The Technical analysis

The technical analysis allowed us to clarify the material constraints and especially identify the best site for the Freight TGV terminal, near Liege Airport and the Paris-Brussels-Cologne railway line. It also clarified the terminal model to be implemented.

The planned site for the Liege Terminal is situated at the end of the runway on a plot of land belonging to the Walloon Region. It will be connected to the Brussels-Liege-Cologne line via an existing cargo line going down to the Meuse valley. The investment required for the installation of a switch box connecting the Cargo TGV platform to this existing line will therefore be highly limited.

As for the rolling stock, the TGV trains should be configured on a new model (and not on renovated old passenger trains) with floors equipped with ball bearings for easy handling of containers identical to those used in cargo planes.

The technical analysis of the trains must also take account of the dimensioning of the doors according to carriage resistance to torsion induced by high speed.

Finally, the trains should be adapted to the various network constraints (electrical power differences) and the fact that they should run on classical lines at certain points.