Main line rail industry news – Page 1350
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News
Finance
Estonia: Freight operator and infrastructure manager EVR (7.00 p434) reported a profit of 113·1m kroons on a turnover of 1·4bn, up 14% on last year. Infrastructure spending in 1999 totalled 592·6m kroons, mostly on upgrading of the Tallinn - Narva route.France: Franche-Comté has approved funding for the Dijon - Mulhouse ...
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Market
Australia: Goninan has been selected to supply nine new Prospector DMUs to Westrail by 2003 at a cost of A$59m. The fleet will comprise one three-car and two two-car 200 km/h sets for Perth - Kalgoorlie and a 150 km/h two-car set for AvonLink services to Northam.Azerbaijan: AZR has called ...
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Cutting noise and smoothing the ride
Commercial demands for a better ride and political pressure to reduce lineside noise present engineers with fresh challenges in bogie design
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MTR in company
HONG KONG metro operator MTR Corp has been restructured as a limited company - MTR Corporation Ltd - with effect from June 30, paving the way for the government’s planned sale of a minority shareholding later this year. MTR’s Standard & Poor’s rating outlook was revised from ’developing’ ...
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Development focus turns west
INTRO: China’s Ministry of Railways has unveiled a 15-year strategic plan for development of the national network, which will form the basis of the 10th five-year plan now being drawn up for 2001-05. Continued investment will see the upgrading of existing lines and large-scale expansion in the west and southwestCONSTRUCTION ...
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EC takes the lead in safety regulation
The European Commission has determined that common regulation of safety and standards is to be a crucial element in its drive to create a single market in rail transport. A draft Directive on Rail Safety is expected this year, which will have the explicit objectives of promoting open access and ...
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IM2000 to monitor Spoornet infrastructure
ON JUNE 29 Spoornet Chief Executive Officer Zandile Jakavula formally took delivery of South Africa’s first high-tech Infrastructure Measuring Car from Hermann H
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Touch-screen ticket vending arrives
PASSENGERS on the London Underground had their first chance to use touch-screen ticket vending machines this summer. Installed by the TranSys consortium, the first machines replaced the existing Multifare TVMs at Temple and West Brompton stations. Over 60 stations were to be equipped by the end of July, and around ...
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TV at your table
TO DEMONSTRATE its TrainView passenger entertainment and information system to operators, the Passenger Rail Division of The Network Connection (TNCi) has unveiled a ’simulator’ at its British headquarters in Derby. Furnished with seats supplied by Antolin Loire, the simulator features seatback and table-mounted 8·4in LCD screens. TrainView has been developed ...
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Chinese Railways develops traction to meet market needs
INTRO: The latest diesel and electric locomotives developed in China for high speed and heavy haul service offer dramatic advances in performance over earlier designsBYLINE: Kang XiongAssistant Vice President, China Academy of Railway SciencesIN THE LAST decade Chinese Railways has made considerable efforts to develop its own motive power. Both ...
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Wien chosen as MoMo test site
INTRO: A 1 km test track in Wien is being used to trial the second generation of cars for the city’s expanding U-Bahn. Ralf Roman Rossberg reports that they also the first trains to be built using the modular principles in the Siemens MoMo conceptWHEN WIEN launched U-Bahn services between ...
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Is it time for someone to leave the field?
INTRO: In a year of stabilisation, the question remains whether there should be fewer players in the rolling stock industry to provide a worthwhile investment for shareholders. Reviewing the supply industry over the past 12 months, Andrew F Saxe* wonders if others may follow the lead given by Fiat in ...
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AC diesels roll out
ON JUNE 28 the first of two prototype diesel locos being built for Chinese Railways was rolled out of the Dalian Locomotive & Rolling Stock Works. Derived from the proven DF4d, the six-axle 4000hp locos are part of CR’s strategy to develop AC transmissions, being equipped with the latest Siemens ...
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Internet will drive next generation of PIS
INTRO: On-board passenger information systems are becoming an essential rather than an optional extra, but design needs to be driven by customer expectations, rather than an operator’s wish list. Advanced technology is helping to lower running costs and drive up revenues, making the equipment self-financingINTER-CITY passengers could be benefiting from ...
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The Desiro family keeps growing
THE FIRST Desiro EMU for Slovenian Railways has begun trials at the Wildenrath test centre of Siemens Transportation Systems. Deliveries to SZ are expected to start next month, with a total of 30 Desiros being built by Siemens and TVT of Slovenia for service on the 85 km Koper - ...
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Automated metro washer
As part of its contract to supply rolling stock for the Tehran Metro, China’s Locomotive & Rolling Stock Industry Corp has also supplied an automated train washer developed by the Harbin Railway Institute of Science & Technology. The unit will clean both car ends, roof and sides; at a passing ...
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Swiss tilt at catering innovation
JULY 6 saw the introduction of restaurant cars on Swiss Federal Railways’ tilting ICN trains between Lausanne, Biel, Zürich and St Gallen. Each unit includes a wheelchair-accessible restaurant car, operated by Mitropa Suisse SA. The vehicle has a 23-seat dining section, kitchen and buffet, decked out in ’warm and friendly ...
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Passenger News in Brief
On July 11 VIA Rail Canada put into service the first three of five Northern Spirit sleeping cars which are being refurbished for its thrice-weekly Winnipeg - The Pas - Churchill service to remote communities west of Hudson’s Bay. VIA has invested C$1m in buying and refurbishing the second-hand stock, ...
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intelligence
Australia: The Commonwealth government has appointed Macquarie Bank as financial adviser on the sale of National Rail Corp, with Blake Dawson Waldron providing legal advice. Sparke Helmore and Arthur Anderson are also assisting.Brazil: América Latina Logística has ended the use of 3 kV DC electric traction between Rubião Júnior and ...