Latest news – Page 857
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NewsPatriot Rail expands services business
USA: The Lakeshore Railcar Services subsidiary of short line and services group Patriot Rail has acquired the assets of specialist tank wagon and lorry cleaning company United Transportation Group. Based 30 km from central Chicago at East Chicago in Indiana, the company cleans dry, liquid, hazardous and non-hazardous commodity tanks, ...
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NewsInterpipe invests US$16·2m in production capabilities
UKRAINE: Interpipe has completed the second phase of a US$16·2m investment in railway-related production facilities at its Interpipe NTRP mill in Dnipro. This included expansion of wheelset production capacity with the aim of growing exports and entering the passenger wheelset market. The additional capacity will enable the company to increase ...
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NewsUKVZ selected to supply trams to Khabarovsk
RUSSIA: Sole bidder UKVZ has been selected to supply three partly low-floor trams to Khabarovsk. The 48·9m rouble contract is to be financed by the municipal budget. UKVZ will supply its Type 71-623-02 trams, with deliveries due by the end of December. Type 71-623 trams have been in service ...
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NewsEQT completes acquisition of GB Railfreight
UK: Private equity fund EQT Infrastructure II announced on November 15 that it had completed the acquisition of Groupe Eurotunnel’s UK freight operating subsidiary GB Railfreight. The acquisition with an enterprise value of €180m has been made through an indirectly-owned company within Hector Rail Group, Sweden’s largest private freight operator ...
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NewsDB Netz to roll-out remote point condition monitoring
GERMANY: DB Netz has approved the national roll-out of 800 Strukton data loggers to monitor more than 12 500 point machines, following a successful pilot programme which involved 100 data loggers on 1 000 point machines. The data loggers were developed by Strukton in co-operation with DB Netz and are ...
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NewsJim Umpleby
Jim Umpleby, currently head of Caterpillar’s Energy & Transportation division, will succeed Doug Oberhelman as Chairman & CEO on January 1. Dave Calhoun will become Non-Executive Chairman of the Board in March.
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Metro Report InternationalUkraine and EIB agree transport loan
UKRAINE: The government and European Investment Bank signed a €200m loan agreement on November 11 to support a nationwide public transport investment programme. The 22-year loan has a five-year grace period. The funds will contribute to the €408m urban transport programme that covers investment in 11 cities. The remainder ...
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NewsFunding approved for Paris EMU order
FRANCE: The board of Ile-de-France transport authority STIF approved on November 15 the provision of €500m to fund the purchase by SNCF of a further 52 Francilien electric multiple-units from Bombardier Transportation. The EMUs are scheduled to be delivered from March 2018 to operate on suburban lines J and L ...
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NewsSTIF approves funding for EMU order
FRANCE: The board of Ile-de-France transport authority STIF approved on November 15 the provision of €500m to fund the purchase by SNCF of a further 52 Francilien electric multiple-units from Bombardier Transportation. The EMUs are scheduled to be delivered from March 2018 to operate on suburban lines J and L ...
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NewsNokia to supply ‘first’ LTE-R network
SOUTH KOREA: Telecoms group Nokia is to supply Korea Rail Network Authority with what it says would be the ‘world’s first’ LTE-R mobile broadband network to support railway operations. The contract announced on November 14 covers the 120 km Wonju – Gangneung route which is under construction ...
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NewsPrototype piggyback wagons on test
CHINA: China Railway Corp is testing prototype piggyback wagons which have been developed by CRRC Qiqihar in partnership with the China Academy of Railway Sciences and other bodies. The manufacturer said that while piggyback operation is now common in North America and Europe, it is not used in China. ...
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NewsHS2 contracts let as government confirms northern routes
UK: The government announced on November 15 that it had awarded contracts worth £900m for enabling work on the first phase of the High Speed 2 project linking London with the West Midlands. In addition, the government also confirmed its preferred route for Phase 2b of the scheme, taking the ...
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Metro Report InternationalŠkoda to supply São Paulo monorail traction equipment
BRAZIL: Škoda Electric has won a contract to supply traction equipment for the 10 five-car monorail vehicles that Scomi Engineering is supplying for São Paulo metro Line 17. The KC100m order follows the signing of a co-operation agreement between the two companies last year. According to Škoda, it ...
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Metro Report InternationalComparing suburban rail best practice
INTERNATIONAL: Catalunya regional operator FGC hosted the annual meeting of the International Suburban Rail Benchmarking Group on November 9-11. The event in Barcelona brought together 15 rail operators as part of an international project which aims to identify synergies and drive continuous improvement by providing a confidential ...
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NewsOmsk presents first low-floor tram
RUSSIA: The first low-floor tram in Omsk was presented on November 8 to mark the 80th anniversary of trams in the city. The partly low-floor single section tram uses a Belkommunmash AKSM-62103 car body that the Omsk tram operator fitted with overhauled trucks from a UKVZ KTM-5 tram. ...
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NewsIndependent transport regulator to be established
CZECH REPUBLIC: The government has approved an act paving the way for the creation of an independent transport infrastructure access regulator Úřad pro přístup k dopravní infrastruktuře with effect from April 1 2017. ÚPDI is to have 20 to 30 staff, and will be led by a chairman appointed by ...
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NewsArriva takes over London Overground concession
UK: Arriva became the sole operator of London Overground services with the start of the new operating concession on November 13. The £1·5bn contract which Transport for London has awarded to Arriva London Rail Ltd in March runs for 7½ years, with an option for up to two more years. ...
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Metro Report InternationalTfL seeks composite conductor rails
UK: As part of a long-term programme to replace London Underground’s steel conductor rails with more energy efficient composite designs, Transport for London is seeking options for conductor rails which could be used on parts of the deep level tube network where clearances are too tight for currently approved conductor ...
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Metro Report InternationalSecond Sydney metro line announced
AUSTRALIA: The New South Wales government announced on November 14 that it is planning to build a second metro line in the state capital. Sydney Metro West would connect central Sydney with Parramatta on a mostly underground alignment. The government notes that nearly half of Sydney’s population lives in ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
A pilot China-Pakistan Economic Corridor train co-ordinated by Pakistan’s Frontier Works Organization has run from Havelian freight terminal in northern Pakistan to Port Qasim at Karachi, carrying containers which had arrived from China by road convoy. Polish rail freight company Industrial Division has acquired four Newag E6ACT Dragon locomotives from ...