Facing economic, legal and construction challenges in building the high-speed railway linking Hungary and Serbia, Chinese engineers have made concerted efforts and worked out smart solutions to ensure the smooth construction of the railway.
Hungary was the first European country to sign a Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) cooperation agreement with China. The 342-km Hungary-Serbia Railway is an important BRI project in Europe. Upon completion, the Serbian section of the railway will total 183 km, with a designed top speed of 200 km/h. The Hungarian section will be 159 km and have a top speed of 160 km/h.
The Serbian section is expected to be operational by the end of this year. The Hungarian section is under construction. Upon completion, travel time between Belgrade and Budapest will be reduced from eight hours to about three.
"There are three tracks at Taksony Station. We are now standing on the mainline and the line on the right side is also a mainline. The far one is called the siding track and is used for avoiding collisions," said Zhou Zili, director of Engineering of the Ninth Bureau Project Branch of China Railway Hungary-Serbia Railway.
It is a challenging project due to a lack of steel supplies, and regulations to protect the local habitat.
"I've always been impressed by the amount of complex issues, and you have to approach a problem from several angles. This is especially true with the construction of railways. You have to take into account the economic, legal, and construction factors. What impresses me most is that the project has progressed and is still doing so despite such complex requirements," said Nagy David Zsolt, environmental protection engineer of the Ninth Bureau Project Branch.
"Hungary has low reserves of flooring materials, including barrier gates, rails and switches and its production capacity is limited. When we started to plan in the early stages, we also considered buying materials from neighboring countries to ensure the supply of these materials. All the steel rails are ready to use. About 90 percent of switches are here, and the barrier gates are at about 75 percent," said Zhou.
The construction team hails the project as a testament to friendship and collaboration between the two countries.
"I believe the opening of the Budapest-Belgrade line is concrete proof of the cooperation between Hungary and China. It could certainly lay the foundations for further work and more projects, benefiting both sides. I think it's a very good opportunity for both countries," said Zsolt.