All Railway Gazette International articles in April 2019 – Page 7
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NewsDB stops accepting ICE4 trains after welding issues discovered
GERMANY: Deutsche Bahn has stopped accepting deliveries of new ICE4 trainsets, after it emerged that bodyshell welding had not been carried out as prescribed. Siemens Mobility is the general contractor for the ICE4 fleet under a framework contract awarded in May 2011, with subcontractor Bombardier Transportation responsible around 30% of ...
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NewsGas fuelled railcar pilot project planned
ITALY: A memorandum of understanding setting out plans to test the conversion of diesel railcars to run on natural gas has been signed by national railway FS Group, rolling stock manufacturer Hitachi Rail Italy and gas supply infrastructure company Snam. Trenitalia plans to provide one or two ALn668 or ALn663 ...
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NewsCustoms buildings handed over as Eurotunnel prepares for Brexit
FRANCE: On April 4 Eurotunnel officially handed over to the French authorities buildings intended for customs, veterinary and phytosanitary inspection services. The Douane-SIVEP control centre will be open 24/7 for Ministry of Agriculture officials and customs officers. It provides nine unloading docks, a refrigerated storage area, 100 parking spaces ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
Alstom’s Le Creusot factory has unveiled what the manufacturer describes as the highest-capacity welding robot in the railway sector. The robot supplied by Galilé subsidiary Farman is due to be fully operational by the end of May. Thales has completed the acquisition of digital security and smart card manufacturer Gemalto. ...
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NewsHamburg-Holstein becomes next eCitaro customer
GERMANY: Verkehrsbetriebe Hamburg-Holstein has ordered 16 Mercedes-Benz eCitaro electric buses. Deliveries under the contract announced on April 4 are due to take place at the end of 2019. The buses will have three sets of double doors, a multi-function area and USB charging ports. They will be equipped with ...
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NewsTatra-Yug tram presented in Kyiv
UKRAINE: Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko and Deputy Mayor Dmytro Davtyan officially inaugurated a Tatra-Yug tram for the city on April 2. On December 18 operator Kyivpastrans signed a 428·9m hryvnia contract with Tatra-Yug for the supply of 10 trams to replace some of the current fleet operating on the ...
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NewsTMH Africa inaugurates South African plant
SOUTH AFRICA: Russian rolling stock group Transmashholding officially inaugurated its first African factory on April 2. The former DCD Rolling Stock plant at Boksburg in Gauteng province was acquired last October by the TMH Africa joint venture of TMH International (70%) and its black economic empowerment partner Mjisa Investments (30%). ...
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NewsSweden to fund international night trains
SWEDEN: Overnight trains connecting Sweden with several international European destinations are to be introduced as part of government proposals to facilitate environmentally-friendly transport. Infrastructure Minister Tomas Eneroth announced on March 31 that the Social Democratic, Centre and Green parties had reached agreement to include a SKr50m framework grant in the ...
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NewsNew Generation Rollingstock accessibility modification contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: The government of Queensland has awarded Bombardier Transportation a A$361m contract to undertake modifications to improve the accessibility of the 75 electric multiple-units which are being introduced to the southeast Queensland rail network under the New Generation Rollingstock programme. The modified trains are expected to re-enter service from 2020 ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
The House of Commons Public Accounts Committee published a report into delays to the Crossrail project on April 3, saying a 'fixation' on a delivery deadline of December 2018 led to signs that the programme was in trouble being missed or ignored. 'It is clear that the delivery deadline of ...
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Rail Business UKFirst look inside new Caledonian Sleeper trains
UK: London to Scotland overnight train operator Caledonian Sleeper has unveiled the interiors of its new coaches, which are being built by CAF in northern Spain. Entry into service had originally been scheduled for April 2018 but is now expected by the end of May. The Lowlander route between London ...
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NewsTrack upgrading underway in Uruguay
URUGUAY: Track renewal works on the Tres Arboles – Salto Grande line have reached Paysandú. Comsa is working on the ballasting and levelling of the track, and has begun taking delivery of turnouts from Spanish supplier Amurrio Ferrocarril y Equipos. The Tres Arboles – Piedra Sola route is to ...
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Rail Business UKProgress Rail to repower GB Railfreight locomotives
UK: GB Railfreight has awarded Progress Rail a contract to repower 16 serviceable, stored or non-running Class 56 diesel locomotives which it bought from UK Rail Leasing last June. The existing Ruston-Paxman RK3 engines and control gear on the locomotives dating from 1976-84 will be replaced with new EMD 12-710 ...
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Rail Business UKTalgo committed to UK expansion strategy
UK: Planning for the development of a rolling stock manufacturing plant in Scotland and a research facility in northern England is continuing ‘at full pace’, Talgo Group President Carlos de Palacio Oriol told Railway Gazette in Madrid on April 1. Pointing out that Talgo’s two Spanish plants at Las Matas ...
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NewsStadler wins Łódź suburban EMU lengthening contract
POLAND: Łódź suburban rail operator Łódzka Kolej Aglomeracyjna has signed an agreement with Stadler Polska to lengthen 10 of its Flirt electric multiple-units. The 68·5m złoty contract announced on April 2 includes an extension of Stadler’s maintenance activities until 2029. Each of the two-car EMUs will gain a 16 ...
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NewsPT Inka breaks ground at site of rolling stock factory
INDONESIA: State-owned rolling stock manufacturer PT Inka held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new factory at Banyuwangi in East Java on March 31. The factory is to be built on an 83 ha site at cost of Rp1·6tr, with opening planned for 2020. It is being designed to have the ...
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NewsMelbourne grade separation contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: The Southern Program Alliance consortium of Acciona Geotech subsidiary Coleman Rail, Lendlease and WSP has been awarded a A$536m contract for grade separation works in southeast Melbourne. The contract announced on April 1 is an extension of a A$588m contract to remove level crossings which had been won ...
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NewsSNCF Logistics acquires Railtraxx
BELGIUM: SNCF Logistics announced on April 2 that it had acquired freight operator Railtraxx and would merge it with Captrain Belgium. Railtraxx was established in 2009 and runs intermodal trains linking the port of Antwerpen with destinations in western Europe, as well as providing ‘last mile’ terminal services around Antwerpen. ...
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NewsNorfolk Southern names transformation team
USA: Reporting ‘another year of record financial results’ on March 29, Norfolk Southern Chairman, President & CEO James Squires said the railway had seen strong growth in 2018, achieving an all-time best operating ratio of 65·4 after three consecutive years of improvement and a recording a 9% year-on-year increase in ...
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NewsRail projects awarded EU funding
EUROPE: A number of rail schemes are included in a €4bn allocation of Cohesion funding for 25 major infrastructure projects in 10 EU member states which was announced by the European Commission on April 2. Czech Republic: €76m for the modernisation of the Praha – Plzeň line, including track renewals, ...