The construction of a new high-speed rail network from Bucharest through Transylvania to the Hungarian border could cost around EUR 17 billion, the Romanian transport ministry said. A possible high-speed railway line is also being considered, linking up with existing or planned developments, Krónika reports.

New details have been provided by the Romanian Transport Ministry on the Budapest-Bucharest high-speed rail project. Last week, the Romanian government’s transport ministry responded to questions on the matter from MP Radu Moisin, the Hungarian-language Romanian news portal reports. According to the letter, obtained by Hotnews,

the railways should be designed to allow trains to reach speeds of 200-250-300 km/h or more.”

Before the feasibility study was completed, the Transport Ministry had already carried out some preliminary analyses, which in principle envisaged two possible routes. One is the Bucharest – Pitești-Curtea de Argeș – Sibiu (Nagyszeben) – Medias (Medgyes) – Târgu Mures (Marorsvásárhely) – Cluj-Napoca (Kolozsvár) – Oradea (Nagyvárad) – Episcopia Bihor (Biharpüspöki) line, which would be about 590 km long. The construction of one kilometer of railway is estimated at around EUR 25-30 million, meaning that the total cost of the works would be around EUR 17 billion.

Another idea envisages a “hybrid” high-speed rail line, with trains traveling at 160 km/h on some sections, such as in mountainous areas or on existing sections originally designed for this maximum speed.

The rest of the line would be newly built to meet the speed requirement of over 200 km/h. The Bucharest transport ministry estimates the cost of the feasibility study at EUR 142 million (including VAT).

However, no date is yet known: “At the moment, it would be premature to give a specific date for the completion of the high-speed rail link between Budapest and Bucharest. It depends on the identification and acquisition of funding, the conclusions of the feasibility study, the deadlines for public procurement, the conclusion of contracts, etc.”, reads the reply of the Ministry of Transport.

The idea of a high-speed railway on the Budapest – Oradea – Cluj Napoca line, or all the way to Bucharest, is a major concern for Hungarians in Transylvania, as plans promise to take three and a half hours from the  Romanian city to the Hungarian capital. This is currently more than an 11-hour journey. The 450-kilometer Budapest – Cluj Napoca high-speed railway was also proposed by the Hungarian government years ago.

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Via kronikaonline.ro; Featured image: Wikipedia

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