French railway news – Page 23
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NewsMore Île-de-France EMUs ordered
FRANCE: Acting on behalf of Paris regional transport authority Île-de-France Mobilités, national operator SNCF has awarded Bombardier Transportation a firm order to supply a further three Omneo Regio 2N electric multiple-units. They are to be delivered from the end of 2023 to strengthen the Omneo Regio fleets ...
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NewsTrack monitoring R&D collaboration
FRANCE: Infrastructure manager SNCF Réseau and British monitoring technology company Senceive are to collaborate to define the requirements for wireless track condition sensors. The exclusive two-year research and development agreement will see the project team analyse data from structural, geotechnical and track monitoring instruments installed at various ...
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In depthFrance: Confort 200 to trim trip times on two routes
Along with a programme of track upgrades, a fleet of 10-car articulated EMUs is set to transform travel on the inter-city routes from Paris to Toulouse and Clermont-Ferrand in the second half of this decade. Murray Hughes investigates.
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NewsMontpellier – Perpignan high speed line inches forward
FRANCE: Initial public consultations are underway on long-standing proposals to build a high speed line between Montpellier and Perpignan, after Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djébbari established a steering committee for the project and commenced the process needed to authorise the 150 km Ligne à Grande Vitesse. Public consultations ...
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In depthInterview: ‘We have to win back our customers’
Just when the French national operator’s passenger sector is coming to terms with Covid-19 and the collapse of business travel, it faces the arrival of competition in both the regional and long-distance markets. Chris Jackson asked Christophe Fanichet, President-Directeur Général of SNCF Voyageurs, about his strategy at a time of unprecedented challenges.
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Metro Report InternationalParis tram depot to feature lightweight jacks and bespoke turntable
FRANCE: The depot for the Paris Tram 9 project is being equipped with a set of 18 lightweight lifting jacks and a bogie turntable supplied by CIM and its UK subsidiary Mechan. The 10 km route T9 with 19 stops will connect Paris-Porte de Choisy to central ...
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NewsTaxirail lightweight vehicle demonstrator with AI to start trials in 2021
FRANCE: Trials with a self-propelled ultra-lightweight rail vehicle intended for rural railways or lightly-used lines are due to commence towards the end of 2021.
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NewsHauts-de-France orders more double-deck EMUs
FRANCE: Acting on behalf of the Hauts-de-France region, SNCF has awarded Bombardier Transportation a €565m firm contract to supply 33 Omneo Regio2N double-deck regional electric multiple-units from its Crespin plant in 2024-25. The order announced on December 22 has been placed under a 2010 framework agreement covering ...
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Metro Report InternationalToulouse Aerospace Express metro contract award
FRANCE: Toulouse Metropole has awarded Alstom a contract to design, build and maintain the Toulouse Aerospace Express driverless metro line. The city’s third automated metro line will be 27 km long with 21 stations, and is intended to serve major centres of employment in the aerospace sector. ...
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Metro Report InternationalTours deploys interoperable smartphone ticketing platform
FRANCE: Conduent’s Seamless Transportation System contactless payment technology has been rolled out across 21 trams and 200 buses in Tours’ Fil Bleu transport network. Users download the Seamless Transportation System smartphone app and register to activate an account. They then present their smartphone at any onboard tag. ...
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Metro Report InternationalCondition-based tramway maintenance contracts signed
FRANCE: Vossloh has signed multi-year framework agreements with initial three-year terms for the maintenance of tramway infrastructure in Le Havre and Valenciennes. Vossloh will provide the operators with a fixed-price condition guarantee for plain line track and turnouts, though a package including track analysis, continuous monitoring and ...
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NewsTemporary rules to keep the Channel Tunnel open
EUROPE: The European Parliament has approved temporary measures designed to ensure that rail operations through the Channel Tunnel can continue once the Brexit transition period ends on January 1 2021. The European Parliament approved the temporary rules under an urgent procedure on December 17 with 684 votes ...
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NewsMission to rethink freight transport
FRANCE: The Senate’s Committee for Regional Planning & Sustainable Development has launched a fact-finding mission to examine the future of freight transport in the face of environmental concerns. The mission’s work is expected to take around six months, with hearings being held across France. The team of ...
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NewsAutomated locomotive completes first trip
FRANCE: ‘A semi-autonomous train’ has run ‘under real operating conditions’ on the 16 km Longwy – Longuyon line in eastern France, national operator SNCF announced on December 16.
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NewsBombardier Transportation steps up output at Crespin
FRANCE: Production of rolling stock at Bombardier Transportation’s Crespin factory in northern France is to be stepped up thanks to a €25m investment programme. Dubbed Plan 1000, the package announced by the company on December 4 will give the plant the ability to turn out 1 000 ...
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Metro Report InternationalWabtec’s Metroflexx braking certified ahead of use on Grand Paris Express trains
BRAKING: Tüv Süd has provided safety, quality and performance standard certification for Metroflexx, Wabtec’s ‘next-generation’ braking system for metro trains. Designed to significantly reduce the weight, energy consumption and life-cycle cost of a train, Metroflexx communicates with the train computer and traction equipment to optimise use of ...
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Metro Report InternationalParis extends Line 14 north to St-Ouen
FRANCE: Transport Authority Île de France Mobilités and operator RATP officially inaugurated the northern extension of driverless metro Line 14 on December 14.
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NewsFour operators to co-operate to expand night train services
EUROPE: The national rail operators of Germany, Austria, France and Switzerland have agreed to co-operate on the expansion of international night train services, suggesting that there is now a political willingness to provide the framework required for long term success. ‘Europe’s leading railways are pooling their forces ...
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Metro Report InternationalReducing brake dust to improve air quality
FRANCE: Paris transport operator RATP is testing Wabtec’s Green Friction braking materials, which are designed to help improve the air quality in tunnels by reducing the amount of microparticles emitted. Initial bench tests are simulating the operation of a MI09 transet operating on RER Line A, looking ...
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NewsDiesel-battery hybrid TER train to be tested next year
FRANCE: Testing of a Coradia Polyvalent electro-diesel regional trainset fitted with a battery hybrid traction system is to begin early next year and passenger services are planned for 2022, Alstom has announced. Two of the trainset’s four diesel engines are to be replaced by lithium-ion batteries, which ...