Freights on FER

The FER - Ferrovie Emilia Romagna - born from the merger of five previous societies, everyone operating its own line located in Emilia Romagna region. More than having given impulse to the reopening of a line fallen in oblivion from years (Bologna-Vignola, before ATC/FCV, opened until 1994 only to freight traffic), the FER was first noted as a dynamic society, careful to the requirements of the market, rendering regular and upgrading where possible the freight services that some previous societies had already started.  In the beginning of 1998 infact the FSF Ferrovia Suzzara Ferrara received the demand from the large Marcegaglia company for the transport of coils between the port of Ravenna and its systems in Gazoldo degli Ippoliti, in province of Mantova. They began therefore the first long trains of Shimms wagons pulled from one of the 3 former V.200 that the FSF acquired since from years ' 80 for its traffics that never took off. Right in time for these trains the FSF bought even the 220.051loco, before in service along the SNFT Valcamonica line. Before these trains infact the only freight services on the FSF were to serve a sugar mill in Bondeno and some other customers whom generated only little wagons per year. The service of the new trains was articulated in this way: a V.200 with the loaded train left the port of Ravenna in early afternoon, touched Ferrara where it made a reversal of direction. Then it was speeded on FSF line until Sermide where it spent all the night. Soon in the morning - around 7.00 - the train left again to Suzzara, new direction reversal to Mantova, original trminus of these services. Early in the afternoon the train with the empty cars travelled over again the way in opposite direction, stopping again for the night in Sermide. In this way were employed two trains and two locos. Probably because of some logistic problems in Mantova, the terminus was then moved to Guastalla, where the coils could be translated on trucks with Gazoldo direction. Here born the first FSF-FPS agreement (Ferrovia Parma Suzzara), from the moment that the traction of the train until Suzzara was what already tried, from there to Guastalla the FPS with own locomotives would be in charge. The turns obviously changed: with the same timetables, the V.200 arrived to Suzzara, where it stand the time necessary to wait for the arrival of the empty wagons in order then to leave again to Ravenna. On the FPS - society that have not never had much powerful locomotives, being the previous services rare and with few wagons per train - the problem was just the traction of the heavy consist. After some disastrous tests with one or two DE.424 in double traction, they decided to use the MaK Ld.404. If the train exceeded the performance of this locomotive, the remaining wagons were sent to Guastalla with a bis trailed by one DE.424. In the meantime, on the other line that will then enter in FER (FP Ferrovie Padane), the freight traffics were at the minimum: the only service nearly to regularity was carried out with the famous Tobruk loco between Ferrara and Ostellato, in favor of the local tobaccos manufacture. More often the loco travelled light. Instead, the 3 former V.200 in charge to FP was little utilized: they saw some activity when the Decotrain di Migliaro opened, asking trains to send wagons, coaches and other pieces to repair or to scrap. Ulterior test of an alliance between the several societies was the mixed use of the 7 V.200 on the more important trains. After the first two years of service infact, on the train of coils from Ravenna to Guastalla they begun indifferently to work FSF or FP units. On the others two lines that then will merge in the FER instead the traffics were truly a little thing: on Bologna-Portomaggiore the famous red DE.341 was more and more immovable, on the line of Vignola the trains was by now a memory. The situation of the traffic therefore was already canted in the zone of Suzzara/Guastalla. The FSF then began ulterior services counting on uses of all the 7 locos and not more only on its 4. The new services left Ferrara or Sermide and touched on request the yards of Revere or that one of Mirandola, via Poggio Rusco. Last trains to remember were those - inherited from the past - on Bondeno for the sugar. In 2000 because of the requalification and electrification works of FSF - just in perspective of traffics more important - the coils freights came diverted on FS lines, via Ferrara-Rovigo-Legnago-Nogara. The possibility to use more locomotives that in the origins, allowed heavier compositions, pulled in double symmetrical traction. In 2002 born the new society FER, even if until 2003 one did not perceive any change externally. The first innovation was the arrival from the workshops of Zagabria, where it had been rebuilted with new motors and new cabs, of the 220.049, in the new tricolour, patriotic or "cocomero" livery, like nicknamed from the staff. The offer of the new company grew with other trains: one new run between Ferrara and Bologna S.Donato and one in double symmetrical traction between Ferrara and Rovigo. But growing of the traffic and the rebuilding/revision of the V.200s caused also shortage of motive power, for which on some trains FER rented some D.345 from FS. This also meanwhile other 3 V.200s loco bought from various maintenance operators became ready to be used. In the optical of research of new freight services, the FER started one new joint-venture with ACT and Interporto di Dinazzano for the trailing of one new train for transport of clay from the port of Ravenna until Dinazzano - a yard placed on line ACT for Sassuolo - avoiding the transit on RFI rails but using the social route via Suzzara-Guastalla. This new train leaves Ravenna during the night, pause long time in Suzzara and arrives to Guastalla around the 9.30 and is the second freight train to travel up to now on the light rails of the former FPS, after the decision to entrust the train of coils for Marcegaglia entire to the V.200, removing from this service the inadeguate former FPS locos. After the pause in Guastalla, it leave to Reggio Emilia on ACT rails towards the 9.45. Until Reggio the traction was made for the first 2 years directly from V.200 FER. Instead, with a change in Guastalla, now the ACT part is covered from a DE.145 or a DE.1900, former V.160 DB, that leads the heavy convoy until destination. This train is carried out, from the tuesday to the saturday, with the aforesaid timetables. The return is in evening hours. Seen the success of the traffic of coils, the FER then fulfilled a plan begun years before:  the construction of a new freight track-road yard for the steel coils in S.Giacomo, a small stop on ACT line to Reggio Emilia. The flow of coils of Marcegaglia therefore have arrived to another evolution. The loaded wagons in arrival from Ravenna don't stop no more to Guastalla but they are now taken in charge from another loco that has been in the meantime assigned here. For many months this loco has been the red DE.341, former FBP. The unit catch the wagons arrived with the freight and then carry them from Guastalla to the S.Giacomo yard. Here it takes the empty ones, take them back again to Guastalla, composed them in the Ravenna freight with the V.200. Inspite of this ulterior modification, the trains of coils for Marcegaglia maintains its timetable regularity: it run monday to friday. It arrives to Guastalla at 10.15 approximately and leaves this same station for the return leg around 11.00. During its way to Ravenna it takes a long pause in Sermide for personal change, refueling and control of the locos. The service on S.Giacomo instead is at free timetable. Ulterior innovation in time order has been the creation of another freigth service in summer 2004 to carry ballast for the under building HV line Milano-Bologna, in the new piling yard purposely builted in Chiozzola locality, already a stop of former  FPS line to Parma. This line infact is actually interrupted for the earth movement works to every traffic. The passenger trains are in service only until Brescello. From here until Chiozzola there is only a run of freight - those of the pietrisco exactly - that travelled with slow speed, being the line completely lessing of signaling and working level crossing. The train of the ballast arrived from Bologna S.Donato, reached Ferrara early in the morning. Here th
e direction was inverted and the long convoy - until 2400 tons of weight - is set off to FER line until Guastalla, arriving there around 8.30. From here until Chiozzola to regime the speed was very slow. In Chiozzola the wagons were shunted by another loco: the famous Raildog Dj.474 former FPS. Ended the shuntings, the train of empty VFaccs is set off for the return, touching Guastalla around the 11.00 and from here to Ferrara. Very often - because of the enormous weight of the train - the traction was entrusted to a pair of V.200 in top and tail mode. In some cases - but to see this wonder was a true win to the lottery - the return happened with double heading of V.200. After a year of continuous runs and an enormous amount of ballast accumulated, the service has stopped in September 2005. Now the Dj.474 is assigned to the services on S.Giacomo, while the noisy DE.341 - hated from the inhabitants of Guastalla for presumed generous smoke emissions - has been transferred to Ferrara, where without occupation stand inside the shed. Other freight service a lot regular and played by long time is that touching the  petrochemical yard of Mantova Frassine. Officially this train - always with V.200 - is carried out only on Thursday, but is much frequent that it's prepared also in other days. The tank consist leaves Ravenna, touches Ferrara around 10.20 and Suzzara at 12.18.  Here the train inverts the direction and reaches Mantova. With another reversal of direction the convoy arrives in the yard of Frassine, where the tanks are shunted on the local connections from diesel side rods locos. The correspondent train to Ravenna leaves early in the afternoon. This run, full covered with complicated reversals is not the original one. Until the 2004 this train followed the Ferrara-Poggio Rusco-Nogara-Mantova Frassine way. After the wreck of Crevalcore, RFI has imposed the lightening from every type
of not indispensable traffic of the Verona-Bologna section. That has forced the divertion of this train, at least until when the doubling line works will be not finished. The continuous evolution of the traffics and the situation of the rolling stock of FER has forced to change many times traces and timetables. The couple of trains between Rovigo, Ferrara and Bologna - made with double symmetrical traction of V.200 and D.345 has been therefore yielded to the ST, that it arrives until Ferrara with its D.753, while FER maintains a local run on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday between Bologna and Ferrara and in some cases until Ravenna.  We are by now in recent times. The last innovations regard the FER rolling stock. In order to front this continuous increase of the offer, have been acquired three units from Rumania through Sorema importer: they are of type LDE.2100, 6 axles, classified D.361 and are similar to the multitude of unit already in service all over Italy with maintenance societies. After some trials, is now attended the Cesifer certification and once available they will help the V.200s in several of the aforesaid services. In the contract there is an option for ulterior three same locos. Moreover, FER - for trains on long distances on RFI rails - has acquired 6 electric locos of the class E.342 from the Slovenian Railroads, Ansaldo construction, equal to the E.640 arrived in the meantime to Ferrovie Nord Cargo. The first two units are already in Ferrara depot and attend the commissioning. Also here there is an option for others two same locos. Probably they will be employed with trains in Verona or Bologna direction, where for some time the FER has made line  instruction using two E.645 leased from Cargo FS. Last innovation has been the modification of the service between Ferrara and Bondeno: it has been infact inaugurated a new industrial pole near to the new station, managed from Cargofer with various shunters,  for the stocking and distribution of disparate goodses, from lumber to palletized freight. In contrast the historical connection with the sugar mill that once generated the only regular traffic of the FSF has been dismantled. A little more eastern of this geographical situation, the FER line of Codigoro is standing still: the traffic to the tobacco manufacture of Ostellato is stopped and the only traffic remained is that one of lumber towards the large Falco Legnami company. In favor of this customer and in forecast to realize the ancient plan of the "Romea Railroad", the FER has constructed and opened a new branch line beyond Codigoro, until the Abbey of Pomposa. Inspite of the premised shining, the traffic has not never been sufficient. It will be little better if will begin the service with a new customer of the food industry. If this plan will go to good aim, finally we will be able to see the V.200 or the 060 former CFR along this new long line. All this while always waiting to see completed the Portomaggiore-Dogato link, that will permit the direct transit of trains between Bologna and Pomposa via Portomaggiore-Ostellato, in a general planning of development in the zone of  Comacchio and Chioggia. With not less than 20 units available for freight services (10 V.200, 6 E.640, 3 D.361 and the Raildog) FER will assure an amount of services so that its tricolors livery will be a sing in Emilia Romagna rails.

To see pictures look at the links in the italian version here