Infrastructure news – Page 198
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NewsKapsch awarded western Czech GSM-R contract
CZECH REPUBLIC: Infrastructure manager SŽDC has awarded Kapsch CarrierCom a €14·7m contract to install GSM-R communications on the 185 km Beroun – Plzeň – Cheb – German border route by late 2016. Kapsch will supply technology based on the 3GPP Release 4 core. ‘The Czech Republic is an important ...
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NewsFinland to drop GSM-R in favour of domestic radio system
FINLAND: The Cabinet Committee for Economic Policy has backed plans for the Finnish rail industry to stop using the current GSM-R network and switch over to VIRVE, a TETRA encrypted communications system launched in 2002 and used by the government, emergency services and military. According to the Ministry of ...
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NewsStandard gauge line construction to start ‘in September’
THAILAND: A series of meetings between Thai and Chinese government officials on January 20-21 is expected to pave the way for construction of Thailand’s planned 1 435 mm gauge main lines to begin by September. Speaking in Bangkok on January 18, Thai Transport Minister Prajin Juntong set out a provisional ...
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NewsAlstom wins €100m Egyptian signalling contract
EGYPT: Egyptian National Railways has awarded Alstom a €100m contract to supply and maintain for five years signalling equipment for the line running 240 km south along the Nile from Beni Suef to Asyut. Deliveries will start in 2016 and the new signalling is due to be operational by January ...
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NewsNew competition for Mexico City – Querétaro high speed line
MEXICO: Tendering for the project to build a 210 km high speed line between Mexico City and Querétaro began again on January 14 when the Secretariat of Communications & Transport published ‘pre-bidding documentation’ for a contract including civil works, railway systems and rolling stock. SCT is aiming to award the ...
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NewsOn-track plant delivered to Bulgarian contractor
BULGARIA: Rail infrastructure contractor ZHP Stroy has taken delivery of five machines ordered from Plasser & Theurer in 2013 as the basis for a track construction and maintenance fleet it plans to use across Bulgaria and the Balkans. The PA 1-20 ES twin-unit sleeper layer has electronic controls enabling ...
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NewsWorld rail infrastructure market January 2015
Algeria: Anesrif has awarded the Estel joint venture of Siemens and SNTF a contract to supply signalling for the 90 km Beni Mansour – Bejaia double-tracking. Siemens’ €95m share includes Trainguard 100 ETCS Level 1, Vicos operations control, Simis W interlockings, GSM-R and RailCom Manager communications management. Australia: Laing ...
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NewsArup to draw-up PRASA station master plans
SOUTH AFRICA: Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa has appointed Arup SA to develop master plans for the potential redevelopment of land around its major stations in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Cape Town. The ambition is to support regeneration by creating transport hubs with retail, office, social, health and leisure facilities. ...
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NewsStrukton Rail wins track maintenance contract
SWEDEN: Infrastructure manager Trafikverket has awarded Strukton Rail a €50m contract to maintain 360 track-km of railway in southern Sweden for five years from September 1 2015, with an option for a further two years. The contract announced on January 8 covers the routes from Malmö to Simrishamn and ...
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NewsGroundbreaking launches California high speed line construction
USA: California High-Speed Rail Authority held a groundbreaking ceremony at noon on January 6 to officially ‘commemorate the start of sustained construction’ of the state’s high speed line. During the event, Governor Jerry Brown and other dignitaries signed a ceremonial section of rail at the site of the future Fresno ...
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NewsUrumqi – Lanzhou PDL completed as five lines open
CHINA: The 1 223 km eastern section of the Urumqi – Lanzhou Passenger-Dedicated Line between Hami and Lanzhou was opened for passenger service on December 26, little more than a month after the 553 km western section between Urumqi and Hami was opened on November 17. Designed for 250 km/h ...
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NewsRigid catenary speed record
AUSTRIA: Installed by Furrer+Frey in partnership with HC-Electric, the rigid 15 kV AC overhead conductor rail fitted in the Sittenberg tunnel on the Wien – Linz route is the first in Europe to comply with the high speed infrastructure TSI for speeds of 250 km/h or higher. In contact force ...
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NewsWorld rail infrastructure market December 2014
Australia: The first stage of TasRail's A$11m Advance Network Train Control System rollout has been completed on the Melba line. ANCS is supplied by Siemens, with radio telecoms from Tait Communications and project support from Australasian Railway Consultancy Services. TasRail has awarded Hazell Bros the civil works contract for ...
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NewsPolish borders high speed rail study
POLAND: Infrastructure manager PKP PLK has awarded Idom a 2·3m złoty contract to undertake feasibility studies for possible extensions of the proposed Warszawa – Poznań/Wrocław Y-shaped high speed rail network. The study will investigate continuing the branches of the future high speed line to the German and Czech borders, ...
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NewsStrukton Rail pulls out of German track construction
GERMANY: Strukton Rail is to end its small-scale track construction and renewal activities in Germany, where the market ‘offers insufficient prospects’. Strukton Rail has been active in the German track construction and renewal sector since acquiring Georg Reisse GmbH in 2007. Its turnover from small-scale activities in Germany amounted ...
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NewsLB Foster to distribute Tracksure fastenings
INTERNATIONAL: Following two years of testing and research, LB Foster Co has signed an agreement to sell Tracksure’s range of rail fastenings in North America. The UK firm’s patented fasteners are designed to prevents nuts loosening through vibration and settlement. Once the nut has been tightened to the accepted ...
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NewsBeograd - Budapest railway upgrade agreement signed
EUROPE: Co-operation agreements for an upgrade of the 350 km Beograd – Budapest corridor to cut journey times from around 8 h to 2 h 40 min were signed by representatives of the Serbian and Hungarian railway authorities on December 17. The agreements were signed in the presence of the ...
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NewsToll Group divests Cambodian railway stake
CAMBODIA: Australian logistics group Toll has divested its 55% stake in the Toll Royal Railway joint venture to its local partner Royal Group with effect from December 19. Toll Royal Railway took over the dilapidated metre-gauge network in 2009 under a 30-year concession. The Asian Development Bank and Australian development ...
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NewsFrauscher to begin Indian axle-counter production
INDIA: Frauscher Sensor Technology India has received Research Designs & Standards Organisation approval for its ACS2000 axle-counting system, enabling it to begin production at a plant in Mysore which was opened in November. Approval was granted based on the existing CENELEC assessment, proven operation elsewhere and proof of reliability ...
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NewsInfrabel warns of project delays
BELGIUM: Meeting on December 16, the board of infrastructure manager Infrabel approved a 2015 budget incorporating savings of €170m. Given the ‘very difficult’ economic climate, spending has been reduced across all categories with the exception of safety investment where €332∙4m is to be spent on programmes including the installation of ...