Main line rail industry news – Page 497
-
News
GE signs 'holistic' agreement to supply 100 locos to Egypt
EGYPT: The Ministry of Transport and Egyptian National Railways have signed a US$575m letter of intent for GE to supply 100 Evolution Series mixed-traffic locomotives. Training of more than 275 staff and the provision of 15 years of support and spare parts for the state railway’s existing and future GE ...
-
NewsKochi metro opens
INDIA: Revenue services on the first phase of the Kochi metro started on June 19, two days after an official inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 13 km section from Aluva to Palarivattom forms the northern part of what will eventually be a 25·6 km route from Aluva in ...
-
NewsTuas West Extension opens in Singapore
SINGAPORE: The Tuas West Extension opened to passengers on June 18. The 7·5 km western extension of the East-West Line runs above ground from Joo Koon to Tuas Link. Four stations have been added to the metro network. Land Transport Authority expects that these will together serve 100 000 ...
-
NewsTwo lines open in China
CHINA: Trial services on the 40·7 km Ningbo – Yuyao Intercity Railway in Zhejiang province began on June 10. Services are operated by a fleet of eight-car CRH6F Cinova trainsets supplied by CRRC Nanjing Puzhen. These operate at a maximum speed of 160 km/h and have a high capacity of ...
-
NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
Green Cargo has developed 25 m long wagons to accommodate the increase in the length of standard turnouts from 16 to 24 m. This will support Vossloh Nordic Switch Systems’ aim of increasing rail’s share of its track component delivery activities to 20% this year and more in the future. ...
-
NewsSyntus Flirt3 EMU unveiled
NETHERLANDS: The first of 16 Flirt3 electric multiple-units for Syntus has been unveiled at Stadler’s commissioning centre at Erlen in Switzerland. In March 2016 Syntus ordered nine three-car and seven four-car Flirt3 units for use on services from Zwolle to Kampen and Enschede which it is to operate from December ...
-
NewsBuenos Aires ATS funding agreed
ARGENTINA: Agreements to fund the purchase of Nippon Signal Automatic Train Stop equipment for the Buenos Aires commuter network were signed during a recent official visit to Japan by President Mauricio Macri. A US$49∙5m loan agreed by Japan Bank for International Co-operation, Deutsche Bank and the government of Argentina is ...
-
NewsIndian Railways to order 25 high speed trains
INDIA: A 10-car variant of JR East’s Series E5 Shinkansen trainset has been selected to operate the country’s first high speed line between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, according to the Ministry of Railways. Indian Railways is expected to order an initial build of 25 trains at an estimated cost Rs50bn. Construction ...
-
News
State aid for Greek and Bulgarian railways approved
EUROPE: The European Commission has decided that financial support being provided by Greece and Bulgaria for their national railways is compatible with EU state aid rules. The Commission said its decisions showed that state aid controls are able to address ‘problematic issues’ around debt levels at some incumbent operators, helping ...
-
NewsThales wins Cairo metro ticketing contract
EGYPT: The National Authority for Tunnels signed two fare collection contracts for the Cairo metro with Thales on June 10. A five-year project covers 15 stations on the western Phase 3 extension of Line 3, and the other contract is for the four stations of the Phase 4B eastern ...
-
NewsSüdostbahn plans automatic train operation
SWITZERLAND: A pilot project to develop automatic train operation was unveiled by Südostbahn AG on June 15. The ultimate intention is to achieve Grade of Automation 3, full automatic train operation with no driver but retaining staff on board for customer service and to take control when necessary. SOB has ...
-
NewsBombardier Transportation starts work on digitised assembly hall
GERMANY: The foundation stone for an €8m final assembly hall was laid at Bombardier Transportation’s Bautzen rolling stock plant on June 15, in the presence of federal Minister for Economic Affairs & Energy Brigitte Zypries, Sachsen’s Minister of Economics Martin Dulig and Mayor Alexander Ahrens. Bombardier is investing €20m ...
-
NewsSNCB seeks to develop BeNeRail distribution partnership
EUROPE: Speaking on the sidelines of the Amadeus Rail Innovation Forum in Praha on June 13, SNCB’s Manager for International Sales Paul Geyssens indicated that the Belgian national operator is planning to expand its collaboration with travel software specialist Amadeus through the BeNeRail distribution joint venture of SNCB and Dutch ...
-
NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
Bombardier is to cut 650 jobs at Villeneuve and Zürich in Switzerland, trade union Unia said on June 8. Local media report that Siemens is in talks with Iran’s Industrial Development & Renovation Organisation about the joint production of metro rolling stock components. Louis Berger and Egis have ...
-
NewsElectro-diesel Flirt unveiled
ITALY: The first electro-diesel version of the Flirt multiple-unit family was unveiled at Stadler’s Bussnang plant in Switzerland on June 15, two years after the Valle d’Aosta region awarded a €43m contract for the supply of five units and the provision of five years of maintenance. The Flirt3 units are ...
-
NewsManchester to trial cycle hire
UK: A six-month cycle-hire pilot in central Manchester and Salford will start on June 29. Mobike, which currently runs cycle-hire programmes in China and Singapore, is supplying 1 000 bikes. These will be equipped with smart locks that will allow them to be picked up and dropped off at ...
-
NewsBrisbane to start work on Cross River Rail
AUSTRALIA: Enabling works to facilitate construction of the A$5·4bn Cross River Rail project in Brisbane are to start in September, Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Minister for Infrastructure Jackie Trad announced on June 14. The Cross River Rail Delivery Authority has approved demolition work at the GoPrint site, a former ...
-
NewsBYD ADL to supply more short electric buses to London
UK: RATP Dev London has selected a joint venture of Shenzhen-based BYD and Alexander Dennis as preferred bidder to supply 36 electric buses. The operator signed a memorandum of understanding with BYD on June 14 at the Guangdong Economic & Trade Co-operation Conference in London, and contract signature is due ...
-
NewsSNCB does not expect DB to run to London
EUROPE: Deutsche Bahn has effectively deferred its high-profile plan to run direct high speed trains between Germany and London. Reports in the French press last week had quoted Birgit Bohle, Managing Director of DB Fernverkehr, suggesting that the German operator had no desire to compete directly with its French counterpart ...
-
NewsShift2Rail project grants awarded
EUROPE: Another 17 research projects with a combined value of €110·9m have been selected for financing under the 2017 Call for Proposals, the Shift2Rail joint undertaking announced on June 14. These will share up to €60·1m of EU co-financing under the multi-year research programme. The call for proposals had been ...