High speed rail industry news – Page 34
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NewsiDTGV brand to disappear
FRANCE: The iDTGV brand for high speed services which can only be booked online is to be phased out, SNCF announced on March 7. The brand will first be withdrawn on routes from Paris to Bretagne and the southwest with the opening of the LGV Bretagne Pays de la Loire ...
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NewsCRC orders 250 km/h trains for Diamond Economic Circle
CHINA: China Railway Corp has awarded the Bombardier Sifang (Qingdao) Transportation joint venture a contract to supply 18 eight-car CRH1A-A high speed trainsets. The 250 km/h trainsets designated Zefiro 250NG by the manufacturer are to be operated by the Chengdu and Kunming railway bureaux in the ‘Diamond Economic Circle’ region ...
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NewsPresidential inauguration for LGV Sud Europe Atlantique
FRANCE: The LGV Sud Europe Atlantique high speed line between Tours and Bordeaux was inaugurated on February 28 in the presence of President François Hollande, SNCF Réseau President Patrick Jeantet and Laurent Cavrois, President of the LISEA consortium which has built and part-financed the new line under a 50-year concession. ...
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NewsBlue Dolphin enters revenue service
CHINA: The first CRH400AF China Standard EMU prototype developed by CRRC Qingdao Sifang was officially put into revenue service on the Beijing – Guangzhou high speed line on February 25, the company has confirmed to Railway Gazette. Code-named Blue Dolphin, the eight-car trainset had successfully completed more than 600 000 ...
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NewsSaudi Railway Co launches first passenger services
SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi Railway Co began operating its first regular passenger service between Riyadh and Al-Qassim on February 26, using one of its CAF-built diesel trainsets which can operate at up to 200 km/h. Until April 1 the service will run five days a week, leaving the terminus close to ...
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NewsHS2 Phase 1 bill receives Royal Assent
UK: The parliamentary bill for the first phase of the High Speed 2 project received Royal Assent on February 23, marking the final legislative step before full civil works can begin.‘HS2 will be the world’s most advanced passenger railway and the backbone of our rail network’, said Transport Secretary Chris ...
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NewsKuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail joint development partner appointed
ASIA: Project promoters MyHSR Corp of Malaysia and Land Transport Authority of Singapore have awarded the joint development partner contract for the Kuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail project to a consortium of WSP Engineering Malaysia, Mott MacDonald Malaysia and Ernst & Young Advisory Services. There were eight bids ...
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NewsSingapore awards high speed railway design contract
SINGAPORE: Land Transport Authority has appointed AECOM Singapore and a team of specialist consultants to conduct the advanced engineering study for the complete design of the Singapore section of the future high speed line to Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. The contract includes the provision of architectural, civil engineering, electrical, mechanical ...
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NewsEurostar lounge seeks 'the spirit of a Parisian apartment'
FRANCE: Eurostar opened its relocated Business Premier lounge at Paris-Nord on February 4. Accessed after passengers pass through an expanded security and passport control area, the lounge is intended to offer a ‘stylish, comfortable environment for both working and relaxing’. The facility on the top floor of the original 19th ...
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NewsTGVmax offers unlimited travel for less than a car-share
FRANCE: A new online ticketing product offering passengers aged 16 to 27 unlimited travel on long-distance services for €79 a month was announced by SNCF on January 23. TGVmax will be available on 94% of TGV and Intercités services and on every day of the year, with the exception of ...
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NewsTrenitalia joins FirstGroup to bid for UK franchises
UK: Two weeks after the Italian state railway group entered the UK rail market by agreeing to acquire the Essex Thameside franchise from National Express, FS Italiane subsidiary Trenitalia UK announced on January 24 that it was joining FirstGroup to bid for the East Midlands franchise and the forthcoming West ...
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NewsProcurement of High Speed 2 trains begins
UK: The process to procure rolling stock for High Speed 2 was initiated on January 20, when the Department for Transport issued a periodic indicative notice regarding the acquisition of up to 60 trainsets. The formal call for tenders is planned for 2018, with the contract worth an estimated £2·75bn ...
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NewsHaramain High Speed Rail deal ratified
SAUDI ARABIA: On January 16 Spanish Development Minister Íñigo de la Serna welcomed the ratification of the November 2016 agreement between the Saudi Arabian authorities and the Al Shoula consortium, which sets a revised timescale for the completion of the Haramain High Speed Rail Line between Makkah, Jeddah and Madinah. ...
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NewsShanghai – Kunming high speed line completed
CHINA: Ceremonies were held at the new Kunming Nan station on December 28 to mark the opening for revenue service of the Guiyang – Kunming Passenger-Dedicated Line. The link is the final stage in the 2 252 km Shanghai – Kunming corridor, one of the four east-west and four north-south ...
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NewsHokuriku extension route agreed
JAPAN: Plans to extend the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Shin-Osaka via Obama and Kyoto were agreed by the coalition government on December 20. A 125 km section extending the line from its present terminus at Kanazawa to Tsuruga is currently under construction, with completion expected in 2022-23. The government’s decision will ...
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NewsFRA recommends $120bn investment in Northeast Corridor
USA: A 30-year programme of route modernisation, including four-tracking and some new alignment, has been recommended by the Federal Railroad Administration under its proposal to develop the Northeast Corridor linking Boston, New York and Washington DC. A four-year consultation and market testing exercise known as NEC Future was launched ...
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NewsNTV’s first Pendolino Italo car unveiled
ITALY: Alstom unveiled the first vehicle from a fleet of 12 Pendolino trainsets it is supplying to private high speed operator NTV at its Savigliano works on December 15. The driving car is the first vehicle to be completed under a €460m contract initially finalised in October 2015. This covered ...
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NewsSNCF launches free wi-fi on TGVs
FRANCE: SNCF began offering passengers free wi-fi on some TGV trainsets on the Paris – Lyon route with effect from December 15. This is the first phase of a wider roll-out which aims to provide wi-fi coverage for around 80% of TGV passengers on high speed and conventional lines by ...
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NewsKuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail agreement signed
ASIA: A bilateral agreement for the development of the 350 km Kuala Lumpur – Singapore high speed rail project was signed on December 13, when the two countries’ Prime Ministers took part in their annual retreat, which was this year was held at Putrajaya in Malaysia. The agreement was signed ...
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NewsHigh speed network grows as Brescia – Treviglio route opens
ITALY: A further section of the high speed railway across the north of the country opened for traffic with the European timetable change on December 11. The previous day, inauguration ceremonies included a celebratory run using an ETR1000 trainset carrying Transport Minister Graziano Delrio and other local and national dignitaries. ...