Europe – Page 75
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Metro Report InternationalPraha funicular cars ordered
CZECH REPUBLIC: Praha transport operator DPP has awarded Doppelmayr/Garaventa a KC138m contract to supply a pair of replacement cars for the Petřín hill funicular railway. The custom-designed 1 435 mm gauge vehicles will be manufactured by Doppelmayr’s CWA subsidiary at Olten in Switzerland, while its Frey ...
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In depthFreight: Alpine corridors reflect rail’s struggle for modal share
Anchored in Italy, three north-south Rail Freight Corridors provide significant opportunities for modal shift in line with the European Commission’s Green deal objectives. However, the transalpine routes still face many challenges that need to be addressed, suggests Reinhard Christeller.
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NewsÖBB and DB to enhance cross-border passenger train services
EUROPE: Citing a boom in rail traffic between Germany and Austria, ÖBB and DB have announced plans to increase long-distance cross-border services with effect from the December 10 timetable change.
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Metro Report InternationalSamara tram deliveries begin
RUSSIA: Belarusian manufacturer BKM has delivered the first three of 12 T811 trams for use in the city of Samara. The trams are being leased from Sberbank Leasing under a seven-year agreement worth 1·1bn roubles. The fully low-floor single-section cars have a maximum speed of 60 ...
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NewsSJ fleet to deploy novel brake control system
SWEDEN: Knorr-Bremse announced on September 4 that it had signed a contract to deploy its CubeControl brake control system on a fleet of high speed trains for Sweden. Railway Gazette understands that the technology is to be fitted to the 25 Zefiro Express trainsets that Alstom ...
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NewsDieselnetz Erzgebirge operating contract awarded
GERMANY: Mittelsachsen transport authority VMS has awarded incumbent DB RegioNetz Verkehrs GmbH Erzgebirgsbahn a contract to continue to operate Dieselnetz Erzgebirge local passenger services. The contract running from June 2024 until the December 2032 timetable change covers diesel services totalling 1·9 million train-km/year on three routes: ...
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NewsRZD orders electric multiple-units
RUSSIA: Russian Railways has awarded Transmashholding a contract to supply 13 EP2DM DC electric multiple-units totalling 76 cars by the end of the year. The agreement was signed on August 24 at the 1520 Pro//Dvizhenie.Expo trade fair in St Petersburg, where the first of the trains ...
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NewsEstonian rail freight operator seeks new opportunities after war slashes traffic
ESTONIA: State-owned freight operator Operail is developing a comprehensive strategy to restore its profitability, having been hit by a 83% reduction in volumes because of the Russian war against Ukraine. The strategy is expected to be finalised by autumn, and the company says that once its ...
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NewsContract let to bore Italian section of Mont Cenis base tunnel
ITALY: Project promoter Tunnel Euralpin Lyon Torino has awarded a €1bn contract to the consortium of Itinera, Ghella and Spie Batignolles to bore the 10 km section from Susa in Italy to the French border, TELT announced on August 31. The resulting bore will form part ...
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NewsComposite sleepers installed in damp Dutch tunnel
NETHERLANDS: Lankhorst Rail has supplied 6 000 KLP Hybrid Polymer Sleepers for use in a tunnel where wooden sleepers have been affected by damp and concrete sleepers are too heavy. Lankhorst believes the renewal work in the Willemsspoor tunnel under the Nieuwe Maas in Rotterdam to ...
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Metro Report InternationalDublin and Cork tram orders planned
IRELAND: Rail and road project agency Transport Infrastructure Ireland is drawing up plans to begin replacing Dublin’s tram fleet and procure vehicles for future Irish light rail lines. Dublin’s 44 km Luas tram network has a fleet of 81 Alstom Citadis trams ordered in four tranches ...
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Metro Report InternationalKøbenhavn tram delivered
DENMARK: Siemens Mobility has delivered the first of 29 trams for the Hovedstadens Letbane orbital light rail line which is under construction in København. The tram arrived at the depot in Glostrup on the night of August 23, following testing at the Wildenrath centre in Germany ...
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In depthEurope: Approach route impasse threatens Lyon – Torino link
Plans to boost rail traffic between France and Italy through the Mont Cenis base tunnel maybe in jeopardy as the French government dithers over the choice of approach route. Christian Scasso reports
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NewsElectric-battery shunting locomotive unveiled
RUSSIA: Transmashholding’s Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Plant unveiled its EMKA2 electric-battery shunting locomotive at the PRO//Dvizhenie.Expo trade fair in St Petersburg, saying more than 90% of the components were designed and manufactured domestically. The EMKA2 is derived from the TEM23 modular diesel locomotive. It is designed for ...
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Metro Report InternationalKVSZ wins Kyiv metro train order
UKRAINE: Kryukovsky Railway Car Building Works announced on August 25 that it had won a €79·2m tender for the supply of 10 five-car metro trainsets to Kyiv. KVSZ said that the price was approved by Kyiv Metro’s tender committee and a loan agreed with EBRD. The ...
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NewsAustrian Federal Railways announces framework agreement for 540 EMUs
AUSTRIA: ÖBB has selected Siemens Mobility as the winner of a framework contract covering the supply of up to 540 electric multiple-units. The 10-year agreement announced on August 31 is potentially worth more than €5bn. The single-deck EMUs will be based on the manufacturer’s Mireo family, ...
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Metro Report InternationalToruń tramway extension opens
POLAND: An opening ceremony was held on August 25 for a 6 km extension of the tram network in Toruń. The extension links Waly gen Sikorskiego in the city centre with Heweliusza in the Jar regeneration zone to the north. There are free services from August ...
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News170bn złoty Polish infrastructure enhancement programme approved
POLAND: The Council of Ministers approved the 2023 to 2030 National Railway Programme at a meeting on August 16. The package covers the financing of several ongoing and planned major projects, enhancements to various strategic main lines and the construction of greenfield regional railways. ...
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NewsTrans-Alpine capacity crunch emerges amid Gotthard Base Tunnel repairs
SWITZERLAND: The Gotthard Base Tunnel and Brenner Pass trans-Alpine rail routes were closed for much of August. Although both have now at least partially reopened, operators are again being forced to assess how best to manage unexpected disruption. Toma Bačić reports.
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In depthComment: Trains on the tourist trail
As summer moves into autumn in the northern hemisphere, a debate is beginning over the future of tourism, catalysed in part by the searing heatwaves and wildfires that have been sweeping across much of the planet.