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Automatic gauge changing for freight. The OGI project

For these S449 trains the adaptation to the new 1435 mm track gauge will be easier and cost-
effective.

To achieve the continuity of the 12 daily freight services in the standard gauge scenario and/
or during the implementation plan, there is a need for an automatic variable gauge freight
system, that is to say, the OGI project.

The OGI system will permit the migration from the 1668 mm track gauge to standard 1435 mm
track gauge by implementing the variable gauge technology in those wagons that run in the
rail section that is being migrated from one gauge to another. Moreover, changeover facilities
should be installed in the borders of the section that is being migrated, so that traffic could
be running during the migration process.

This variable gauge system permits to replace in wagons the fixed wheelset for the OGI
variable gauge wheelset without much difficulties. Thanks for this "interchangeable" feature,
the issue of finding different typology and series of wagon running in the Castellon - Vandellós
section (or any other) is almost solved.

3.3.2 Example 2: The Pajares bypass section

The project of the new Madrid-León-Asturias mixed traffic high-speed line includes the
construction of a new bypass in the Pajares Pass in the section León - Asturias, between La
Robla (León) and Pola de Lena (Asturias).

This bypass aims to eliminate the main bottleneck in railway communications between Asturias
and the rest of Spain (except the communities of Cantabria and País Vasco). Nearly 2/3 of all
the railway freight traffic from/to Asturias run through the current Pajares line with strong
limitations to capacity due to the existing 83km single track, the curves with low values of
radius and the steep gradients.

The new 49,7 km bypass (30 km less distance than the actual track) includes two single 25-km
tunnels that will permit to reduce the transit time, and consequently increase the frequency
of both freight and passenger trains.
By adopting the standard track gauge in this section, the same issues would be found in relation
with the continuity of the actual traffics, as we have seen in the previous CastellónVandellós
example:

a. The continuity for the actual long-distance passenger rail services in standard gauge

b. The continuity for the actual medium-distance and regional passenger rail services in standard gauge

c. The continuity for the actual freight rail services in standard gauge

The following table shows the actual railway services in the section Oviedo-León:

International Congress on High-speed Rail: Technologies and Long Term Impacts - Ciudad Real (Spain) - 25th anniversary Madrid-Sevilla corridor 79