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IN GALATI RAIL REGION

The general programs for the Romanian Railways adjoining to the European "pulse" represents for some of the rail regions the big chance to come out from the least inappropriate "area" which was experienced in the last years. Among these we can mention Galati Rail Region, where the works of year 2002 could become a reference year.

A new railway station in Galati!

According to the strategy of CFR SA, Galati is one of those 13 towns, which, after a while, will take advantage of a railway station at European level. The idea of building a new railway station in the municipal located on the bank of the Danube is the oldest, being included in the vast program named the Electrification of Doaga - Tecuci - Barbosi railway section, which, besides the so-called building, also stipulates the construction of two building sides: one for the future railway section (side C) and one for the Railway Exploitation Dispatcher (side E).
The daring program has been written down in year 1988, and a year later the works have been started off. The rhythm of the activity has been relatively normal for seven years, while there was finalized the electrification of Doada - Tecuci railway section. Afterwards, the financial resources have been decreased; lack of the funds having, finally, the predicable effect, to shut down the works. The building of the future railway section and the pursue in point of the electrification of the respective section have been resumed only at the half of the last year, when Galati Rail Region has received governmental funds in an amount of 114 billion ROL.
Currently, there are big chances to have a favorable situation. As Mr. Aurel Ciotarca, the rail region director, have mention at the beginning of year 2002, for this program have already been allocated 90 billion ROL, among which 30 billion will be invested in the works for the two buildings, and the remaining amount for the electrification works. "This means that soon enough there will be possible to put into operation the electrified section up to Independenta station", he declared us.
Also, when I was assigned to manage the rail region I intended that "until the end of the year there has to start the exploitation of the third floor of the building meant for exploitation department, where the telecommunication service activity is developed. At C section, in order to provide protection for the building, there will be built the roof so that they can work safely inside".
During this period in which the activity has been ceased, the building has suffered a few damages, so that before the starting off of the works has been performed an expertise in order to correctly appreciate the existing situation. This has revealed the necessity to perform some additional safety works. With regard to the electrification of Barbos -Tecuci railway section the situation was worst: the works had to be performed once again almost entirely due to the disappearance, and also the deterioration of the equipment assembled at the respective time.
The luck of funds has led to the slowing down of the working rhythm, and, naturally, at the extension of the deadline for being put into operation. Not even today there can be estimated exactly when the project will be finalized, given the uncertainty that still persists with regard to the funds allocation.
Supposing that the financial resources will be provided according to the planning, then the entire project could be finalized in year 2004.
The two lots of works within this vast project are performed by two companies: SC UNICOM SA Galati - for the construction of the new building, and for the electrification works - by ISAF Bucharest, the company specialized in the electrification and sewerage equipment.
The old building of the railway section will be demolished pursuant to the construction of the new one, and the access of the passengers to the trains will be made through a passage, with rolling stairs in front of each platform. We have to mention that in order to get on the passage there will also be provided special stairs for the persons with locomotion deficiencies.
In parallel with this vast and ambitious program, in Galati Rail Region there are also developed other works, among which: the general overhaul of the bridge over Buzau river, from Km 131, the general overhaul (RK) of Adjud CED and the building of Focsani station, which after the modernization will be included among the 13 stations at European standards. With regard to the works at the bridge over Buzau river, the technical documentation for the consolidation of the infrastructure (respectively, of the files and abutments) is finalized, and in the second stage there are going to be achieved the hydro-isolation of the shaft. Currently, there are performed works for the consolidation of the foundation, fact that means, among others, also the deviation of the watercourse in all four widths. Also, in a second phase there are going to be started off the works at the infrastructure.

Galati - Tulucesti, in an endless…temporary phase?

Galati - Barlad railway section has been put into operation on May 19, 1912. Due to the instability of the train, this line has suffered in time several deficiencies. All these have started in year 1934, when the first massive earth sliding took place. In order to maintain in operational state the line there has been called a battalion of railway employees in order to help, which have executed several consolidations in Galati - Tulucesti area. The earthquake on November 1940, which had an intensity of eight degrees on Mercalli scale, has produced the displacement of a hill on one-kilometer section, between Galati an Tulucesti stations, provoking the destruction of the embankment of the railway and the modification of Brates lake bank. More recently, on April 21, 1993, in the same area, between Km 4-6, there has been produced a major earth sliding, which has caused big problems for the railway transport, which have led to the closure of the traffic for nine months. On January 1994, the railway section has been reopened for operation, but with speed restrictions of 30 km/h.
Along the years, the weight of the tones of earth has modified several times the embankment of the railway, but, although the field remained still very unsure, due to the insufficient financial resources railway personnel have no choice but to resume the repairing and the putting again into operation the line… for a temporary period of time.
"On the section between Galati and Tulucesti the field is still extremely unstable. The existing slope in this place did not allow the drainage of the waters. While a collapse is produced, there remain a few hollows where the water is accumulated; these billets in the respective area begin to infiltrate later on. Thus, there are created several sliding, which on their turn provoke other earth sliding in the area", Mr. Aurel Ciotarca, the rail region director has explained us.
The last earth sliding produced on the Galati - Barlad railway section took place on March 2000, between kilometer 5 + 150 and 5 + 850, at Km 5 in the northern part of Galati municipal, before reaching Tulucesti locality, in the proximity of Brates lake. Then, the pressure exerted by the collapsed earth on a distance of hundred meters from the lake has forced the elevation of a narrow section from its bottom, forming a sort of isle, in the proximity of the lake. Under the huge pressure of the thousands of tones of earth collapsed from the old bank of Brates lake, the embankment of the railway has suffered changes, and the tracks seemed to be a montaigne rousse. Wide cracks of several centimeters, which bottom could not be seen, some of them full of water have affected the field under the railway, this one becoming extremely unstable. Besides these "main" cracks, on both sides of the embankment, the field is furrowed by several cracks and soil agglomeration. The new "geometry of the place has produced various inclinations of the telephone network and signaling equipment pillars, reason why the cables have been stretched to the maximum, in a few places even broken.
Due to the fact that obtaining the necessary funds for a viable problem solving - through the deviation of this railway route on a safe area or through the consolidation of the unstable slope, which represent a permanent threat - it is difficult. The unique solution has remained… one more "temporary" repair session for the track.
"The only work which can be performed is to arrange the area through a sloping process, with the necessary inclination, with deep waters catching through draining and wells and their evacuation through surface works, with ditches and culverts and the drainage of the waters towards Brates lake", our interlocutor has declared to us.

A trace of hope…

For several years, Galati citizens are facing this big problem: the ceasing of the traffic due to the earth sliding provoked by the instability of the slope between Galati and Tulucesti. Since June 1974, when the passengers train has been overturned during the earth sliding, and up to 2000, there have been also produced several massive earth sliding making impossible the train traffic. The last event of this kind, the one occurred in the spring of year 2000, is the eleventh. Between years 1994-1995, there have been allocated, indeed, certain amounts in order to control the natural disaster, which have been used for the execution of water drainage works, for the constructions of culverts and collecting ditches, including an access road. In 1996 there have been executed the last consolidations on the affected section between Galati and Tulucesti. Since 1996 and up to present time everything is left …up to God's will and also to Mother Nature's will.The lack of money for the continuation of the consolidation works of the slope is not everything. At the beginning of year 2000 there has been produced the inevitable - the same earth-ramming phenomenon has… suspended the railway link between Galati and Tulucesti. Also, a new configuration was given to the area. "As long as there are still registered earth sliding we can not reconstruct the railway section" the director of Galati Rail Region wanted to specify. In fact, since the occurrence of the last event, which made impossible the traffic in the respective area, periodically, ISPCF performs measuring with regard to the earth-ramming phenomenon in the above-mentioned area. Those achieved previously indicate the fact that there is still possible a massive earth sliding.
Thus, the area still remains unstable. Galati Rail Region has available convincing technical documentation, video and photo, regarding the earth sliding in the above-mentioned area. The problem is that the authorities in charge do not seem to be willing to take into consideration the fact that they are dealing with a natural calamity a hill riving off -, and consider that the problem solving is the responsibility of the railway employees. Yet, no matter the works the railway personnel would execute they will be jut temporary as long as the local authority will not determine the Ministry of Environment and the Government to allocate the necessary amounts for the sloping of the 6-7 kilometers between Galati and Tulucesti.
"Pursuant to the earth sliding occurred two years ago, we have succeeded to reconstruct the route and to put it again into operation" the rail region director declared us. This is valid, naturally, up to …the next similar event. The only solution which would end this perpetual temporary phase, as we have been showing, is to make the Ministry of Environment to reach to include this situation immediately on the work agenda, at "calamities" chapter.
Time passing made things worse. Brates Lake is always getting closer to the railways. The massive breaking of the slope also put in danger Galati - Tulucesti road. On other sections, "the precipice" has…get closer, at almost 50 meters from the road! There has to be done something in order to make the traffic safe on this route! The passengers - especially the commuters, and not only them - are not satisfied. And they have all the reasons to act like that! This time, the responsibility does not belong only to Galati Rail Region - which has succeeded, every time there was needed, to put again into operation the railway section -, but it…aims higher levels.
There still are a few chances. According to the declarations of Mr. Ciotarca, in year 2001 has been formed a commission of the representatives of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture and of the Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Housing. "Pursuant to the discussions held, there has been decided at ministerial level to draw up a report and a proposal list referring to the existing situation in this area. And through a government decision there are going to be allocated the necessary funds in order to achieve a feasibility study and a very detailed technical documentation, in order to establish the precise amount that has to be provided for the execution of the work".
The problem is that, for the time being, "until the decision is made, the most affected is the railway". Presently, the traffic speed of the trains between Galati and Tulucesti does not exceed 15 km/h(!) and the activity is developed very difficult, with the help of certain agents which have the obligation to check the track before each train set goes over.

A tunnel and two versions

There could be said that the tunnels have appeared in the same time with the railway constructions. And that is due to the fact that, even if they have been considered tunnels, those executed previously, from other reasons, seemed to be more like some galleries, having a length and a width incomparably smaller to those meant for the "Iron Way".
We also have to know that up to 1964 the excavation was performed exclusively manually, in reduced section galleries, successively penetrated, enlarged and brought to the dimensions corresponding to a tunnel. Starting with 1964, CCCF has introduced mechanized excavation methods in the field of average and hard consistency, succeeding to obtain increased work productivity and a reduction of the mine wood consumption. These methods are in permanent improvement, implying a more and more increased specialty training of the execution personnel.
Having the first half-shield introduced, in 1964, when the achievement of Filesti tunnel has been started off, in fact, a new stage in the history of the tunnels in our country has started off. In this case, not only the work technology has been different in comparison with the previous stage, but also the execution organization. The tunnel workers, who up to 1964 have worked scattered within various Ls units, when it came to specialized works, have been regrouped in 1965 at Portile de Fier I, where they have achieved 11 tunnels in five years, in a total length of 2,670 m.

Among the tunnels longer than of 500 meters built until 1964 is also the one from Filesti, on Galati - Barlad section, which was put into operation in year 1898.
Between 1964-1967, on the occasion of the doubling of Braila - Galati railway section, there has been built one more tunnel, for the IInd line, which is still operational today. On the first line, which is of 898 m, have been started the general overhaul works in 1996. The causes, which made necessary the general overhaul works (RK) starting off, represented big water infiltration through the tunnel vault. The drainage of the water has driven the earth so that they have reached in the situation that the foundation plate had no support. Thus, there have been produced deterioration in the keystone and breaches through the tunnel walling up, fact that has led finally to its closure. According to the declaration of the director Aurel Ciotarca, "in year 1996, during the IInd semester, there has been elaborated and finalized the technical documentation and the general overhaul (RK) project. Also, there have been started off the general overhaul works at the inside section, as well as at the surface section. Also, I have to mention that due to the works executed over the tunnel there has been produced great earth ramming. Fact that forced us…to buy part of the respective field, in order to avoid paying material damages.
Up to the present time, there has been assembled the first clothing (on a 350 m distance), hydro-isolation and the second clothing that is going to be finalized soon enough.
We also encountered difficulties in this stage, due to the fact that there were not foreseen underground activities, being forced to make first of all precursory works on the surface of the tunnel. If we will have funds, the works at Filesti tunnel, the Ist line, should be finalized in three years".
This means that since year 2005 Braila - Galati section will be available for circulation through both tunnels, the Ist line, being a regular section, and the IInd line which is now in exploitation, will provide the traffic of the trains for normal track, as well as for those with large gauge.
…
Based on the facts presented above, we are in right to consider that 2002 could be a trailblazer for the most daring projects within Galati Rail Region. Taking into consideration the fact that the modernization works at the railway are very complex and expensive, from the technical point of view, as well as from the financial one, we can only hope that in the future will be materialized these projects. And, naturally, we wish good luck to the employees of the rail region located on the Danube banks.

Oana Bran