High speed rail industry news – Page 16
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Rail Business UKHS2 streamlines civils subcontracting process
UK: The four High Speed 2 main works civils contractors have collaborated to introduce a standardised pre-qualification system for subcontractors which is designed to streamline the process, reduce costs and boost productivity. Under the Common Assessment Standard, bidders for work with Align, BBV, EK and SCS Railways ...
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News
Minister backs Taiwan high speed line extension
TAIWAN: The government has backed proposals to extend THSRC’s 1 435 mm gauge high speed railway to Yilan County, Minister of Transport & Communications Lin Chia-lung confirmed on October 24. Speaking to local media ahead of a Legislative Yuan Transport Committee meeting to review the Taiwan Railway ...
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News
London St Pancras twins with Bordeaux Saint-Jean to promote direct service
Twinning EUROPE: Channel Tunnel rail link concessionaire HS1 Ltd announced a twinning agreement between its London St Pancras International station and SNCF’s Bordeaux Saint-Jean station on October 18, saying this would help to progress the development of proposals for a through passenger service between the cities. ...
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Typhoon breaches Hokuriku Shinkansen and Chuo Main Line
JAPAN: Services on the Hokuriku Shinkansen and various other lines are expected to be disrupted for several weeks as a result of typhoon damage, East Japan Railway confirmed on October 15. Rail and road links in the Kanto Koshinetsu and Tohoku regions were badly affected by flooding ...
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Travel industry confirms rail ‘renaissance’ in Europe
INTERNATIONAL: Assertions that long-distance rail services in Europe are rapidly becoming more popular as passengers eschew flying for environmental reasons were amply confirmed at the Rail Innovation Forum organised by Amadeus at its head office near Nice on October 9-10. Speakers from across the travel industry highlighted ...
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News
Meizhou – Chaoshan Passenger-Dedicated Line opens
CHINA: The Meizhou – Chaoshan Passenger-Dedicated Line in Guangdong province opened for revenue service on October 11. The 122 km line has seven stations at Meizhou Xi, Shejiang Bei, Jianqiao, Fengshun Dong, Jieyang, Jieyang Jichang and Chaoshan, where it joins the Shenzhen – Hangzhou PDL with trains ...
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News
Talgo to supply 330 km/h ‘Dr Avril’ inspection train
SPAIN: Infrastructure manager ADIF has selected Talgo to supply a gauge-convertible inspection train able to operate at up to 330 km/h on the high speed rail network as well as at lower speeds on conventional lines. The train has been informally named ‘Dr Avril’ by the manufacturer, ...
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News
Ouigo to link centres of Paris and Lyon from June 2020
FRANCE: SNCF will launch Ouigo low-cost high speed services between the city centres of Paris and Lyon in June 2020. Until now Ouigo passengers between the two cities have been obliged to use trains that either start or finish outside the city centre of Paris or Lyon. ...
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Thalys-Eurostar merger planned under Green Speed initiative
EUROPE: SNCF, SNCB and the Patina Rail investment vehicle announced on September 27 their intention to combine the Eurostar and Thalys high speed rail operations, reporting that outline proposals were being presented to their respective boards. The proposed merger is being taken forward under a project ...
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Metro Report International
Beijing Daxing airport opens with high speed rail and metro links
CHINA: Two rail links to Beijing’s second international airport were opened for revenue services on September 26, the same day that commercial passenger flights began using Beijing Daxing Airport. This followed official inauguration of the airport by President Xi Jinping the previous day. ...
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Amsterdam – London through train agreement to be signed shortly
EUROPE: The international agreement which would permit the operation of through passenger services between the Netherlands and the UK is expected to be signed in October, State Secretary for Justice & Security Ankie Broekers-Knol told the Dutch parliament’s lower house on September 25. Eurostar told Railway Gazette ...
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News
Alstom to supply ETCS for Paris – Lyon high speed line
FRANCE: SNCF Réseau has awarded a framework contract to Alstom for the development, installation and maintenance of ERTMS equipment on LGV Sud-Est between Paris and Lyon. Valued at €52·5m, the contract announced on September 25 was awarded following a negotiated procedure and a prior call for competition. ...
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News
High speed trains’ electrical equipment to be replaced
TAIWAN: Toshiba Infrastructure Systems & Solutions Corp has been awarded a contract to supply replacement electrical equipment for Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp’s fleet of 30 Series 700T trainsets. TISS will manufacture the equipment at its Fuchu site in Japan for delivery from the first half of ...
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News
Alstom to equip international ICE3 fleet with ETCS
GERMANY: Deutsche Bahn has awarded Alstom a €30m contract to retrofit its Atlas ETCS onboard equipment to 17 Class 407 Velaro D ICE3 high speed trainsets used on international services. Approval will be progressively obtained for the ETCS Baseline 3 Release 2 equipment to be used in ...
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News
First ETR1000 trainsets arrive in France for testing
Photo: Christophe Masse FRANCE: The first of two Trenitalia ETR1000 Frecciarossa trainsets arrived in France on September 19 for type approval tests in Bretagne. Trenitalia plans to launch a Paris – Milano high speed service in summer 2020 using a fleet of five ETR1000 trainsets modified for ...
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DB to order more high speed trains as government cuts VAT on fares
Photo: DB AG/Georg Wagner GERMANY: Rail spending is to be increased significantly as part of a €54bn package of measures to mitigate the effects of climate change, which was announced by Chancellor Angela Merkel on September 20. In order to reduce the environmental impact of transport and ...
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Texas Central targets financial close by next year
USA: Dallas – Houston high speed project promoter Texas Central says it is optimistic of securing financial close by the end of next year, which would enable construction to begin. Worth an indicative $20bn, the privately funded high speed railway is intended to link Dallas with Houston ...
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News
Frecciargento 700 to serve Bari from September 29
ITALY: Trenitalia’s Frecciargento trainsets will begin serving Bari from the end of September, working two trains a day between Milano and Bari via the Adriatic corridor. Presenting the new trains to local decision makers at Bari Centrale on September 19, Trenitalia’s Director, Long Haul, Paolo Attanasio explained ...
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Chongqing – Kunming Passenger-Dedicated Line approved
CHINA: The National Development & Reform Commission has given the go-ahead for construction of the 699 km Chongqing – Kunming Passenger-Dedicated Line. This corridor includes 681 km of new route plus 18 km of the Zigong to Yibin PDL which is already under construction. The package also ...
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KLM replaces plane with high speed train
Thalys EUROPE: KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is to replace one of its five daily flights between Brussels and Amsterdam Schiphol with reserved seat capacity on a Thalys high speed train service from March 29 2020. This is intended as the first step in a programme to gradually ...
