Main line rail industry news – Page 1308
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News
Moving block does work
Sir - In your October issue, you published an article on the Invensys TBS100 transmission-based train control system and the trade-offs between a distance-to-go implementation and a moving block design (RG 10.01 p689).I found the article very informative, but it is important to stress that the problems which it associated ...
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Pointers
n Watch for firm plans to be drawn up for the 300 km link between Kashi in Xinjiang province and Andizhan in Uzbekistan, through Kyrgyzstan, following China’s formal agreement in September to participate in the scheme (RG 4.01 p223).n Look for Iranian Islamic Republic Railways to announce plans ...
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NS contract delayed
NETHERLANDS Transport Minister Tineke Netelenbos has agreed to postpone the start of Netherlands Railways’ 10-year operating contract, to give the railway time to recover from its current performance problems (RG 9.01 p555). Under the deal, NS will be given a ’pre-franchise’ monopoly of the core network, with the minister reserving ...
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Alstom sells stake in GTRM
AS PART of an ongoing portfolio review, Alstom Transport announced on September 27 that it had sold its 51% stake in British infrastructure maintenance company GTRM to its partner civil engineering group Carillion plc for a total of €82m (ú51m). This includes £34m in cash, dividends paid prior to completion, ...
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Task force sets the points
ALLEGATIONS by the European Commission of anti-competitive practices by German Railway, announced on October 12, were at once refuted by DB Chairman Hartmut Mehdorn. We understand that the EC is to investigate an incident in which DB rejected a request from a competing operator to hire traction at cost price ...
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More AVE contracts
MEETING on October 5, the Spanish cabinet authorised high speed infrastructure authority GIF to tender further sections of the Córdoba - M
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Bangor & Aroostook sold
THE TROUBLED US-based Bangor & Aroostook Railroad System was sold to a railway management and investment consortium on October 4 for $62m. The group, which includes Ed Burkhardt’s Rail World Inc, reached agreement with Iron Road Railways to buy the network at the end of July. Other partners include ...
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Sakhalin link
MEETING on October 4, the Russian cabinet tentatively approved the US$4bn project to build a fixed rail link to the far-eastern island of Sakhalin. A final decision will be taken next year, although Minsiter of Railways Nikolai Aksyonenko says this is dependent upon backing from Japanese investors.Construction is expected to ...
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Prima orders
ON SEPTEMBER 27 French National Railways announced that it had confirmed options to order a further 120 Prima electric freight locos from Alstom Transport SA, and taken another option for 80 more. Deliveries are scheduled to run from October 2005 to March 2007. The contract was formally approved by the ...
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Polish infrastructure handover
POLISH rail infrastructure company Polskie Linie Kolejowe SA officially started operation on October 1. A wholly-owned subsidiary of the Polish State Railways holding company PKP SA, PLK will be responsible for managing the rail network, although the assets will still belong to PKP. PLK will be headed by PKP’s former ...
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Lyon - Torino moves ahead
LAST MONTH saw the legal formation of a company to manage preliminary engineering works for the proposed Mont Cenis base tunnel. Formally announced in mid-September, Lyon Torino Ferroviaire is owned 50:50 by Réseau Ferré de France and RFI. Headed by the local Préfet François Lepine, it has a registered office ...
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Four bidders in NRC/FC sale
A PREFERRED BIDDER is expected to be announced this month for the sale of Australia’s National Rail Corp and New South Wales’ FreightCorp. The joint trade sale was launched with a call for expressions of interest on September 4, following a formal announcement by the federal government and the state ...
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RZD starts North Korean studies
ON OCTOBER 11 Russian and South Korean government representatives agreed to establish a bilateral committee to progress the development of rail links between the two countries. The accord was reached at the end of a four-day visit to Seoul, which also discussed progress with reinstating the cross-border link between South ...
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Freight corridor
UPGRADING WORK IS to start shortly to create a new rail freight corridor through the French region of Lorraine, following the signing of a €125m financing agreement between RFF and the regional council on September 28. The government will provide €62·5m, Lorraine €37·1m and RFF €18·3m.The 150 km line between ...
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Zürich vote backs S-Bahn expansion
IN A REFERENDUM on September 23, the residents of all 182 districts in Zürich approved plans for a fourth expansion of the city’s S-Bahn network. The vote clears the way for a cantonal grant of SFr580m towards the SFr1·45bn scheme.The biggest element in the package is the construction by 2012 ...
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Calgary light rail grows
CEREMONIES were held on October 5 to dedicate the first extension of Calgary’s C-Train light rail network to be completed in 11 years. The 3·5 km, two-station extension of the south line to Canyon Meadows and Fish Creek-Lacombe (146 Avenue) opened for revenue service on October 9, following the Canadian ...
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East London line go-ahead
BRITISH Transport Secretary Stephen Byers announced on October 9 that he had approved plans for a southern extension to London Underground’s East London line. A 2·5 km link to the South London line and a flyover at New Cross Gate will reconnect the line with the South Central network, enabling ...
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US light rail expands
SEVERAL US cities reached key milestones in their light rail development during the last week of September. On September 28, Sacramento Regional Transit marked the start of construction on its 17·5 km extension from Mather Field Road to Folsom, which will have nine stations. Work in the Rancho Cordova area ...
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Line 3 opens to Canyelles
SEPTEMBER 21 saw the inauguration of the 2·4 km extension of Barcelona metro Line 3 to Canyelles. Serving the populous district of Nou Barris, the extension has intermediate stations at Mundet and Valldaura. The line has been built over the past three years at a cost of €84·1m; the Generalitat ...