Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport supports the market launch of the Helrom trailer trolley with 15 million euros
Helrom GmbH uses a market-ready and globally patented freight wagon technology with which all types of truck trailers can be transported by rail quickly and without loading terminals. The Helrom Trailer Wagon represents a real breakthrough for shifting freight traffic to rail. The technology can make a significant contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions in transport and thus to achieving the German and European climate targets.
The market launch of the Helrom trailer wagon is being funded by the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport with 15 million euros as part of the federal program "Future Rail Freight Transport".
Photo: © Helrom / Julia Reisinger
Frankfurt, February 14, 2023 - Road transport is responsible for 20 percent of all CO₂ emissions. A significant proportion of this is caused by freight transportation by truck. Truck trailers account for around 74 percent of road freight traffic, causing a considerable burden on the environment and overloading the road network. However, only 2 percent of truck trailers are currently transported by rail.
The reasons for this are technological and economic hurdles. Almost all of the trailers used in Europe cannot be craned and could previously only be transported by freight train at great expense. Considerable investments in central loading terminals with long construction times were necessary. The technology of the Helrom trailer wagon now offers for the first time the possibility of overcoming these barriers sustainably - a decisive prerequisite for realizing the transport turnaround in freight transport planned by the German government on the necessary scale.
Loading non-craneable trailers flexibly and without a special terminal
The Helrom Trailer Wagon is currently the only market-ready system that enables horizontal loading of truck trailers without a loading terminal. An asphalted surface next to the track is all that is needed. The Helrom wagon folds out to the side and the truck trailer is pushed into the transport pocket of the wagon using a tractor unit. This means that the loading process can be carried out in just a few minutes wherever a suitable area is available next to a track. A new loading hub can be set up in a very short space of time without the need for major construction projects. The elimination of expensive terminals enables industry and trade to load truck trailers onto the rail exactly where it makes economic and logistical sense.
Successful operation on the Düsseldorf - Vienna route
The Helrom Trailer Rail has been in operation since 2020 with great demand on an initial connection between Düsseldorf and Vienna and has passed the daily practical test with great success. Helrom GmbH operates the trailer rail transport completely from a single source, with its own trains, train drivers and personnel. This has enabled the company to achieve a level of punctuality and transport reliability that is unique on the market.
By the end of 2022, more than 680 Helrom Trailer Rail trains were already running on this route. As a result, at least 16,000 truck trailers of numerous freight forwarders and shippers were transferred from road to rail. This corresponds to a saving of more than 10,000 tons of CO₂ emissions.
The funding is a major step towards a climate-neutral turnaround in freight transport
The federal program "Future Rail Freight Transport" has set itself the goal of supporting the market launch of technological innovations that have the proven potential to "increase the economic efficiency, performance, flexibility or logistics capability of rail freight transport in Germany". The support from the BMDV enables Helrom GmbH to continue on its growth path towards a nationwide market launch with great strength.
Roman Noack, CEO of Helrom GmbH, emphasizes the importance of this funding: "The funding of around 15 million is an accolade for us. This is a great success for the transport transition in Germany and for our goal of net zero transportation. We have successfully demonstrated that a significant reduction in CO₂ emissions in freight transport can be achieved in just a few years - flexibly, across the board and without major infrastructure investments. Our solution is economically viable and very easy to implement. We are not only offering large corporations a real alternative to road transport, we are also opening up the use of rail to all small and medium-sized companies for the first time."
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