CROSSRAIL

The CROSSRAIL project of the 5th framework programme was the first EC-research project dealing with TramTrain as a research issue. The project was started in 2000 and finished in 2001.

The original proposal had been delivered by a consortium of ScanRail Consult (DK), Systra (FR), Transurb (B), Halcrow (UK), DE-Consult (GER), NEI (NTH) and Trademco (GR). Axel Kuehn with TTK and another consortium had delivered the TURN proposal, which also received a very good rating in the evaluation but lost very close against CROSSRAIL, the lobby of the big and more experienced consultancies, many of them the state railway consultancy wings having been too strong probably.

However, EC recommended to the CROSSRAIL consortium to strengthen their TramTrain capability within the team and to seek support from those who had real experience in this field. So TTK joined the CROSSRAIL consortium in the negotiation phase and became the 8th partner, small by budget but very important on content as the project progress showed.

Axel Kuehn lead the Karlsruhe team and soon became a leading head within the project, which also became visible in the two seminars held in Rotterdam 14.-15. December 2000 and Paris 25.-26. April 2001.

Paris being the closing session for the project, Henrik Sylvan as the project director from ScanRail Consult, the consortium leader, was scheduled to speak the closing words about the CROSSRAIL project and TramTrains´ future. When he became ill on short notice Axel Kuehn was asked to replace him! You may read this "famous" speech here (link to …, see next page)

One can recognise that attitudes generally, but also on Axels side, have been much more enthusiastic at that time! The symbolic handing over of the responsibility for TramTrain progress in the next ten years to SNCF´s project leader Jean-Claude Degand, looking at a large number of living TramTrain-projects in France at that time, seems not to find fulfilment in reality since.

CROSSRAIL was an important project in Axel Kuehn´s career and added a lot to his international reputation.