Copenhagen Transportation Projects, Denmark

Since the 1990s, Copenhagen has seen a major increase in transportation projects. Denmark's capital city provides an easily-accessible gateway to Scandinavia and the Baltic region and for this reason the region has attracted many multinational companies to set up offices in and around the city. The Ørestad Development Corporation was formed in 1993 to oversee a major city development region, called Ørestad, in the south of the city, where there is considerable corporate construction going on. An extensive new driverless metro system connecting the region to the city centre and beyond in an east–west direction was also proposed and the first phase of this project came on-stream in 2000.

Further major development projects included the construction of the Øresund motorway and railway bridge linking Copenhagen and Malmö in Sweden; an expansion of Copenhagen International Airport with a new train line linking it with the city centre; an upgrade of the existing motorway system in the Greater Copenhagen Area; and various other railway expansions both within the city and the region.

In 2000, a completely new metro system began service in Copenhagen, speeding up travel across the city and taking the burden off the existing over-stretched S-Tog heavy rail commuter network. With a total investment cost of $1,000 billion, the metro will run 24 hours a day at 1½-minute intervals between departures during the rush hours. Designed by KHRAS Architects and constructed in four phases, the route runs from Vanløse in eastern Copenhagen, passing through Frederiksberg and Nørreport before continuing on to Christianshavn. At Ved Stadsgraven the city rail splits into two. One leg goes to the Ørestad development on West Amager and the other to East Amager and onwards to Copenhagen International Airport. When fully completed, the metro will have 22 stations and cover a total distance of 21km, of which around 10km will be below ground. To avoid dividing the Ørestad district into two, part of the West Amager section is built as a high viaduct allowing traffic to pass under the railway.

COPENHAGEN METRO INFRASTRUCTURE

The construction comprises 21km of railway (approximately 10km inside tunnels at a depth of 20m to 30m and 11km on embankments, high viaducts and at ground level); nine underground stations (Solbjerg, Frederiksberg, Forum, Nørreport, Kongens Nytorv, Christianshavns Torv, Islands Brygge, Amagerbro, Lergravsparken); 14 stations at, or above, ground level; and ten tunnel shafts. All stations have elevators and escalators and platforms are separated from the tracks by a glass wall and screen doors.

The station at Nørreport will be the transfer station to Copenhagen's S-Tog system (operated by Danish State Railways (DSB)). The new metro is totally integrated in the existing zonal fare system of Copenhagen.

Many stations came on-stream at the end of 2002 and during 2003; the next development phase, due for completion by 2007, will see the completion of a direct link route between the city centre and the airport terminus, where it will also connect with the Øresund Link to Malmö, Sweden.

COPENHAGEN METRO CONSTRUCTION

COMET (the Copenhagen Metro Construction Group) is the international joint venture that carried out the extensive construction work for the Copenhagen Metro. COMET is a specially-formed working co-operation between six engineering companies from Denmark, England, France, Italy and Austria. These are Carillion PLC (UK), SAE International (France), Bachy Soletanche (UK), STRABAG AG (Austria), NCC Danmark A/S (Denmark) and Astaldi SpA (Spain).

The Metro trains run in a tunnel system that winds its way underneath the town from Frederiksberg Station across Nørreport and Kongens Nytorv to either Islands Brygge or Strandlodsvej on Amager.

COPENHAGEN METRO TUNNELS

The tunnel system consists partly of sections with circular cross sections and partly of sections with oval cross sections. The oval cross sections are needed in connection with switches where trains have to be able to change from one set of tracks to another, as is the case at Sjæleboderne or at Stadsgraven where the line bifurcates - one line to Ørestad and one to Strandlodsvej on route to Copenhagen Airport.

A tunnel boring machine bored the circular sections. The oval sections are excavated with excavators also called roadheaders using a sequential excavation method known as the "New Austrian Tunnelling Method" (NATM).

COPENHAGEN METRO STATIONS

All stations, with the exception of the station at Christianshavns Torv, are constructed using the principle of "top down", i.e. the roof is constructed first, followed by the middle section and completed with the very heavily reinforced (3,000m³) concrete base slab. Having reached this stage, the stations are ready to receive the tunnel boring machines. Once the station is watertight, all the finishing works are carried out. They include visible surfaces (floors, walls and ceilings) as well as mechanical installations such as ventilation, escalators, lifts and electrical installations.

COPENHAGEN METRO EMERGENCY AND VENTILATION SHAFTS

One of many safety requirements for the metro in Copenhagen is an escape route every 300m. Therefore, shafts to the tunnel system are placed between stations. These shafts provide emergency escape routes as well as ventilation.

A shaft consists of a vertical part with escape route stairs, lift and large ventilation ducts. All technical installations are placed in a two-storied box at the top. Horizontal access to the tunnels is available at the bottom of the shaft. The whole shaft structure, typically with a diameter of almost 8m and a depth of 30m, is underground and will be almost indistinguishable above ground.

AUTOMATED ANSALDO ROLLING STOCK

A total of 34 trains have been ordered from Ansaldo Breda, an Italian company based in Turin, who was also responsible for much of the metro construction. Each train has three walk-through cars, six doors on each side and 100 seats, with a total capacity of approximately 300 passengers. One quarter of the seats can be tipped up to provide space for wheelchairs, prams etc. For the first five years the Copenhagen Metro will be operated by Ansaldo Trasporti, a partner of the Ørestad Company.

A control and maintenance centre has been built in the southern end of the Ørestad. Here the trains will undergo regular routine examination and maintenance and be cleaned. The trains are controlled and monitored by a three-element automatic train control system. Train movements are based on fixed block sections, where a train is prevented from entering a section already occupied by another train. Control room staff monitor the whole network using an Automated Train Supervision (ATS) system.

COPENHAGEN ROADS

The traffic density in the Copenhagen region is below the average of many major European cities. This is because the city is relatively small with less pressure on the roads compared with cities like Paris or London. 30% of the journeys made in the centre of the region are made by the use of public transport and 14% of the trips are made by bicycle.

The Metropolitan region of Copenhagen has a well-developed network of toll-free highways and public roads connecting the region effectively to northern Europe. The good logistic location of Copenhagen means that there are one-day connections to more than 1,200 cities in Europe.

COPENHAGEN INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TRANSPORT LINKS

Copenhagen International Airport is the biggest airport in Scandinavia and Northern Europe. There are 221 weekly departures to 19 destinations in Eastern and Western Europe and approximately 120 direct, non-stop international destinations. The airport is located 8km southeast of Copenhagen city centre. It is situated in Kastrup, a town on the island of Amager. The airport is owned and operated by Copenhagen Airports A/S. In 2002 a total of 18.3 million passengers used the airport.

Copenhagen International Airport is connected to the centre of Copenhagen by train (since 1998), metro (2007) and motorways, as well as to Malmö and southern Sweden by train and motorway using the Øresund motorway and railway bridge (since 2000).

THE GREEN PATH

The Green Path constitutes a new, environmentally beneficial alternative route for cyclists and pedestrians, making it possible for them to travel through the city in pleasant and traffic-free surroundings. The Green Path will become the "main route" for cyclists and is primarily intended for the use of the many people who cycle across the city every day. It will be a faster route and free from motor traffic. To the greatest extent possible, the Green Path will be built along the routes of former railway lines.

The route has been jointly planned by the Ministry of Transport and the municipalities of Copenhagen and Frederiksberg. Once the project has been carried out and the route is fully developed, the Green Path will comprise approximately 10km of cycle and pedestrian paths leading from Lyngbyvej in the north, via Nørrebro and through Frederiksberg, to Valby in the west. From here, the route will link up at Hvidovre with the Copenhagen County cycle path network.

The aim is to get more people to cycle and to promote safe bicycle traffic. Four out of ten bicycle trips in Greater Copenhagen are between home and work or an educational institution and around a third of all those who work in Copenhagen cycle to and from work every day. Completion of the Green Path is expected in 2005.

LPG BUSES ON NEW 'A' ROUTE

The Greater Copenhagen Authority (HUR) is a politically-governed regional organization covering the Greater Copenhagen region. It was formed in 2000 and one of its remits is to co-ordinate and manage all bus and local rail services in the area.

The bus services are subject to tender and are run by private operators. In 2003, Connex Danmark A/S had its contract renewed to run 44 liquid petroleum gas (LPG) buses in the city. These buses will run on the new A-line route.

The A-bus initiative was taken by HUR in order to create an even more consistent public transport system, combining buses, trains and particularly the new metro. The three-minute bus service now operates on a number of routes with connections to train stations and key terminals. By the end of 2003, six A-bus routes will be in operation.