Main line rail industry news – Page 1215
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Minuetto leads regional revival
Minuetto leads regional revivalINTRO: Styled by Giugiaro Design, the Minuetto is intended to bring a note of elegance to regional services in Italy. Alstom Transport is due to deliver 70 electric and 67 diesel multiple-units by December 2005ONE OF the most recent additions to Alstom’s Coradia family, the Minuetto is ...
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PEOPLE
Magdalena Álvarez Arza has been named as Secretary of State for Transport in the new Spanish government.A government reshuffle in France sees François Goulard appointed as Secretary of State for Transport under Gilles de Robien. who remains as Transport Minister.RFF Director-General Jean-Marie Bertrand was elected Chairman of the European Rail ...
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More than just a trade fair
INTRO: A high-quality supporting programme awaits specialist visitorsOne of the major factors behind the success of InnoTrans in Berlin is the convincing way it combines a trade fair with a high-quality supporting programme and static track displays. In 2004, as in previous years, this successful mix will be appreciated by ...
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Low-floor coaches refurbished
Trenitalia has started a programme to renovate its extensive fleet of piano ribassato cars with low-floor centre sections. Used on local and short-distance regional services, the cars are being stripped and refitted with new interiors and vandal-resistant seating similar to that provided in the TAF double-deck EMUs (below left). The ...
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Private sector kick-starts two-stage airport line
A private-sector consortium has won a 30-year concession to build and operate the 58 km link now under construction between central Seoul and Incheon Airport. The first phase will open in 2007
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Three bids in Madrid
BIDS TO supply 790 cars to Madrid Metro have been received from AnsaldoBreda, a CAF/Bombardier consortium and Rotem of South Korea. Expected to cost €900m, a total of 161 trainsets will be required to serve the 72·7 km of extensions due to open by 2007 (RG 2.04 p76) and increase ...
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North-south corridor ready
CONTAINER TRAINS between Berlin and Tehran will start running in August, according to the President of Russian Railways Gennadi Fadeyev. That month will see the formal launch of the North-South corridor linking Europe with Central Asia and shipping routes from the Gulf to India. Fadeyev visited Germany at the beginning ...
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Nusantara Tunnel plan unveiled
PROPOSALS to develop a fixed link between Sumatra and Java were unveiled by Indonesia’s National Development Planning Agency at the end of March. The aim is to start construction next year, with opening envisaged in 2008.The plan is to build a twin-bore tunnel between Banteng and Lampung, through which electric ...
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CR speeds up again
INTRODUCTION of Chinese Railways’ new timetable on April 18 saw the launch of the fifth national speed increase, bringing the total route length cleared for 160 km/h operation to 7700 km.The new timetable sees CR’s fastest Beijing - Shanghai journey time cut from 14h to 11h 58min, and the number ...
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Trambaix opens for business
ON APRIL 3 the 12 km Trambaix light rail network in Barcelona carried its first passengers. The new system is operated as three services, all running between Francesc Macià and Montesa where they diverge to serve Bon Viatge (T1) and Sant Martí de l’Erm (T2). Route T3 also runs to ...
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KTZ starts on Trans-Asian link
KAZAKHSTAN Railways has started work on an ambitious US$3·5bn project to build a 1435mm gauge railway linking Asia and Europe, paralleling the broad gauge Trans-Siberian corridor in Russia. According to KTZ First Vice-President Kanat Zhangaskin, the standard gauge Trans-Kazakhstan Railway between China and Iran would cut journey times by up ...
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Arriva enters Germany
BRITISH bus and rail operator Arriva has entered the German regional rail market by purchasing a 90% stake in Prignitzer Eisenbahn Gruppe. Announced on April 1, the €6m deal is subject to ratification by the German competition agency.Founded by Thomas Becken, who will remain as Managing Director under Arriva ownership, ...
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CD orders tri-voltage locos
CZECH Railways has ordered a batch of 20 three-voltage Bo-Bo electric locos from Skoda, designed to haul freight and passenger services at up to 230 km/h. Selected in preference to a Taurus derivative from Siemens, they are the first Skoda locos ordered by CD for 15 years. Rated at 6000 ...
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Freight Australia sale agreed
ON MARCH 29 RailAmerica announced that it had reached agreement to sell its Victorian operating subsidiary Freight Australia to Pacific National for A$285m. The deal is subject to ratification by the Victoria state government and the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission.RailAmerica purchased Freight Australia from the Victorian government in 1999 ...
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Eurotunnel directors ejected
THE BATTLE was lost before the three meetings in Paris began on April 7 (RG 4.04 p181). Eurotunnel revealed on April 6 that proxy votes placed with the Chairman and his fellow directors were far fewer than the mandates held by Nicholas Miguet, who inspired this astonishing rebellion among 1·1 ...
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Bosporus tunnel construction to start
TURKEY: Construction of the long-planned rail tunnel under the Bosporus is expected to start in June, following the signing of a turnkey construction contract in early April. This was due to be followed by ratification of the financing package before the end of the month. Japan Bank for International Co-operation ...
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Brown and Red lines go ahead
ILLINOIS Governor Rod Blagojevich and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley announced on April 13 that the Federal Transit Administration had approved funding for a $530m project to expand capacity on Chicago Transit Authority’s Brown Line linking the city centre with Kimball/Lawrence in Ravenswood.Bids for the five-year programme of work are due ...
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Concessionaires on notice
THE ARGENTINIAN government has warned the Buenos Aires suburban operators that they must provide the level of service required by their concession agreements, or face sanctions that might go as far as revocation. On April 17 the Head of the Cabinet Dr Alberto Fern
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Line 9 forges on
THE CATALUNYA regional government has awarded a consortium of Dragados, Necso, Comsa, ACS and Soirgué a contract worth €89·8m to build the Sagrera-Meridiana - Onze de Setembre section of Line 9 on the Barcelona metro network.The contract also includes the boring of a 12m diameter tunnel for the largely parallel ...
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Metro Report 2004
DISTRIBUTED to subscribers with this issue is the 2004 edition of our annual supplement on urban rail developments, Metro Report. Senior executives from 13 cities worldwide report on current and future investment plans, and other articles include a detailed review of the low-floor tram and light rail market. An analysis ...