All Railway Gazette International articles in July 2002
All articles published this month.
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News
Line 4 consortia prequalified
A TOTAL OF 12 consortia have prequalified for turnkey contracts to design and build metro Line 4 in the Brazilian city of São Paulo. The first phase which will run for 12·8 km from Luz to Vila S
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News
RZD accelerates the pace of electrification
INTRO: Electrification of the final two sections of the Trans-Siberian main line ranks among several major wiring projects nearing completion under a Russian Railways investment programmeAFTER A LONG period during the 1990s when financial problems prevented much investment in the Russian Railways network, electrification is once again a priority in ...
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News
Master Plan will add capacity
INTRO: Earlier this year Vietnam’s Prime Minister authorised a 160921bn dong programme of investment that will expand and modernise the DSVN network by 2020MAJOR upgrading of existing routes and construction of new lines feature prominently in Vietnam Railways’ Master Plan. With Prime Minister Phan Van Khai’s seal on the document, ...
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News
PPP in the dock again
ONCE AGAIN the High Court in London is due to consider the legality of the Public-Private Partnership that is intended to hand over the maintenance of the capital’s metro to the private sector. On June 12 Mayor of London Ken Livingstone announced that Transport for London, which he chairs, had ...
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News
ERRAC sets out strategic agenda
THE DIRECTION of European railway research for the next 20 years was mapped out on June 4, when the European Commissioner for Research Philippe Busquin unveiled the Strategic Rail Research Agenda. Subtitled ’A Turning Point for European Rail Research’, SRRA 2020 outlines four ’areas of action’ to be progressed by ...
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News
AGV in need of a customer
HAVING completed its task in May, Alstom's Elisa test train formed of two experimental AGV cars married to part of a TGV Réseau set is being dismantled while the results are analysed. AGV stands for Automotrice à Grande Vitesse, and Project Director Georges Palais told us on the final trip ...
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News
WMATA picks Alstom
WASHINGTON DC metro operator WMATA has selected Alstom Transportation Inc to supply a build of 64 new cars, although the recommendation by the Operations Committee on May 23 must still be endorsed by the board of directors. The $148·6m contract will include an option for up to 120 cars at ...
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News
Amtrak ’near the point of no return’
IMMEDIATELY after taking office as President & CEO of Amtrak in May, David Gunn set about tackling the railway’s precarious financial position. In particular, he warned that Amtrak would have to cease running services in July unless an emergency $200m short-term loan was arranged by the end of June to ...
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News
CAF expands US arm
SPANISH rolling stock builder CAF has opened a new technical development centre at Elmira Heights, New York, which will work closely with its North American manufacturing plants at Hunt Valley, Maryland and Sacramento, California. The centre will also support the company’s contract to supply 28 new light rail cars for ...
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News
Echoes of Armagh
FLAGS in Mozambique were lowered to half mast on May 26 as the country began three days of official mourning following a disastrous runaway incident on the previous day. At around 05.00 a mixed train bound for Maputo from Ressano Garcia was on a grade near the town of Moamba, ...
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News
Swiss to test asphalt substructure
TWO OR THREE trial sections of asphalt-based track are to be laid in Switzerland. Leading the project is Swiss Track Systems, a grouping of companies set up to promote use of asphalt track in Switzerland.The group is led by local company Aeschlimann AG, whose partners are Cellere AG, also from ...
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News
Local assembly brings metro benefits
Bombardier Transportation has delivered the first of 18 metro trainsets for service on Line 2 in the Romanian capital
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News
Italians lift up and away
ACCESSIBILTY specialist Bestgroup Industrie has developed MoDiLift, a battery powered on-board lift which can be fitted to vehicles during refurbishment. Two prototypes are currently undergoing tests on Spanish National Railways regional trains, and MoDiLift will be used on 10 trainsets being refurbished by Magliola & Figli for services between Italy ...
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News
B&A sale
CHICAGO-BASED Rail World Inc announced on May 23 that the Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway had signed an agreement to purchase the 1200 km Bangor & Aroostook network in Maine, Quebec and New Brunswick. As well as the B&A Railroad Corp, this includes its affiliates Quebec Southern, Canadian American, Northern ...
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News
BA bail-out
ARGENTINA’S Minister of the Economy Roberto Lavagna approved a rescue package for public transport operators last month that should see Buenos Aires suburban concessionaires Ferrovías, Metropolitano, Metrovías and TBA receive a total of 10m pesos a month until the end of this year. Of this sum, 3·5m pesos will go ...
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News
Mayor backs Metrorail
SIX NEW metro and light rail lines totalling 122·9 km were proposed for the Miami area on June 3, when the Mayor of Miami-Dade Alex Penelas unveiled a 22-year investment programme valued at $16·9bn. This month is due to see the package debated by the Dade County Commission, paving the ...
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News
Point battery
DMS Technologies has received Railtrack acceptance for its Cyclon 5Ah 120VDC point switching battery. The DMS 57 cell unit can operate up to seven point switches simultaneously. It is also suitable for use as a standby back-up supply to run signalling equipment during power failures.The spiral-wound lead acid cells are ...
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News
Beating graffiti
DUPONT Performance Coatings has developed an anti-graffiti paint, distributed by Standox. The clear polyacrylic hard protective coat is applied to the vehicle, sign or other surface to be sealed for protection from chemical and mechanical damage. A biodegradable, water-based anti-graffiti cleaner is sprayed on to vandalised areas, and graffiti can ...
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News
More trains, better tea
TRANSPORT Minister John Spellar joined ceremonies at London King’s Cross on June 5 to launch a more intensive inter-city service between London and Leeds. GNER has added 11 trains a day, equivalent to 6000 extra seats, giving 27 northbound and 26 southbound services. 18 trains have been accelerated, the fastest ...
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News
Bids invited
GEORGIA’S Ministry of State Property Management has invited bids for the 75% government stake in the Elmavalmshenebeli electric loco plant in Tbilisi. Bids will be opened on July 26. The successful bidder will be required to increase production by 30% and salaries by 20%, and to modernise the plant.