All Railway Gazette International articles in February 2019 – Page 5
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Metro Report InternationalAutonomous tram under development in Russia
RUSSIA: Tram builder PK Transportnye Systemy is working with Cognitive Technologies to develop a prototype autonomous tram. A Vityaz-M vehicle is being fitted with 10 to 20 video cameras and up to 10 radar sensors, in addition to Cognitive’s Low Level Data Fusion technology, which processes the raw data. ...
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NewsHigh speed line approved
CHINA: Construction of the 176 km Chengdu – Zigong Yulin Passenger-Dedicated Line has been approved, with a budget of 35·9bn yuan and opening planned for 2023. The Chengdu – Tianfu section will be built for 250 km/h operation, and the Tianfu – Zigong section for 350 km/h. There will be ...
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NewsCalifornia high speed rail plan scaled back
USA: A scaling back of the high speed rail project in California was announced by Governor Gavin Newsom in his first State of the State address on February 12. Newsom said the project ‘as currently planned’ would ‘cost too much and take too long’, and added that there had been ...
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Rail Business UKNetwork Rail reorganisation aims to bring ‘radical change’
UK: Plans for a reorganisation designed to ‘put passengers and freight users first’ and address concerns about poor operating performance on the increasingly busy network were announced by infrastructure manager Network Rail on February 12. ‘The need for radical change is clear’, said Chief Executive Andrew Haines, reflecting on his ...
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NewsFirenze tram route T2 inaugurated
ITALY: Firenze tram Route T2 was inaugurated at noon on February 11, ahead of the entry into passenger service at 14.30. Travel on the route is free for two weeks. The opening ceremony was attended by President Sergio Mattarella, Minister of Transport & Infrastructure Danilo Toninelli, Mayor Dario Nardella, Toscana ...
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NewsAqaba railway feasibility study agreed
JORDAN: The Saudi Jordanian Investment Fund and the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority have signed a memorandum of understanding to undertake feasibility and technical studies for the development of a 195 km railway connecting a planned inland dry port at Ma’an with port facilities around Aqaba. The existing 1 050 ...
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NewsAmber Rail Freight Corridor becomes operational
EUROPE: The Amber Rail Freight Corridor has become operational, as the first new corridor to be established since the original nine defined in 2010. Prearranged trains paths are now available for the 2019-20 timetable year through the corridor’s ‘one stop shop’. Designated as RFC 11, the Amber RFC is ...
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NewsTatra-Yug delivers tram to Alexandria
EGYPT: The first of 15 high-floor trams that Tatra-Yug is supplying to Alexandria Passenger Transportation Authority began test running on February 10, having arrived in Alexandria four days earlier. The tram is expected to enter revenue service on the 32 route-km standard gauge network in late February. It is ...
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Rail Business UKInterim East Midlands franchise awarded
UK: The Department for Transport has directly awarded incumbent Stagecoach Group subsidiary East Midlands Trains an interim contract to continue to operate the East Midlands passenger franchise. The new short-term contract announced on February 12 will start when the most recent extension of the current franchise expires on March 3 ...
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Metro Report InternationalPay tax at metro ticket machines
INDIA: Lucknow residents can now use their GoSmart Card tickets to pay house and property taxes at the metro‘s ticket machines, and the system is to be extended to cover other bills. Receipts are issued providing details of the tax payments made, and payments appear in the user’s account ...
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NewsPhase change material cooled container developed
CONTAINER: The University of Birmingham and CRRC Shijiazhuang have developed a container that uses phase change material in place of traditional refrigeration technology. The material changes between liquid and solid depending on the temperature, with the phase change absorbing or releasing energy to maintain the interior of the container ...
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NewsChaoma inter-city railway agreed
CHINA: An agreement for the construction of the Chaoma inter-city railway was signed by municipal authorities in Hefei and Ma'anshan and the Anhui Province Investment Group on January 27. The 76 km line will start at Chaohu Dong station in Hefei city, pass though Hanshan county and Zhengpugang Xinqu in ...
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NewsRhomberg Sersa wins Irish maintenance contract
IRELAND: Iarnród Éireann has selected Rhomberg Sersa Rail Group as preferred bidder for a €40m contract to provide track maintenance services, including the operation of 14 on-track machines owned by the national railway. Rhomberg Sersa expects to employ 56 people to undertake work under the contract announced on February 11, ...
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NewsDB and ODEG awarded operating contracts
GERMANY: On behalf of the Länder of Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg–Vorpommern and Sachsen-Anhalt, Berlin-Brandenburg transport authority VBB has awarded the four Netzes Elbe-Spree regional passenger train operating contracts to DB Regio Nordost and ODEG. The contracts covering 17 routes will run for 12 years from December 2022. The international tender specified ...
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Metro Report InternationalMaintenance vehicle delivered to Philadelphia
USA: Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority has taken delivery of a maintenance vehicle and a flat wagon with driving cab for use on the Norristown High Speed Line rapid transit route. The Plasser American PMC50 vehicle is fitted with a National Crane 400B crane, a hydraulic tool power circuit and ...
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Metro Report InternationalEmission-free bus funding announced
UK: The government’s Office for Low Emission Vehicles is providing a total of £48m for emission-free buses and associated infrastructure in various cities, Buses Minister Nusrat Ghani announced on February 6. The 19 successful bidders that took part in the ultra-low emission bus scheme competition last year are to ...
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NewsADB grant to help CAREC countries move from landlocked to land-linked
ASIA: The Asian Development Bank has awarded a US$2m regional technical assistance grant to support the development of railway strategies and institutional capabilities in the Central Asia Regional Economic Co-operation countries. CAREC comprises Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, China, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan and six multilateral institutions. ...
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Rail Business UKScotRail gets second performance warning
UK: Citing poor customer satisfaction figures, Transport Scotland issued a Remedial Plan notice to ScotRail on February 8. This is the operator’s second warning in quick succession, following a Remedial Notice issued on December 24 because of poor operational performance, during November and December. According to Transport Scotland, ScotRail had ...
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NewsHyundai Rotem selected for Warszawa tram contract
POLAND: Tramwaje Warszawskie has selected Hyundai Rotem as preferred bidder to supply up to 213 low-floor trams, the operator announced on February 8. Rotem’s bid of 1·852bn złoty excluding VAT beat those of Pesa, which offered a price exceeding TW’s budget, and that by a consortium of Stadler and ...
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NewsZiyun freight railway opens
CHINA: The Ziyun local freight railway at Zhijiang in Hubei's Yichang region opened on January 18. The 36·7 km line runs from Zhijiang station on the Jiaozuo – Liuzhou line to serve four River Yangtze ports at Yunchi, Baiyang, Tianjiahe and Yaojiagang, and adjacent industrial parks. The line will also ...