Main line rail industry news – Page 157
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NewsBrussels – Amsterdam – Berlin night train launch date announced
EUROPE: Dutch night train start-up European Sleeper has announced the start date for a Brussels – Amsterdam – Berlin service.
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NewsWork starts on Gaspésie realignment
CANADA: Work has started on the reconstruction of a section of the Gaspé Railway in Québec, as part of a programme to restore freight and passenger trains to the Gaspé peninsula. VIA Rail long-distance passenger trains between Montréal and Gaspé were suspended in 2011 owing to ...
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News$9bn to fund Northeast Corridor upgrading
USA: The Department of Transportation is making available nearly $9bn in funding to support infrastructure renewals and expand passenger services along Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor
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NewsRail logistics and fleet management collaboration
USA: Railinc and Commtrex have announced a collaboration to provide outsourced logistics and fleet management services for the rail industry. Association of American Railroads subsidiary Railinc can now provide fully outsourced or on-demand services using its TransmetriQ Rail Management System software, while Commtrex will utilise the ...
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NewsChinese east-west high speed line inaugurated
CHINA: A further 91 km section of the Yuxia high speed line was opened on December 26, with the start of revenue services between Changde and Yiyang.
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NewsJR Freight to transport bonded cargo for airlines
JAPAN: JR Freight is to begin the regular transport of bonded cargo between warehouses and Tokyo’s main airports in April 2023, as part of a programme to reduce emissions and provide reliable logistics services as Japan faces a shortage of lorry drivers. During the coronavirus pandemic, ...
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NewsNuclear fuel and radioactive waste wagon prototype ordered
USA: The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy has awarded ENSCO a contract to manufacture and test a prototype eight-axle heavy duty wagon branded Fortis for the transport of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Commercial spent nuclear fuel is packaged in containers weighing ...
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NewsMetre-gauge line to be resignalled
SPAIN: ADIF has awarded Thales a 27-month contract worth €20·8m to supply ASFA Digital ATP to replace telephone block working on the 101 km single track, non-electrified Ortigueira – Ribadeo section of the Oviedo – Ferrol metre gauge line along the north coast. Existing colour light ...
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NewsFirst Seoul GTX trainset unveiled
SOUTH KOREA: The first EMU for Line A of the Great Train Express commuter rail network currently under construction in Seoul has been unveiled by manufacturer Hyundai Rotem at its Changwon plant. The trains have a maximum operating speed of 180 km/h, reflecting GTX’s status as an ...
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NewsShort line natural disaster recovery funding bill introduced
USA: A bill has been introduced to Congress which would authorise the Department of Transportation to provide emergency funding to assist short line railways with recovery from natural disasters.
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NewsFour-car Desiro ML EMUs enter service in Vorarlberg
AUSTRIA: Austrian Federal Railways’ first four-car Siemens Mobility Desiro ML electric multiple-units entered service in Vorarlberg with the December 11 timetable change. ÖBB has operate three-car Desiro ML units since 2015. In August 2021 it awarded Siemens Mobility a contract to supply 21 four-car units to ...
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NewsRegioPanter EMUs enter service on electrified regional line
CZECH REPUBLIC: Electric services have begun running on the Olomouc – Uničov – Šumperk line, which is to become SŽ’s first regional route to be controlled exclusively using ETCS.
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NewsVIA Rail establishes High Frequency Rail project office
CANADA: National passenger train operator VIA Rail has established VIA HFR – VIA TGF Inc to act as a dedicated project office for development and delivery of the High Frequency Rail project. This envisages the provision of dedicated tracks for 200 km/h electric passenger trains on ...
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NewsNext phase of Kosovo rail modernisation gets underway
KOSOVO: Work has begun to modernise the 34 km Mitrovicë – Fushë Kosovë line as the second stage of a €208m three-phase programme to enhance the corridor linking North Macedonia with Serbia. The route is part of the Western Balkans core rail network and an extension ...
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NewsRailpool breaks ground for Hamburg locomotive workshop
GERMANY: Leasing company Railpool has broken ground to launch construction of an eco-friendly locomotive workshop at its Hamburg Billbrook site. ‘By investing in a future-proof workshop infrastructure, we are making an important contribution to the rail industry by providing the maintenance capacity required for the growing ...
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NewsSpanish high speed network extended to Murcia
SPAIN: Passenger services on the final 15·9 km of high speed line between Orihuela and Murcia began on December 20, following an official inauguration by King Felipe VI the previous day.
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NewsFirenze high speed station and tunnel contract awarded
ITALY: Infrastructure manager RFI has awarded a contract valued at more than €1bn to a consortium of Impresa Pizzarotti & C and Saipem for work on the Milano – Roma high speed line through the northern part of Firenze.
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NewsBotswana – Zimbabwe through working agreement signed
AFRICA: A through working agreement has been signed enabling National Railways of Zimbabwe locomotives to operate to Francistown in Botswana, and Botswana Railways locos to run through to Bulawayo in Zimbabwe. NRZ said eliminating the need to change locomotives at the border would cut delays and ...
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NewsWestbahn looks to Budapest as Innsbruck service launched
EUROPE: Open-access operator Westbahn commenced Wien – Innsbruck services with effect from the December 11 timetable change, with its first service leaving Wien Westbahnhof at 07.08.
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NewsFreight future in doubt as energy costs soar
FRANCE: Rail freight operators are facing a catastrophic future if the government does not offer help with a massive rise in energy costs, according to industry body Fret Ferroviaire Français du Futur.