Main line rail industry news – Page 1113
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Understanding of RCF advances
THERE IS now a far greater understanding of rolling contact fatigue in the UK than there was on October 17 2000 when the Hatfield derailment occurred. In part this is due to the Wheel-Rail Interface System Authority, set up in 2001 to co-ordinate the response to RCF by a shattered ...
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Exposing the real infrastructure cost drivers
Why are life-cycle infrastructure costs five times lower in the USA than in the Netherlands, but are 50% to 200% higher in Japan and Hong Kong? Jan Swier* shows how these huge cost differences can be explained, allowing them to be predicted more accurately OVER THE LAST 10 years, Netherlands ...
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Level crossings pose Europe-wide risk
MOST of the people killed in railway accidents in the European Union during 2005 were using level crossings or unlawfully entering railway property, according to statistics released by the European Railway Agency on May 31. The ERA report shows that 29% of the 1464 fatalities occurred at level crossings.There were ...
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Dubai metro Purple Line gets go-ahead
CHAIRMAN of Dubai's Roads & Transport Authority, Mattar Al-Tayer, announced the go-ahead for the 49 km Purple Line on May 23. A contract has been awarded to Parsons Brinckerhoff for initial design work on the express metro line, which will link the current international airport with the new Dubai International ...
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NewsHybrid High Speed Train unveiled
UK: On May 3 Hitachi Europe unveiled 'Hayabusa', which it says is Europe's first battery-assisted diesel-electric power car. The hybrid drive has been installed in a British HST power car to allow realistic trials of the prototype technology, which Hitachi and its development partners Brush Traction, Network Rail and Porterbrook ...
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Moving people, moving cities
Cities and regions can only be sustainable if they have dynamic and efficient public transport, but at the same time public transport can only be dynamic and efficient if it is fully integrated with urban policies, argues Hans Rat
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V150: Entente discordiale
ONE organisation seemed determined not to be impressed by the French speed record of 574·8 km/h attained by the V150 trainset on April 3. Not only that, but it actively set out to discredit the achievement in the UK media. The following briefing note was sent out to British journalists ...
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It's now or never for ERTMS roll-out
Intended to provide a single signalling and train control system across the continent, the European Rail Traffic Management System promises to increase the competitiveness and dynamism of the railway sector, bringing both cost savings and safety improvements. As such, it forms a key component of the European Union's strategy for ...
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Research underpins Korail’s drive to be a global player
‘KOREA is not an island’, emphasises Kang Gil-Hyun forcefully, adding that ‘we want to play a big role in the Asian railway sector and reconnect South Korea to the developing Eurasian railway network’. He points out that the choice of theme for next year’s World Congress on Railway Research - ...
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V150: Power-packed train proves AGV technology in record sprint
Laurent Charlier describes the record-breaking train that combined TGV and AGV traction technology
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V150: 574·8 km/h eclipses the 1990 world record
Supremely confident engineers from SNCF, RFF and Alstom pushed railway technology past known limits with a dramatic dash on April 3 that shattered the previous world speed record for passenger-carrying trains. Murray Hughes reports from France
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V150: Tweaking the track
The alignment of the test section on the eastbound track used for the record included 11 large radius curves where adjustments were made to the transitions. It was the passage through the transition curves which caused the greatest sensation of movement on board the train as it traversed them in ...
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Alstom offers AGVs to Italian private operator
ON MARCH 6 Alstom submitted the first bid for its distributed power AGV high speed trainset to Italian private operator NTV (RG 3.07 p124). The offer covered 25 AGV sets of 11 cars, with a further 10 sets as an option. Also included was maintenance of the fleet for 30 ...
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Beijing Metro invests in mechanised maintenance
CURRENTLY ON trial in China are two new Plasser & Theurer tamping machines which will revolutise infrastructure maintenance on the rapidly-expanding Beijing metro network. At present there are four lines in operation - 1, 2, 13 and the Batong Line, with a total route length of 114 km. ...
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NS Hispeed confirms December start
ON MARCH 27 NS Hispeed was unveiled as the marketing brand name for services using HSL-Zuid between Amsterdam and the Belgian border, now expected to commence on December 9 2007. The fleet of V250 high speed trains ordered from AnsaldoBreda are to be marketed as Albatros. As these sets will ...
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Rubin project loses momentum
ROLL-OUT of Germany's first driverless metro has been delayed again, and commercial services on Line U3 of the Nürnberg U-Bahn are not now expected to start until early 2008. Contractor Siemens had intended to have the first segment of U3 ready for operator VAG to open in 2006, but the ...
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Victoria buys back regional network
RESPONSIBILITY for the regional rail network in the Australian state of Victoria will pass from Pacific National to the state government this month under an agree-ment signed on April 13. PN will receive A$134m for surrendering a 15-year lease, renewable to 45 years, which was purchased by Freight Australia in ...
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Entente discordiale
ONE organisation seemed determined not to be impressed by the French speed record of 574?8?km/h attained by the V150 trainset on April 3 (p267). Not only that, but it actively set out to discredit the achievement in the UK media.The following briefing note was sent out to British journalists by ...
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Extra stations on Athens Line 3
Three stations on the northern section of Line 3 of the Athens Metro are to be constructed under a k90m deal signed on March 16 between state-owned Attiko Metro and an Aegek-Impreglio-Alstom consortium.The consortium will supply and install electrical equipment and trackwork at Holargo, Nomismatokopeio and Agia Paraskevi stations on ...