Vienna, Austria-based lifting and transportation specialist Prangl transported a railcar, owned by Austrian national railway company ÖBB, using a rail vehicle transporter. The railcar was transported along roads from the city harbour in Linz to Mühlkreis railway station in Linz Urfahr (around 3km away).
The ÖBB railcar weighed around 58 tonnes and measured 25.50 metres long, 2.83 metres wide, and 3.80 metres high. To move it Prangl utilised a four-axle HGV combined with a special nine-axle rail vehicle transporter.
To load the train onto the train transporter a special ramp comprising several elements was required. The ramp elements had been delivered beforehand, by the four-axle tractor unit, and were waiting at the city harbour. When needed the ramp parts were moved into position by Prangl using a 50-tonne truck-mounted crane – closely observing lifting and turning restrictions due to the overhead rail line.
Once the ramp was assembled the railcar was pulled onto the special trailer via the access ramp using a cable winch. The ramp was then disassembled and moved, using the semi-trailer, to the unloading point at the Mühlkreis railway station.
The nighttime transportation required the Mühlkreis motorway, right next to the harbour, to be closed at short notice. This was because the convoy needed the entire width of the motorway at the access point. Along the route the transport combination also needed stop at a bridge to be lowered in order to pass under it. There was also a particularly sharp bend that required close attention.
The rest of the journey was challenging due to the convoy’s dimensions. The escort vehicles had to repeatedly close sections along the route to permit safe passage – often on the opposite carriageway.
The final section was the trickiest of all. In order to get the railcar back onto the railway tracks the driver of the transporter was required to reverse along a 320-metre road. This went seamlessly, says Prangl, and the train was unloaded at its destination via the prepared ramp.
