Latest news – Page 1069
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NewsCompetition seeks ways to increase bridge clearances
UK: Rail industry technology body FutureRailway, infrastructure manager Network Rail and the Department for Transport have launched a £3m competition which is seeking novel ways to increase clearances beneath overbridges, enabling overhead electrification equipment to be installed without needing to rebuild the bridge. The aim is to minimise the cost ...
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NewsSiC power module offers savings
INVERTER: Mitsubishi Electric Corp has launched a traction inverter system for 1·5 kV DC applications which it says incorporates the first all-silicon carbide power modules using SiC for both transistors and diodes. This reduces power loss, size and weight compared to conventional IGBT power modules or hybrid modules with silicon ...
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News€506m Doha metro Red Line contract awarded
QATAR: Project promoter Qatar Rail has awarded the Citizen Services Group consortium a €506m contract to build a 6·97 km section of the Doha metro Red Line. The consortium is led by Spanish firm FCC and includes Archirodon from Greece, Yüksel from Turkey and local firm Petroserv. The ...
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NewsDebrecen opens second tram route
HUNGARY: The second tram line in Debrecen opened on February 26, followed by five days of free travel. The route runs along the existing track from the main station to Kálvin Tér before branching off on a new alignment to Csokonai Vitéz Mihály Gimnázium, from where services run anticlockwise round ...
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NewsPTC, higher speeds and accessibility in Amtrak infrastructure programme
USA: The continued roll-out out of Positive Train Control, works to upgrade the Northeast Corridor and improvements to station accessibility for passengers with disabilities are included in Amtrak's infrastructure programme for 2014. PTC has now been installed on 850 track-km of Amtrak-owned sections of the Northeast Corridor and its Michigan ...
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NewsFive-year direct award Great Western franchise proposed
UK: The Department for Transport is considering directly awarding incumbent FirstGroup a five-year contract to operate the Great Western franchise, which covers passenger services linking London with southwest England and south Wales. Plans to tender a new long-term Great Western franchise were put on hold following the collapse of the ...
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JR Central names Chairman
JAPAN: JR Central has announced that its current President Yoshiomi Yamada (left) is to become Chairman of the company with effect from April 1. He will succeed Yoshiyuki Kasai (centre), who becomes Chairman Emeritus, and will in turn be replaced as President by the railway’s current Executive ...
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NewsFirst blast for the Falkenberg tunnel
GERMANY: Construction of the 2·6 km Falkenberg tunnel as part of the upgrade of the Hanau - Aschaffenburg - Würzburg corridor was ceremonially launched on March 6 with a first blast triggered by Gerswid Herrmann, wife of Bayern transport minister Joachim Herrmann. The twin-bore tunnel is the longest of three ...
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NewsKayseray light rail expansion
TURKEY: Two extensions to the Kayseray light rail line in Kayseri opened last month, and a further extension south from Erciyes Üniversitesi to Talas is due to open shortly. The 9·4 km eastern extension with 14 stops from Dogu Terminali to Ildem 5 opened on February 1. This was ...
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NewsIstanbul Ulasım unveils locally-developed LRV
TURKEY: Under the slogan ‘100% Istanbullu’, urban transport operator Istanbul Ulasım has unveiled the first of a series build of 18 high-floor light rail vehicles which it has specified, designed and commissioned itself. IU has produced a number of prototype and demonstrator LRVs over the past decade as it seeks ...
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NewsCrossrail North East Spur upgrade contract awarded
UK: Network Rail has awarded Costain the £150m Crossrail North East Spur Contract, covering the upgrade of existing railway infrastructure between Stratford and Shenfield as part of London's Crossrail project. The track and the 25 kV 50 Hz overhead electrification is to be upgraded under the contract announced on March ...
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NewsCairo - Alexandria train supply and maintenance contract planned
EGYPT: Egyptian National Railways is planning to call tenders for a contract to supply and maintain six 10-car locomotive-hauled trainsets for the Cairo - Alexandria route. The aim is to reduce overcrowding and improve service quality, safety and energy efficiency on the 208 km route, which has 32 daily through ...
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NewsSouth West Trains launches 10-car services to Windsor
UK: Franchise operator South West Trains began running 10-car electric multiple-units on its outer suburban route between London Waterloo and Windsor & Eton Riverside on March 10, marking a key step in its programme to introduce 108 additional vehicles onto its suburban services over the next 12 months. Speaking at ...
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NewsUrban rail news in brief - March 2014
The President of Turkmenistan has backed proposals for the construction of a metro to serve outlying suburbs of Ashgabat which were incorporated into the capital last year. Metropolitan Urban Transport Company of São Paulo has confirmed that test running on the Santos light rail line is to start in ...
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NewsWatching your wagons
UAE: New York Air Brake and Lat-Lon have provided monitoring technology for 240 sulphur wagons supplied to Etihad Rail. Eight wheelset sensors per wagon measure bearing temperature and the degree of tilt to warn of potential derailment. The upper hatch is monitored for open/closed status by two more devices, ...
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News10 consortia interested in Moscow - Kazan high speed line
RUSSIA: More than 400 representatives from 150 companies including the major international suppliers, consultancies and investors attended an industry day for the Moscow - Kazan high speed line project which was held in Moscow on March 4. After appointing the Lengiprotrans Design Institute to undertake initial studies for high speed ...
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NewsContract awarded for Chiltern to Oxford
UK: Network Rail announced on March 7 that it had awarded a contract worth £87m to a joint venture of Carillion and Buckingham Group Contracting, covering the infrastructure works required to introduce direct Chiltern Railways services between London Marylebone and Oxford. As well as the construction of a 1 km ...
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NewsMelbourne suburban investment
AUSTRALIA: Victoria Premier Denis Napthine announced an investment package of A$2bn to A$2·5bn for the Pakenham and Cranbourne suburban lines in Melbourne on March 6. The package includes 25 new EMUs, resignalling, a new depot at Pakenham East, rebuilding three stations and the removal of four level crossings as ...
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NewsMilano extends driverless Line M5
ITALY: A southern extension of Milano metro Line M5 from Zara to Garibaldi with an intermediate station at Isola opened on March 1. The 1·9 km extension provides an interchange at Garibaldi with metro Line M2 and main line routes. Services now run to midnight, from 22.00 previously. Peak ...
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NewsHigh Speed Rail College site sought
UK: Skills & Enterprise Minister Matthew Hancock officially launched the search for a location for a High Speed Rail College on March 7. The proposed college would provide the specialist engineering skills and qualifications needed for the development of High Speed 2 and other future infrastructure projects. It would have ...