Main line rail industry news – Page 442
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NewsGovernment spares rural railways but backs Spinetta reforms
FRANCE: In announcing on February 26 his response to the Spinetta review of the state of France’s national railway, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe rejected a proposal to close up to 9 000 route-km of secondary railway. Former Air France-KLM Chief Executive Jean-Cyril Spinetta had issued his wide-ranging report into the ...
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NewsD-Trains ordered for Bedford – Bletchley
UK: Vivarail has reached an agreement to supply three two-car Class 230 D-Train diesel-electric multiple-units to West Midlands Trains for operation from December on the Marston Vale Line between Bedford and Bletchley. Vivarail’s D-Train uses aluminium bodyshells and bogies from former D78 metro trainsets withdrawn from service by London Underground. ...
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NewsDB Cargo plans digital, low-noise wagon fleet by 2020
GERMANY: The DB Cargo management board has approved a ‘high double-digit million’ programme to fit its entire German wagon fleet with tracking, monitoring and telematics equipment. More than 1 000 wagons are currently equipped with telematics, a further 19 000 are scheduled to be retrofitted by the end of 2018, ...
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NewsJakarta metro train rolled out
INDONESIA: The first trainset for the Jakarta metro was rolled out from Nippon Sharyo’s Toyokawa Plant on February 21. The second is due to be completed on March 7, and both will be shipped from the port of Toyohashi, with arrival at Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta expected on March ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
On February 28 the government laid before parliament the Welsh Ministers (Transfer of Functions) (Railways) Order 2018 which, subject to approval, would devolve responsibility for procurement and management of the Wales & Borders franchise. As well as continuing with current funding arrangements, the UK government will also provide an extra ...
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News'Passengers want to be able to download an app and travel'
It is an ‘exciting time’ for smart ticketing, Rambus Ticketing Managing Director Russell McCullagh told Railway Gazette International at the Transport Ticketing Global 2018 conference in London.
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NewsInnoTrans 2018 hackathon announced
INNOTRANS: The first InnoTrans hackathon will be held at this year’s event, when Hack Partners will bring together 80 innovators from around the world for a four-day competition focusing on the future of rolling stock, improving customer experience and tackling operational challenges. The hackathon will be launched at Messe Berlin’s ...
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NewsSBB’s Twindexx EMUs enter service
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways ran the first of its fleet of Bombardier Transportation Twindexx double-deck electric multiple-units in commercial service on February 26. The first train was IR2368, the 11.55 from Zürich to Olten and Bern. When SBB signed a contract with Bombardier on May 12 2010 for 59 double-deck ...
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NewsDebt burden tempers SNCF growth in 2017
FRANCE: Announcing its results for 2017 on February 27, SNCF Group reported revenue of €33∙5bn, up 4∙2% on the year before ‘thanks to commercial momentum’ driving strong growth in passenger and freight traffic. Combined with ‘strict financial discipline’ and a cost-cutting programme that generated €830m of savings in 2017, this ...
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NewsEurostar reports a £58m profit
EUROPE: Eurostar International Ltd has reported a preliminary unaudited operating profit of £57∙6m for 2017, with sales revenue up 11% at £880m from £794m the year before. Passenger-journeys were up 3% at 10∙3 million from 10 million in 2016. 'Last year we saw a real revival in the US market ...
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NewsDoncaster rail freight hub completed
UK: The iPort Rail intermodal freight terminal in Doncaster is now operational, industrial and logistics property developer Verdion announced after the first test train ran onto the site on February 20. The 12 ha rail facility is part of the 136 ha iPort logistics hub site which is connected to ...
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NewsWorld rolling stock market - February 2018
Argentina: Transport Minister Guillermo Dietrich has approved a directly awarded order for CRRC Qingdao Sifang to supply 200 EMU cars for the Roca commuter network in Buenos Aires, with an estimated cost of US$316∙5m. These will replace life-expired Toshiba EMUs dating from 1983. Australia: TasRail has taken delivery of ...
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NewsClean up at InnoTrans 2018
INNOTRANS: Toilet waste disposal systems, washing facilities and train interior and exterior cleaning, care and disinfectant products will be on show in Hall 7.2 at InnoTrans 2018. Italian company Bitimec has booked almost twice as much floor space as it did in 2016, while Garrandale Rail from the UK, TEIJO ...
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NewsAlstom Prima locomotive for Indian Railways on test
INDIA: The first of 800 WAG12 twin-section electric locomotives which Alstom is supplying to Indian Railways is now on test at a purpose-built factory in Madhepura. First 12000 HP freight locomotive (WAG 12) under test in Ministry of Railway-Alstom Joint Venture factory 'Madhepura Electric Locomotive Pvt. Ltd.' at Madhepura ...
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NewsWabtec selected to complete Caltrain PTC installation
USA: A contract for Wabtec to install Positive Train Control on Caltrain’s San Francisco – San Jose commuter route will be put to the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board for approval at its meeting scheduled for March 1. In late 2011 Caltrain awarded Parsons Transportation Group a contract to provide ...
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NewsFootbridges to reduce station congestion
INDIA: Three new footbridges intended to reduce congestion at key stations on the Mumbai suburban network were formally commissioned on February 27, at a ceremony attended by Minister of Railways Piyush Goyal and the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis. The bridges at Elphinstone Road, Currey Road and Ambivili have ...
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NewsMyanma Railways orders Japanese DMUs
MYANMAR: A consortium of Japanese companies Marubeni and IHI Corp’s Niigata Transys has signed a ¥7bn agreement to supply 24 diesel-electric multiple-unit cars to Myanma Railways. Consortium leader Marubeni will be in charge of the commercial side of the contract signed on February 9, while Niigata Transys will be responsible ...
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NewsQbuzz awarded Dutch bus and rail operating contact
NETHERLANDS: The Qbuzz subsidiary of FS Group company Busitalia has been formally awarded its first combined main line rail and bus operating contract in the Netherlands. The concession covers bus services in Drechtsteden, Alblasserwaard and Vijfheerenlanden municipalities in the area between Utrecht and Rotterdam, as well as the MerwedeLingelijn regional ...
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NewsWorld rail infrastructure market - February 2018
Australia: Victoria’s Level Crossing Removal Authority has selected Coleman Rail and Lendlease Engineering for the A$588m Southern Programme to eliminate crossings on Melbourne’s Frankston line and build a stabling facility at Kananook. China: Alstom and Casco are to supply Urbalis CBTC for the first phase of Chengdu driverless metro ...
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NewsDB Rail Academy starts Brazilian training programme
BRAZIL: Working with local sector organisations, DB Engineering & Consulting has launched the country’s first internationally certified training programme for rail and logistics managers. Under the DB Rail Academy programme, an initial tranche of 35 managers from rail freight and passenger operators began an 18-month course in Brasilia on February ...