All Railway Gazette International articles in December 2014 – Page 2
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NewsWellington rail operating contract shortlist announced
NEW ZEALAND: Greater Wellington Regional Council announced the shortlisted bidders for a contract to operate the capital’s suburban rail services on December 22. The tender forms part of a programme to procure ‘performance-based partnering contracts’ for all of Wellington’s public transport services The shortlisted bidders are: A joint venture of ...
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NewsToll Group divests Cambodian railway stake
CAMBODIA: Australian logistics group Toll has divested its 55% stake in the Toll Royal Railway joint venture to its local partner Royal Group with effect from December 19. Toll Royal Railway took over the dilapidated metre-gauge network in 2009 under a 30-year concession. The Asian Development Bank and Australian development ...
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NewsTrack Tec acquires ThyssenKrupp turnout and fastening business
GERMANY: Track Tec has signed an agreement to acquire ThyssenKrupp GfT Gleistechnik’s Coswig-based turnout and rail fastening business with effect from January 1. The price was not disclosed. ThyssenKrupp had announced plans to dispose of the track component business in March, saying it was unprofitable and 'under extreme cost pressure'. ...
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NewsInternational Alliance of Rail Vehicle Industrial Design established
CHINA: An International Alliance of Rail Vehicle Industrial Design has been established by CSR Sifang, China Industrial Design Association, European Design Alliance, Tsinghua University and other ‘design agencies, universities and enterprises’ from more than 40 countries including Switzerland, the USA, Germany, France, Italy, Japan and Spain. CSR Corp said the ...
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NewsFrauscher to begin Indian axle-counter production
INDIA: Frauscher Sensor Technology India has received Research Designs & Standards Organisation approval for its ACS2000 axle-counting system, enabling it to begin production at a plant in Mysore which was opened in November. Approval was granted based on the existing CENELEC assessment, proven operation elsewhere and proof of reliability ...
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NewsChangsha – Huaihua high speed line opens
CHINA: The Changsha – Huaihua Passenger-Dedicated Line in Hunan province opened on December 16. Construction of the 416 km route with nine stations began in 2010. The alignment is designed for 350 km/h operation, but trains are currently limited to 300 km/h giving an end-to-end journey time of 1 h ...
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NewsFreightCar America expands plant
USA: To meet growing demand, FreightCar America is investing $10m to add an extra production line at its leased manufacturing plant at Cherokee in the Shoals region of Alabama. When fully operational in Q2 2015 the plant will have the capacity to build up to 8 000 wagons/year, with the ...
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News€450m for urban transport projects
FRANCE: The government announced on December 18 that it would be providing €450m to fund 99 urban transport projects with an estimated total cost of €5∙2bn. Including 15 light rail schemes totalling 81 km as well four metro lines with a combined length of 27 km, the projects are expected ...
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NewsWrocław orders Pesa Twist supercapacitor trams
POLAND: MPK Wrocław signed a contract with sole bidder Pesa on December 15 for the supply of six Twist trams with an option for 19 more. The order is part of the Integrated Rail Transport System in Greater Wroclaw Stage II programme. The city transport authority hopes that part ...
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NewsInfrabel warns of project delays
BELGIUM: Meeting on December 16, the board of infrastructure manager Infrabel approved a 2015 budget incorporating savings of €170m. Given the ‘very difficult’ economic climate, spending has been reduced across all categories with the exception of safety investment where €332∙4m is to be spent on programmes including the installation of ...
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NewsWork starts on Chuo maglev
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway officially marked the start of work on the first phase of its Chuo Shinkansen superconducting maglev line between Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka with ceremonies at the Shinagawa and Nagoya station sites on December 17. According to JR Central, construction work on the 286 km between Tokyo ...
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NewsS-Bahn expansion schemes launched
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways has started work on a major capacity improvement programme between Genève and Lausanne. Announcing the launch of the SFr3bn ‘Léman 2030’ project at a ceremony in Renens station on November 22, SBB said that traffic on the route along the shore of Lac Léman is expected ...
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NewsWisconsin buys Union Pacific line
USA: The state of Wisconsin has completed the purchase of 110 km of Union Pacific route linking Madison with Reedsburg and Cottage Grove, Governor Scott Walker announced on December 11. The $30m purchase was made jointly by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation and Wisconsin River Rail Transit Commission. The ...
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NewsSamskip to launch dedicated Rotterdam – Italy intermodal service
EUROPE: Samskip Multimodal is to launch a dedicated intermodal rail freight service between Rotterdam and the Melzo terminal near Milano during January. The initial focus is on pallet-wide high cube 45 ft containers, curtain-siders, flatracks and reefers. The Rotterdam – Melzo transit time will be under 30 h, with ...
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NewsVoivodship-owned operator Koleje Małopolskie launched
POLAND: Koleje Małopolskie operated its first passenger service at 05.10 on December 14, with a day of free travel marking the launch of regular services by the latest voivodship-owned local train operating company. KMŁ has a fleet of 10 two and three-car EMUs from Pesa’s Acatus Plus family, developed as ...
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NewsKlaus Deller
Klaus Deller is returning to Knorr-Bremse AG to replace Dr Michael Buscher as Chairman of the executive board on January 1. Deller first joined the board in 2009 as head of the Commercial Vehicle Systems business unit, before stepping down earlier this year.
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NewsMaisa Romanainen
Finnish national operator VR Group has named Maisa Romanainen as Senior Vice-President, Passenger Services.
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NewsJesús Silva Fernández
The Spanish Development Ministry appointed Jesús Silva Fernández as President of state-owned engineering consultancy Ineco at a ceremony in Madrid on November 17. He was previously Spanish ambassador to Panama.
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NewsParis opens tram Route T8
FRANCE: Paris tram Route T8 entered service on December 16, following four weeks of trial running without passengers. The 8·5 km route runs north from Saint-Denis Porte de Paris to Delaunay-Belleville, where it splits into two branches, terminating at Villetaneuse-Université and Epinay-Orgemont. There are 17 stops, and interchange is ...
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NewsMetrolink tram wi-fi rollout confirmed
UK: Following positive passenger feedback from trials on a single Metrolink tram, on December 16 Transport for Greater Manchester confirmed a £1·7m deal for the roll-out of free wi-fi on all 94 trams, 20 city centre shuttle buses and all new trams entering service within the next two years. The ...