. "After only four months we already obtained the safety certificate". After Rotterdam, Bremerhafen and Hamburg, Zeebrugge will be the fourth largest sea port which will be connected to the ERS network. ERS will start its services in the cause of 2007. First trains will drive from Zeebrugge to Melnik, near Prague. News Archive >>