All Railway Gazette International articles in January 2017 – Page 8
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NewsDiyarbakır tram project approved
TURKEY: Prime minister Binali Yıldırım has approved the construction of a tram line in Diyarbakır. The city in eastern Turkey has 930 000 inhabitants, with more than 1·5 million in the metropolitan area, but no tram lines. The planned route would link Dağkapı on the edge of the historic ...
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NewsMatterhorn Gotthard Bahn renews shunting locomotive fleet
SWITZERLAND: Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn has awarded Stadler a SFr23m contract to supply seven locomotives of three types for shunting and hauling infrastructure trains. This will enable the metre-gauge operator to retire its older diesel locomotives, standardise its non-passenger fleet and reduce noise and emissions. The contract signed on December 23 ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
In an interview with Schweiz am Sonntag published on January 1, Stadler Rail owner and CEO Peter Spuhler said he was considering a return to Swiss politics and how to go about securing the long-term future of the company. This could include the sale of a stake in the business ...
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NewsAnkara metro Line M4 opens
TURKEY: Line M4 of the Ankara metro network entered passenger service at 14.00 on January 5. The 9·2 km route from Gazino to Atatürk Kültür Merkezi has nine stations. Construction began in 2004 and test running started in August 2016. A further 1·4 km section running south ...
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NewsRevised ERTMS Deployment Plan adopted
EUROPE: A new timetable for the roll-out of the European Rail Traffic Management System has been put in place by the European Commission, with the adoption on January 5 of an implementing regulation. The revised ERTMS European Deployment Plan has been drawn up over the past two years by ERTMS ...
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Metro Report InternationalLos Angeles metro extension secures more federal funding
USA: The Department of Transportation announced on January 4 that it is to provide $1·6bn in federal grants and loans to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to be used towards the $2·5bn Westside Purple Line Extension Section 2 project. The funds will be provided over 12 years. ...
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NewsDSB seeks smoother border checks to halt slump in Øresund traffic
EUROPE: Identity checks for rail passengers travelling across the Øresund fixed link between Denmark and Sweden are to be simplified with effect from January 30, Danish national operator DSB has announced. In response to the European migrant crisis, with effect from January 4 2016 the Swedish government brought in a ...
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Metro Report InternationalSiemens wins Lima metro electrification upgrade contract
PERU: Siemens announced on January 4 that it is to provide a power supply upgrade to the first section of Lima metro Line 1. The work will be carried out without interruption to services. Electrification equipment on the 9 km between Villa El Salvador and Atocongo dates from 1995. ...
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NewsElevated metro line to be built in Toshkent
UZBEKISTAN: The government has announced plans to build an elevated metro line in Toshkent. To be built by national railway UTY, the 8 km Sergili Line would run around 6 m above Choshtepa, Mirzo Tursunzoda and Qipchoq streets, serving six stations. The government is to contribute US$170·1m towards ...
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NewsWork starts to reopen Guarda – Covilhã link
PORTUGAL: Minister of Planning & Infrastructure Pedro Marques has announced the start of work to rehabilitate the Guarda – Covilhã section of the Beira Baixa route by mid-2019. To be completed within a budget of €88m, rehabilitation of the railway, which has been out of use since 2009, would provide ...
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NewsDonghae Line opens
SOUTH KOREA: The first phase of the Donghae Line opened on December 30, linking Busan with Ilgwang. Services use an existing alignment north from Bujeon station in Busan, serving 14 stations along a 28·5 km route. Interchanges are provided with the Busan metro at Geoje, Busan National University of ...
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NewsAlfaro to head RENFE Operadora
Spain’s Minister of Development, Iñigo de la Serna Hernáiz, has selected Juan Alfaro to replace Pablo Vázquez as President of national operator RENFE Operadora. Alfaro has served as Managing Director of transport infrastructure funding body SEITT since 2012. Alfaro has in turn appointed Francisco Minayo to succeed Berta Barrero as ...
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NewsIndian Railways awards wheel lathe contract
INDIA: HYT Engineering has won a contract to supply nine CNC underfloor wheel lathes to Indian Railways. The lathes will be capable of simultaneously reprofiling both wheels of a locomotive, coach or wagon wheelset without needing to remove brake gear or other components. The turnkey contract includes construction of foundations ...
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Metro Report InternationalKPMG predicts better use of information and more M&A activity in 2017
The changing market means business as usual will not be an option for UK transport and logistics operators in 2017, according to James Stamp, UK Head of Transport at KPMG. The international professional service group predicts that the UK market will be affected by a number of factors this year.
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NewsChina to London rail freight service launched
INTERNATIONAL: An inaugural freight service carrying containers between China and the UK is scheduled to arrive at Barking in east London on January 18, having left Yiwu Xi station in eastern China’s Zhejiang province on January 1. The service is being organised by Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment Co, which has ...
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Metro Report InternationalCasablanca tramway extension contracts awarded
MOROCCO: Casablanca tram operator Casa Transport has selected Engie Group subsidiaries Engie Ineo and Engie Cofely Morocco to supply signalling and other systems for Line 2 and an extension of the existing Line 1. In addition to supplying signalling, communications, CCTV and fire detection equipment, Engie will install its ...
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Metro Report InternationalChinese year-end metro expansions
CHINA: The last few days of 2016 were filled with openings of metro lines and network extensions in China. In addition to the first metro line in Hefei, new lines opened in Beijing, Guangzhou and Hong Kong, as well as an extension of one of Chongqing’s monorail lines. Line ...
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NewsDB board changes
Ronald Pofalla, previously Board Member for Economic, Legal & Regulatory Affairs at DB AG, became Board Member for Infrastructure & Services with effect from January 1, replacing Dr Volker Kefer who left the company at the end of 2016. As part of a revision of board responsibilities, the infrastructure portfolio ...
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NewsDB Regio wins operating contract
GERMANY: Following a European tender, the Länder of Sachsen-Anhalt and Thüringen have awarded DB Regio a contract to operate the new RE18 passenger service from December 2018 until December 2023. To be launched as the final element of the Saale-Thüringen-Südharz network, service RE18 will provide a fast link between Jena-Göschwitz ...
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NewsBane NOR launched to manage Norwegian network
NORWAY: Celebrations at Oslo Sentral station on January 2 marked the launch of Bane NOR as the country’s railway infrastructure manager, replacing Jernbaneverket.The move is part of a wider railway reform programme that has seen the creation by the government of a Railway Directorate to specify and manage the provision ...