Ministry for Transport
and Infrastructure

Often taken for granted, the transport and public works systems and nation's infrastructure is critical to Schwerdt's economic growth and quality of life.

 

Organisation of the Ministry

Three main divisions facilitate the efficient fulfillment of the Ministry's mission. A Deputy Minister oversees each division.

Transport Affairs

Transport systems include roadways and highways, railways, airways, inland and coastal waterways, and pipelines. All of these are regulated by the Ministry which also manages or administers many of them.

Railways move about 42% of all goods transportd in Schwerdt. The railways also enjoy brisk passenger business, particularly in the more densely populated regions. Intra-regional passenger travel is frequently by air and Schwerdt's air terminals are nearly as busy as the rail terminals.

Completion of the Bad Mergentheim-Uslar Canal in the 1490s facilitated the internal movement of goods by water in the south-center region. Together with the Interlochen-Verden Canal and the river system, nearly 24% of goods move on water routes. Twenty-one per cent of goods move by truck on the highways. Air transport accounts for the remainder.

Public Works

Modern society has come to depend on the essential services which are the public works. Reichskraftwerke (RKW) boasts a modern electrical generation and distribution system which operates with less than .66% downtime per annum. Schwerdt makes use of all types of generating stations, including nuclear, wind, oil, coal, and hydro. Although not yet commercially viable, RKW is developing solar electrical generation in cooperation with the University of Brandenburg and generous corporate sponsorship of Seaman's GmbH.

Telecommunications are critical in today's world. Telekom™ provides a state-of-the-art system which meets today's requirements and has capacity for the future. Telekom continues to lead the industry with such initiatives as Y-Net™, a wireless wide area network (WWAN) being installed in major cities and on Reichsbahn. The Ministry also administers the nation's postal system.

Other public works matters include natural gas and water supply, as well as the removal of sewerage and solid waste refuse. In recent years, Schwerdt has made significant progress in the implementation of a coordinated, concerted recycling effort. Within the past five years, the nationwide program has achieved a 34% reduction in the solid waste stream.

Infrastructure Affairs

Transport and public works systems need an efficient backbone with which to fulfill their purposes for society. This backbone, the infrastructure, must be managed to properly allocate capacity and ensure long-term, efficient utilisation and upkeep.

Within the last decade, Schwerdt has upgraded significant portions of the transport infrastructure. The rail system is 37% re-built and air transport control systems have been completely modernised. An effective maintenance program and sound, coordinated transport planning ensures the highway system remains functional and has required capacity.

In partnership with the Ministry for Information and Science, Schwerdt enjoys a completely new, state-of-the-art telecommunications system. The main features of this new system are fiber-optic cables and special frequency radio links, as well as extensive use of geo-stationary communications satellites. As a result, data and voice communications move swiftly and error-free over landlines and a cellular system that covers an amazing 73% of the country.