All Railway Gazette International articles in January 2015 – Page 3
-
NewsKKR buys ticket retailer Trainline
UK: Investment firm KKR announced its acquisition of online ticket retailer Trainline from Exponent Private Equity on January 22. Financial details are not being disclosed. Trainline is licensed to sell rail tickets on behalf of all UK Train Operating Companies, Deutsche Bahn and Trenitalia. KKR said Trainline had the ...
-
NewsMetro do Porto operating contract award
PORTUGAL: Transports Ciutat Comtal has been selected to operate and maintain Porto’s light metro and bus networks for 10 years, subject to final approval by the government. A concession held by Prometro SA ended on December 31 2014. TCC is a joint venture of the privately-owned Barcelona tram operator ...
-
NewsKochi metro contracts awarded
INDIA: Kochi metro project manager Delhi Metro Rail Corp has awarded Alstom the electrification, signalling and telecoms contracts for the Kochi metro. The €34m signalling and telecoms contract includes Alstom’s Urbalis 400 CBTC signalling, as well as radio, CCTV, passenger information displays and a passenger announcement system. ...
-
NewsJinan metro work to begin this year
CHINA: The National Development & Reform Commission has announced that construction of the Jinan metro is to begin this year. The US$7bn first phase includes three lines totalling 81 km. A 26 km line with nine stations would serve the west of the city and cost US$2bn to build. ...
-
NewsHead-hardened rail developed for Siberian temperatures
RUSSIA: Steelmaker Evraz ZSMK has completed federal certification of its HH350 rail, which it says is the first head-hardened rail designed for use at temperatures down to –60°C in Russia’s north and far east. HH350 will be available in lengths from 8 m to 100 m, and is expected ...
-
NewsKB Holding makes Vossloh takeover bid
GERMANY: KB Holding GmbH announced an offer to acquire the entire stock of Vossloh AG on January 20. It currently holds 29·99% of the shares, and German law requires a takeover offer to be made once a stake reaches 30%. KB Holding said it intends to offer a price based ...
-
NewsUK plans world-class railway supply industry
UK: On January 21 the Rail Supply Group published ‘Fast Track for Growth’, a ‘vision statement’ for the development over the coming months of a long-term rail industrial strategy including ‘a clear implementation plan’. Bringing together government and the supply industry as well as train operators, Network Rail and HS2 ...
-
NewsCrossrail 2 consultants appointed
UK: Transport for London has appointed four consultancy teams to develop plans for Crossrail 2 and help to make the case for funding. Each team would be responsible for a specific area. These are: Engineering and technical: Arcadis Hyder, Weston Williamson, Vinci Construction, Interfleet, First Class Partnerships, Dr Sauer ...
-
NewsDolnośląskie awards new operating contract
POLAND: Dolnośląskie voivodship has awarded its in-house train operator Koleje Dolnośląskie a new eight-year contract to continue to operate local passenger services. The 500m złoty contract covers services totalling 35 million train-km/year which are currently operated by KD. It also has provision for KD to potentially take over other ...
-
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 ...
-
NewsCompin capital increase funds Fainsa acquisition
FRANCE: Equistone Partners Europe and French state investment agency Bpifrance announced on January 20 that they were participating in a €10m capital increase for the holding company that controls Compin, enabling the latter to acquire Spanish seating manufacturer Fainsa. This is the first investment made by Bpifrance via the ...
-
NewsCK Investments to buy Eversholt Rail leasing company
UK: An agreement for CK Investments to buy 100% of rolling stock leasing company Eversholt Rail Group was announced on January 20. The transaction with an equity value of £1·1bn and enterprise value of £2·5bn is expected to close in March, subject to regulatory approval from the European Commission. ...
-
NewsRhenus Group to take majority stake in Crossrail
EUROPE: Rhenus Group expects regulatory approval in mid-February for a deal to acquire a 50·1% stake in Swiss trans-Alpine operator Crossrail AG for an undisclosed price. Current shareholders LKW Walter, Hupac, Le Jeune Capital Partners, Bertschi and MSC will continue to maintain holdings, and the Crossrail management team and ...
-
NewsLoan funding for new freight operator
URUGUAY: Latin American development bank CAF has approved a US$45m loan to Servicios Logísticos Ferroviarios, a new freight operating company formed by state railway AFE and national development corporation CND. With US$11⋅5m of local match funding, the CAF loan will be used over the next two years to purchase new ...
-
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 ...
-
NewsSeattle gets TIFIA loan
USA: The Federal Transit Authority announced on January 16 that it is to provide a $1·33bn Transportation Infrastructure Finance & Innovation Act loan to Seattle transport authority Sound Transit. The loan will contribute to the construction of the 23 km East Link light rail extension, which is also receiving ...
-
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 ...
-
NewsDüsseldorf signalling upgrade
GERMANY: Düsseldorf light rail operator Rheinbahn has commissioned Siemens to upgrade the signalling on the 11 km Stadtbahn tunnel in the city centre. Siemens is to provide Trainguard ZUB 222 train protection for semi-automated operation; this will monitor the vehicle’s speed continuously during driver operation. Controlguide Vicos operations control ...
-
NewsJernbaneverket takes over freight terminals to promote competition
NORWAY: Infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket has acquired the freight terminals previously owned by the RailCombi subsidiary of NSB’s CargoNet business, and is to make them available for use by any operator. The purchase covers terminals in Narvik, Bodø, Fauske, Mo i Rana, Trondheim, Bergen, Kristiansand, Drammen and Alnabru (Oslo). ‘Whereas terminals ...
-
NewsWorld rail market January 2015
France: Thales is to supply a contactless ticketing system for Bordeaux under a 10-year contract. RATP has signed an agreement with mobile phone operator Free that will see 3G and 4G coverage rolled out across the stations and trains of the Paris metro as well as RER lines A ...