All Railway Gazette International articles in January 2020
All articles published this month.
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Metro Report InternationalAir-conditioned Piccadilly Line train designs presented
UK: Transport for London and Siemens Mobility have unveiled the detailed design for the 94 air-conditioned trainsets ordered to replace London Underground’s Piccadilly Line fleet from 2025. TfL said the ‘state-of-the-art’ Inspiro London design presented on March 4 would ‘significantly improve’ the passenger experience. The walk-through interior ...
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Metro Report InternationalJohor Bahru – Singapore Rapid Transit System Link groundbreaking ceremony
ASIA: Construction of the Singapore end of the cross-border metro line to Malaysia has been launched with a groundbreaking ceremony at the site of the future Woodlands North terminus. The opening of the Johor Bahru – Singapore Rapid Transit System Link is planned for the end ...
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Rail Business UKAylesbury plans reviewed as East West Rail project phasing revised
UK: Protect promoter East West Railway Co has revised the phasing of the project to develop a railway corridor between Oxford and Cambridge, saying this will now be delivered in three ‘connection stages’ planned on the basis of ‘a full journey, not just the building of ...
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Rail Business UKGreater Anglia Class 720 Aventra EMUs enter service
UK: The first two of 133 Aventra electric multiple-units which Bombardier Transportation’s Derby factory is supplying for Greater Anglia’s commuter routes entered passenger service on November 26. A pair of Class 720 EMUs formed the 16.10 service from Southend Victoria to London Liverpool Street, returning as the ...
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Metro Report InternationalGuangzhou metro Line 8 extended north to Baiyun
CHINA: Guangzhou Metro Corp opened an extension of Line 8 from Cultural Park on the west side of the city centre to Jiaoxin in Baiyun District to the north on November 26, adding 16·3 km and 11 stations. Two further stations on the new section are to ...
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Rail Business UKRail industry responds to Chancellor’s Spending Review
UK: Organisations from across the rail industry have responded to Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Spending Review speech on November 25. Railway Industry Association Chief Executive Darren Caplan said ‘it is positive to see the continued commitment by government to transport infrastructure, with the announcement today of a new ...
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Rail Business UKGrand Central to restart services
UK: Grand Central is to restart services on December 3 as the lockdown restrictions in England change, but the open access operator warned that it would only be offering a reduced and reservation-only timetable and no onboard catering. ‘While it’s great to be back, we can’t emphasise ...
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NewsNorthrail orders locomotives to help operators modernise fleets
GERMANY: Paribus Group’s rail leasing business Northrail has placed a firm order for a further three Siemens Moblity Smartron electric locomotives. Scheduled to be available for short term lease to customers from December, they will take Northrail’s Smartron fleet to a total of 14 locomotives. All have ...
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Rail Business UKRailtex and Infrarail postponed to September 2021
UK: The Railtex and Infrarail trade fairs have been postponed to September 7-9 2021, organiser Mack-Brooks Exhibitions has confirmed. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the organiser decided that the Infrarail 2020 event which was to have been held at London’s Olympia on May 12-14 this year would ...
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Rail Business UKRevolution Very Light Rail demonstrator vehicle prepared for testing
UK: The prototype Revolution Very Light Rail railcar has been delivered to the Quinton Rail Technology Centre at Long Marston, where final assembly, system integration and performance validation testing will be completed by early 2021 ahead of demonstration to potential railway project sponsors and stakeholders. Revolution VLR ...
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NewsRail ticket refunds offered to Chinese customers unable to travel because of the coronavirus
UK: Passenger operators in Great Britain have agreed to offer fee-free refunds for rail tickets purchased in China, following the suspension of flights in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Train operators and independent ticket retailers Assertis, Atomised, Click Travel, Evolvi, On Track Retail, ...
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Metro Report InternationalSingapore’s Thomson–East Coast metro line opens
SINGAPORE: The first 3·2 km section of SMRT’s Thomson–East Coast Line opened for passenger service on January 31. This adds three stations to the SMRT network: Woodlands North, Woodlands – which acts an interchange with the North South Line – and Woodlands South. When finished, the line ...
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NewsHigh speed line signalling contract renewed
SPAIN: Infrastructure manager ADIF has awarded Thales a €68·8m contract to continue to undertake preventive and corrective maintenance of signalling and traffic control systems on the Madrid – Sevilla and Córdoba – Málaga high speed lines for a further 48 months. Thales now has similar contracts covering ...
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Metro Report InternationalFirst section of Taipei Circular Line opens
TAIWAN: The first section of Taipei Metro’s fully automated Circular metro line is now in operation, serving the Daipinglin district in the south of the city. The 15·4 km route has been developed by Hitachi Rail as part of its first turnkey metro contract ...
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Metro Report InternationalQatar orders self-driving electric shuttles
QATAR: Volkswagen AG and the Qatar Investment Authority have announced a deal for a fleet of self-driving electric shuttles ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The partnership will deliver 35 autonomous, electric ID. BUZZ AD cars capable of carrying up to four passengers, as well as ...
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NewsNew Zealand government announces investment in commuter capacity and freight
NEW ZEALAND: Rail has been allocated a NZ$1·1bn share of a NZ$6·8bn package of transport infrastructure funding announced by the government on January 29. Transport Minister Phil Twyford said the rail investment was targeted at getting lorries off the roads and improving passenger services, particularly at busy ...
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Metro Report InternationalHanoi Metro lets three-year ticketing contract for Line 3
VIETNAM: French company RATP Smart Systems has signed a €12m contract with Hanoi Metro covering design and supply of the future Line 3’s ticketing system. The three-year contract includes the development of a contactless card and token system, as well as the installation of access control gates ...
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Rail Business UKPorterbrook aims to put Long Marston on the global map for rail innovation
UK: Rolling stock leasing company Porterbrook has taken a 15-year lease on property company St Modwen’s Long Marston site in Warwickshire, and will take responsibility for the future direction and development of the rail technology centre on the 55 ha former military site. The site will transfer ...
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NewsUkraine seeks local content in locomotive renewal programme
UKRAINE: National railway Ukrzaliznytsia will need funding of 51·2bn hryvnia over six years to modernise its locomotive fleet, according to management board member Frantisek Bures. He said that this programme ‘should always support Ukrainian rolling stock producers’. UZ will need to acquire around 135 new AC electric ...