All Railway Gazette International articles in July 2017 – Page 4
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NewsInland Rail consultation starts
AUSTRALIA: Another milestone for the long-planned Inland Rail corridor was reached on July 19, when the New South Wales state government released the Environmental Impact Statement for the Parkes – Narromine upgrading project in New South Wales. Project promoter ARTC says public consultation on the EIS will run until August ...
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NewsCAF invests in Italian wheelset and wagon businesses
ITALY: Spanish rolling stock manufacturer CAF announced on July 19 that its CAF MiiRA wheelset, axles, gearbox and couplers business had acquired wheelset and wagon maintenance company Rifer, which has more than 60 employees and a turnover close to €10m. CAF Group said the acquisition would supports its growth and ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
The Department for Transport has extended Govia’s current London Midland franchise from October 15 to December 10 under the existing terms. DfT has an option for a further extension to February 4 which it can exercise by August 18. The Govia joint venture of Go-Ahead and Keolis and the West ...
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NewsAlpenglow Rail acquires its first short line
CANADA: Alpenglow Rail announced the acquisition of its first rail business on July 12. VIP Rail is based at Sarnia in Ontario’s Chemical Valley region, and provides shunting, transloading, warehousing, road haulage and wagon storage, cleaning and repair services. Denver-based Alpenglow Rail was founded by former OmniTRAX executives Rich Montgomery, ...
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NewsRegiobahn to operated expanded S28 route
GERMANY: Rhein-Ruhr transport authority VRR is to award incumbent Regiobahn a contract to operate the expanded S-Bahn service S28 for 15 years from December 2021. Regiobahn was founded in 1992 and is owned by a group of local authorities on the Kaarster See – Neuss – Düsseldorf – Erkrath Nord ...
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NewsStadler awarded Syntus EMU maintenance contract
NETHERLANDS: On July 18 Syntus formally awarded Stadler Service Nederland a 15-year contract to undertake all aspects of maintenance for 16 Flirt electric multiple-units which are currently being tested ahead of entry into service between Zwolle, Kampen and Enschede from December 2017. The nine three-car and seven four-car 1·5 kV ...
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NewsBEG to award transitional Augsburg contract
GERMANY: Bayern railway authority BEG has announced its intention to award incumbent Transdev subsidiary Bayerische Regiobahn a contract to continue operating Dieselnetz Augsburg II passenger services from the end of the current contract in December 2019 until December 2021. The contract covers the operation of 3 million train-km/year using Alstom ...
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Metro Report InternationalTallinn receives driverless shuttles
ESTONIA: Two driverless shuttles arrived in Tallinn on July 14 ahead of entry into passenger service at the end of the month. Tallinn Transport Department will prepare a 1 km route between Viru Square and the Kultuurikatel Tallinn Creative Hub, which is the main site of the Estonian EU ...
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NewsBi-mode trains in prospect as HS2 northern routes confirmed
UK: Transport Secretary Chris Grayling issued a Command Paper on July 17 confirming the planned routes for the northern sections of High Speed 2, which would link London and Birmingham with Leeds and Manchester, including connections to the existing East Coast and West Coast main lines.The ‘majority’ of the route ...
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NewsHigh speed infrastructure manager issues €600m dark green bond
SPAIN: High speed rail infrastructure manager ADIF Alta Velocidad has issued a €600m ‘green bond’ via a syndicate of banks BBVA, BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole and Santander. The bond has a six-year term at a 0·8% rate of interest. Green bonds must be used to finance or refinance environmentally ...
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NewsKyiv orders more Pesa Fokstrot trams
UKRAINE: Kyiv tram operator Kyivpastrans announced on July 17 that it had selected Pesa to supply 40 low-floor trams for 1·8bn hryvnia. The previous tender was cancelled, as there was only one bidder. The second tender attracted bids from Pesa and Elektrontrans. Pesa will supply its 26 m ...
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NewsAbellio takes full ownership of WestfalenBahn as market gets more competitive
GERMANY: The Abellio GmbH German subsidiary of Dutch state passenger train operator NS has reached an agreement to acquire the stakes in Westfalenbahn which are currently held by municipal partners moBiel, Mindener Kreisbahnen and Verkehrsbetriebe Extertal. The transaction announced on July 18 is subject to regulatory approval, and terms were ...
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Metro Report InternationalMelbourne Metro tunnel contractors selected
AUSTRALIA: The government of Victoria has selected preferred bidders for the civil works and railway systems packages of the Melbourne Metro tunnel project. The Tunnels & Stations works package is to be awarded to the Cross Yarra Partnership consortium of Lendlease Engineering, John Holland, Bouygues Construction and Capella Capital. ...
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NewsOptimising rolling stock HVAC energy use
EUROPE: Climate chamber operator Rail Tec Arsenal and Dutch engineering consultancy ADSE are to co-operate to accurately determine the yearly energy consumption of rolling stock heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment. RTA will measure HVAC energy usage under different climatic conditions, to produce data which could be combined with meteorological ...
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NewsHS1 concession sold on
UK: A consortium including South Korea’s National Pension Service has agreed a £3bn deal to purchase the 30-year concession to manage High Speed 1 from the two Canadian pension funds which have managed the line since November 2010. The concession covers the operation and maintenance of the 109 km rail ...
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NewsBrookfield Rail becomes Arc Infrastructure
AUSTRALIA: Western Australia’s infrastructure management concessionaire Brookfield Rail announced on July 17 that the company was changing its name to Arc Infrastructure. CEO Paul Larsen said the move was ‘an exciting time for our business. While we remain a Brookfield company, we’re looking forward to creating our own unique identity’. ...
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NewsKazan orders seven Uraltransmash trams
RUSSIA: Trading company Fobos-TS signed a 111·3m rouble contract on July 7 to supply seven Uraltransmash 71-407 trams to Kazan transport agency Metroelektrotrans. The price includes worth 8m roubles per tram from the government’s programme of federal funding aimed at encouraging tram purchases. The first two trams are ...
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NewsNovocherkassk orders five trams
RUSSIA: Sole bidder Elektrotransport has been selected to supply five trams to Novocherkassk. The model has not yet been announced, but the tender specifications suggest Uraltransmash’s 71-407, despite the trading company having previously worked with UKVZ. The tender specifies 16 m long trams with at least 39% low-floor and ...
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NewsComplete Klang Valley SBK Line opens
MALAYSIA: The second phase of Klang Valley MRT Line 1, also known as the SBK Line, was inaugurated at 16.00 on July 17. A free shuttle service runs between Kajang and National Museum, before the start of full running from Kajang to Sungai Buloh from 06.00 on July 18. ...
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NewsHS2 Phase 1 civil works preferred bidders named
UK: The preferred bidders for two-stage contracts to design and build the civil works including bridges, tunnels, embankments and viaducts for High Speed 2 Phase 1 from London Euston to Birmingham and a junction with the West Coast Main Line near Handsacre were announced on July 17. The contracts are ...