Latest news – Page 796
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NewsAurizon restructuring
Joining from Alinta Energy, Michael Riches takes over as Group Executive, Network, at Australian freight operator Aurizon with effect from July 1. He succeeds Alex Kummant who is stepping down after five years with the company. The change comes with the implementation of a new management structure announced by Managing ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
RSSB has published two pieces of research into future traffic management systems. Developing & Evaluating Dynamic Optimisation for Train Control Systems is the result of collaboration between University College London and the University of Birmingham, and looks at increasing capacity using dynamic algorithms to control train paths. SafeCap+ led by ...
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NewsVirgin Trains East Coast making a loss, Stagecoach confirms
UK: New commercial terms for the InterCity East Coast franchise are being discussed with the Department for Transport, Virgin Trains East Coast’s majority owner Stagecoach Group confirmed on June 28. Announcing its preliminary results for the year to April 29 2017, Stagecoach said it expected to finalise new commercial terms ...
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NewsUnited Wagon Co opens Estonian wagon servicing centre
ESTONIA: Russian rolling stock manufacturer United Wagon Co has opened service centre at Skinest Rail’s Valga depot to provide warranty and post-warranty support for modern wagons operating in the Baltic States. UWC says its service centre ‘is unique in the Baltic States’, having specially trained staff and holding the documentation ...
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NewsFuxing China standard high speed trainsets enter service
CHINA: Two designs of China Standard Electric Multiple-Unit officially entered service on the Beijing – Shanghai high speed line on June 26, following an extensive programme of test running. Services were launched when a CRRC Sifang CR400AF Blue Dolphin trainset departed from Beijing South station at 11.05 while a CRRC ...
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NewsTicket manufacturer acquires ITSO-certified smart card supplier
UK: Magnetic, thermal, barcode and smart ticket manufacturer BemroseBooth Paragon has acquired Buralls InfoSmart, which is certified to produce smart cards compliant with the ITSO standard. BBP supplies almost one billion magnetic stripe tickets a year to UK train operators, as well as many kinds of ticket for other UK ...
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NewsAnsaldo STS awarded €100m RFI framework contract
ITALY: Infrastructure manager RFI has awarded Ansaldo STS a two-year framework agreement worth €100m for the provision of technical assistance, maintenance and upgrading services. The contract announced on June 27 covers all existing Ansaldo STS systems on RFI’s conventional and high speed lines, along with the reconfiguration and upgrading of ...
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NewsVTG expands US and Russian wagon fleets
VTG: Leasing company VTG has strengthened its position in the US market and completed a ‘major strategic step’ in Russia through a series of wagon acquisitions. VTG Rail Inc has expanded its US fleet to around 5 200 vehicles with the acquisition of Redwood Rail’s 1 135 grain, cement, sand, ...
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NewsAirline veteran Richard Anderson to head Amtrak
USA: National passenger operator Amtrak named Richard Anderson as its next President & Chief Executive on June 26. The former CEO of Delta and Northwest Airlines will take up the post on July 12, acting as co-CEO with incumbent Wick Moorman until December 31. Moorman had joined Amtrak in September ...
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NewsLoco manufacturer obtains first IRIS certification in Kazakhstan
KAZAKHSTAN: The Astana-based EKZ joint venture of Alstom (50%), national railway KTZ (25%) and Transmashholding (25%) has obtained International Railway Industry Standard certification. Bernard Peille, Managing Director of Alstom in South CIS, said EKZ was ‘proud’ to be the first railway vehicle manufacturer in the country to obtain IRIS certification, ...
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NewsMurray Basin gauge conversion contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: A contract for regauging and upgrading more than 1 000 route-km of railway serving the Murray Basin region was announced on June 26 by Federal Minister for Infrastructure & Transport Darren Chester and Victoria’s Acting Minister for Public Transport Luke Donnellan. A joint venture of McConnell Dowell and Martinus ...
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NewsWorld rail market June 2017
Canada: Bombardier has announced a six-year C$700m agreement for IBM to support the integration of IT services across its Transportation and Aerospace businesses in 47 countries. Mauritania: Rafamet is to supply heavy haul operator SNIM with a UGE 400 N underfloor wheel lathes. Peru: Barcelona metro operator TMB ...
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NewsCharles-de-Gaulle Airport rail link funding model approved
FRANCE: The proposed financing mechanism for the construction of the CDG Express dedicated rail link between Paris Est station and Charles-de-Gaulle Airport has been approved by the European Commission. Under the current proposals, the 32 km link is to be built and operated by a 50:50 joint venture between SNCF ...
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Metro Report InternationalFinch West funding announced
CANADA: The federal and Ontario governments announced funding for the Finch West light rail project in Toronto on June 23. Ontario is to provide C$1·2bn, with the federal government supplying up to C$333m. The 11 km light rail line along Finch Avenue would link from Finch West metro station ...
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NewsUralchem modernises ammonia wagon fleet
RUSSIA: United Wagon Co’s TikhvinChemMash plant has supplied fertiliser producer Uralchem with a batch of ammonia tank wagons offering a capacity of 92·7 m3 and 60·2 tonnes, an increase of between 5% and 10% compared to older designs. Designed for loading ammonia at temperatures down to -33°C, the wagons incorporate ...
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News500th Vectron locomotive ordered
CZECH REPUBLIC: European Locomotive Leasing has awarded Siemens a contract to supply a further eight Vectron electric locomotives. The locomotives will be rated at 6·4 MW and have a maximum speed of 200 km/h. ELL is to lease them to České Dráhy for use hauling Praha – Berlin EuroCity passenger ...
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Metro Report InternationalHangzhou metro Line 5 concession agreement signed
CHINA: Hangzhou municipal government, Hangzhou Metro Group and MTR Corp signed a PPP concession agreement on June 26 for the construction and operation of Hangzhou metro Line 5. Hangzhou Metro Group will fund and undertake the civil works. It will form a joint venture with MTR to fund the ...
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Metro Report InternationalSydney Harbour metro tunnel contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: The New South Wales government has awarded a A$2·81bn civil works contract for the construction of the Sydney metro cross-harbour tunnel to a joint venture of John Holland (45%), CPB Contractors (45%) and Ghella (10%). The scope covers twin 15·5 km tunnels between Chatswood and Sydenham, as well ...
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NewsHŽ Cargo debt cancellation approved by European Commission
CROATIA: The European Commission announced on June 21 that it had approved the government’s provision of state aid worth 975m kuna to national freight operator HŽ Cargo. In May 2015 the government decided to convert HŽ Cargo’s debt to the state into equity, providing the operator with relief from repayment ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
Lithuanian operator Lietuvos Geležinkeliai has ordered two type ES1000 battery shunting locomotives from Bulgarian company Express Service for use in Kaunas and Vilnius. Trinity Chemical has ordered 50 tank wagons from US manufacturer Vertex Railcar, with a letter of intent for up to 300 more to be supplied within two ...