The formal opening on Tuesday 6 November 2007, of the enhanced rail route from central Scotland to Elgin, opens up an international gateway for Aberdeen to receive intermodal boxes by rail rather than road.

The rail route was previously only able to accommodate 8ft 6in boxes due to gauge restrictions in tunnels and under bridges. The £4 million investment in this project by the Scottish Government now means that Aberdeen has a rail route that can accommodate the global shipping industry standard intermodal container size of 9ft 6in.

EWS Network will introduce new intermodal rail freight services for the north east of Scotland in response to market demand. Importantly, Aberdeen is now linked to other parts of Britain and, via the Channel Tunnel, to mainland Europe, revealing a potentially large market for the movement of boxes by rail from this part of Scotland.

David Cross, Sales & Marketing Manager for EWS Network, said: “The global shipping trade has made 9ft 6in containers the industry standard size. By the Scottish Government investing in the clearance of the rail route from Mossend to Elgin to accommodate these boxes, Aberdeen is now rail connected to a global international supply chain. With a renewed future for Channel Tunnel rail freight there is also an important mainland European dimension to this enhancement.”