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Mobility and Transport

The Orient / East - Med corridor

Corridor description

The total length of the Orient / East - Med corridor (OEM) is 6 480 km long, including the Connecting Europe Facility 2 (CEF 2) extension. It crosses 8 countries: Germany, Czechia, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece.

The OEM Corridor connects the maritime interfaces of the North, Baltic, Black, and Mediterranean Seas, and allows for the optimal use of the ports concerned.

ERTMS deployment on the corridor

The following image shows the state of play and deadlines for the ERTMS deployment in the NSM corridor, considering the dates of the EDP:

Orient - East Med Corridor: Passenger & freight

Overall, ETCS is operational on 13% of OEM, while GSM-R is operational on 51% of the corridor. According to the EDP, 2 762 km are expected to be operational by 2023. In March 2023, 34% of the OEM length planned in the EDP by 2023 was in operation with ETCS. According to the TEN-T Guidelines, the whole OEM corridor is expected to be equipped by 2030.

The deployment status per Member State where the OEM corridor runs is as follows:

  • According to the German plans, all German sections planned in the EDP by 2023 will be delayed, and their commissioning is expected by 2025 and 2028. Regarding German sections planned in the EDP beyond 2023, although the entire German network is set to be equipped by 2040, there are no specific deadlines for OEM sections.
  • In Czechia, most of the lines planned in the EDP by 2023 are currently in operation, including the cross-border sections with Slovakia and Austria. The Česká Třebová – Přerov and Praha – Kolin lines are delayed and expected to be completed by 2023. According to the Czech plans, all OEM sections will be operational by 2030.
  • There are two Austrian lines belonging to the OEM, one of them is in operation (Czech border – Wien), and the other (Wien – Hungarian border) is planned by 2026 according to the Austrian plan.
  • According to Slovakian national plans, all OEM sections in Slovakia will be in operation by 2030.
  • According to Bulgarian national plans, all OEM sections in Bulgaria will be in operation by 2030, except for the Radomir – Kulata line and the Brusartsi – Mezdra line which are planned by 2034 and 2037.
  • According to the Hungarian plans, most OEM sections in Hungary are planned to be in operation by 2023, except for the Szajol – Romanian and Hungarian Border line, which is expected to be completed by 2025. Sections Budapest Ferencváros - Budapest Rákos, Border HU/SK (Petrzalka/Rajka) – Hegyeshalom and Hegyeshalom – Budapest are expected to be ready by 2030.
  • The Curtici – Arad line is currently equipped with ETCS in OEM but is not yet in operation in Romania. All OEM sections in Romania are planned to be equipped by 2030.
  • In Greece, sections planned in the EDP by 2020 are delayed. According to the Greece deployment plans, the OEM will be equipped by 2030 except for the lines from Thessaloniki to the Turkish border and Kalambaka to Igoumenitsa.