Main line rail industry news – Page 1449
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News
Firenze backs TAV tunnel
ITALIAN Transport Minister Claudio Burlando has signed an agreement with Mayor of Firenze Mario Primicerio paving the way for construction of a tunnel to carry the Roma - Milano high speed line under the city. High-speed project manager Italferr TAV SiS and Italian State Railways are party to the agreement, ...
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Rebels seize Sizarail
THE FUTURE for rail services that eke out a precarious existence in Zaire looks bleaker than ever following news early last month that Laurent Kabila’s opposition forces had shut down Sizarail, the operating company owned 51% by the Comazar consortium formed of South Africa’s Transnet and Belgium’s Transurb, and 49% ...
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Suppliers flock to City Transport ’97
INTRO: Organised in conjunction with UITP’s Stuttgart congress, the City Transport ’97 exhibition takes place on June 2-5A wide range of products and services for urban and regional operators will be on display at City Transport ’97 in Stuttgart’s Messegelände exhibition and congress centre. The Transfloor range from Altro Floors ...
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Intermodal spearheads the Freightways
INTRO: A fundamental switch from national networks to line-of-route management spanning frontiers is essential if rail is to absorb a much larger share of freight growth in Europe. Bryan Stone* and Richard Hope explain how major shipping companies are forcing open the door for others to followBYLINE: *Bryan Stone is ...
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NDX poised to network Europe
INTRO: Gordon Mott FCIT tells Richard Hope why chartered trains are going to be riding the Freightways before open access emerges As Assistant Vice President International Development for CSX Transportation, and a director of NDX, Gordon Mott is well placed to help rail industry colleagues hack a path through the ...
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Paperless fault reports
German Railway extended its RIGA advanced train maintenance reporting system to five more depots from the timetable change on June 1. Developed by Krupp Timtec Telematik, RIGA dispenses with much overnight train maintenance and hand-written and faxed material. The first phase of the pilot project was completed in October 1996 ...
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Sishen - Saldanha pulls back from the brink
INTRO: Murray Hughes reports from the 6th IHHA Congress in Cape TownVISIT the 861 km iron ore artery in South Africa, and you will see signs that the railway has suffered badly. Spoornet executives admit that the line nearly closed when the iron and steel market plummetted in the mid-1980s. ...
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More in first class with Eurostar
Priced to compete with full-fare airline business class, Premium First was launched on London - Paris Eurostar services on April 28. With Premium First and Standard Plus, four distinct levels of service are being introduced to replace the two classes dating from Eurostar’s inception. For £370 return, ...
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Metros
France: On April 28 Lyon’s Maggaly fully-automated metro Line D was extended 1·6 km northeast to a park & ride and bus/metro interchange at Vaise.Germany: Berlin S-Bahn services were extended 2·1 km from Westend to Jungfernheide in April. The DM90m extension is the first stage of a programme to complete ...
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The finest hotel on wheels
INTRO: For its R70m Blue Train refurbishment, Spoornet has drawn on the expertise of designers, architects and hoteliers. Rollo Dickson reports On June 27 Spoornet is due to relaunch its luxury Pretoria - Cape Town Blue Train service with the first of two trainsets to undergo extensive refurbishment. Confident that ...
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ICE3 test train rolls this summer
INTRO: The ability to run at 300 km/h, to climb 4% grades and to operate in several other countries dictated the design parameters for Germany’s third generation ICE. A five-car component test train capable of 360 km/h called the ICE-S will be ready to start a programme of trials in ...
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Regionalisation drive gathers pace
INTRO: The programme to transfer regional lines in Germany to local control is bearing fruit in some areas, but as Gordon Wiseman reports, it is unlikely to save numerous lightly-used rural routes in the east of the countryTHIS SUMMER’S timetable change on June 1 sees six more lines transferred from ...
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Rivals to build automated freight terminals
GERMAN Railway has let development contracts for two fully-automated freight handling terminals. Intended to cut the time taken to transfer containers between train and lorry, the terminals will also occupy less land than conventional intermodal sites with similar throughput.Krupp F
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Dürr leaves Ludewig a tough legacy
INTRO: Next month Heinz Dürr passes the reins of German Railway to Johannes Ludewig, an economist who is close to Chancellor Kohl. Inheriting a 40000 km railway halfway through an ambitious programme of reforms, Ludewig must tackle numerous unfinished tasksHEINZ DÜRR may be leaving his post as Chairman of ...
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Peoplemovers look to the millenium
BYLINE: Lawrence J Fabian *BYLINE: * Lawrence J Fabian is Director of Trans21, PO Box 249, Fields Corner Station Boston Massachusetts 02122, USA.Tel: +1 617 825 2318Fax: +1 617 482 7417e-mail: LFabian@ compuserve.comPROSPECTS of an exciting future for automated peoplemovers emerged at the American Society of Civil Engineers’s 6th international ...
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New York State to fund record car order
Details of the largest metro car order in North American history were confirmed on April 29. New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority has reached agreement with two manufacturers to acquire 1080 vehicles for the IRT division. They will replace many of MTA New York City Transit’s oldest cars, some dating from ...
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Sidetrack
Birds on the wiresIn the past green activists in Germany have pursued their cause by having steam trains banned, whilst expressing little opposition to new roads. Now, the French Transport Users Federation (FNAUT) has offered a three point punishment to a local section of the National Movement for the Environment ...
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Publications
Practical Railway Engineeringby Clifford F BonnettThis 210 page hardback provides an introduction to basic engineering techniques as applied to railways. Designed as a textbook for Imperial College’s MSc course in Transport, it includes a foreword by Professor Tony Ridley. Brief but informative chapters cover all aspects of the railway ...
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People
Mr John Prescott has been named Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Environment, Transport and the Regions following Labour’s victory in the British general election. He is responsible for the overall direction of the Department of Transport. Dr Gavin Strang becomes Minister for Transport, a cabinet post. Ms ...
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Intelligence
Australia: Patrick Stevedores launched a thrice-weekly rail shuttle on April 29 to convey maritime containers between Melbourne and Adelaide; the wagons are hired from AN, which provides crews jointly with V/Line.Queensland Railways has launched a network of dedicated ’Cattletrain’ services to 40 key cattle producing areas, using a fleet of ...