Main line rail industry news – Page 1447
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News
Gone mining
JUST AS the Russian Railways Ministry starts to implement its restructuring process which includes pulling out of non-core activities such as running towns and hospitals for railwaymen, comes news that it is to be granted the rights to mineral development along the Baikal - Amur corridor. Immediately after the BAM ...
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Central Asian upgradings funded
A CONSORTIUM of three Japanese suppliers has won a contract to assist with the upgrading of Kazakstan’s railway network. Choi Co, Kawasaki Steel Corp and Kawasho Corp will modernise KR’s telecommunications and reconstruct 350route-km of main line over the next four years. The aim is to boost capacity for the ...
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Industry
Brazil: Cobrasma has closed after deteriorating finances led to accumulated debt of at least R$400m; the firm only left receivership in 1994.Canada: Bombardier Inc has bought NorRail Inc of Buffalo to develop a wagon leasing business in North America as part of Bombardier Capital.Czech Republic: IFE AG of Austria has ...
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Metros
Canada: Vancouver city authority has bought part of a 1·5 km of right-of-way through CP’s False Creek yard for a proposed light rail line between SkyTrain at Main Street and Science World.Great Britain: London Underground has invited tenders for its Connect network-wide radio communications Private Finance Initiative; prequalified are Gensys, ...
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Investment boost
Norfolk Southern revealed on January 23 that it will spend $792m on capital projects in 1997, an $84m increase on 1996. A week later Union Pacific announced that its 1997 capital spending would total $2·2bn, including more than $500m to implement the merger with SP.NS has allocated over $100m towards ...
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On the way out
WHILST the Mercosur free trade zone may have revived freight traffic on Latin America’s railways, the same cannot be said for the residual passenger operations. Word reaches us from Uruguay that the pro-rail party in government since 1993 has been ousted by the administration which abandoned all services in 1988.Our ...
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The VAT lady sings
ENLIVENING the closing minutes of ICM's conference on Managing Privatised Railways in London on January 16 was a chilling dissertation by Celia Brennen of KPMG on the looming horrors of Value Added Tax. January 1 1997 saw the expiry of a derogation which legitimised a long-established practice in some European ...
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Market
Australia: SRANSW has called tenders for technical support in its timetable planning and train control activities over three years.Belgium: Siemens has won a DM28·5m contract to modernise marshalling yard control equipment at an Antwerpen yard, including MSR32 radio-control equipment for shunting locos.Brazil: CPTM and Renfe have signed a technical co-operation ...
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People
Mr Valeri J Kovalyov has been appointed Vice-Minister of Railways in Russia. Mr Michail P Likhachov has become President of Russian Railways’ Volga Region.Mr G K Malhotra has taken over as Chairman of Rail India Technical & Economic Services (Rites).Mr Christian Cochet has been named Director of the Cabinet of ...
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Tilt trains in prospect as final franchises awarded
ANNOUNCEMENTS on February 11 that Britain’s National Express Group had been chosen as preferred bidder for the ScotRail and Central Trains passenger franchises marked the culmination of the drive to transfer 25 ex-BR train operating companies to the private sector in little more than a year. The Office of Passenger ...
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Finance
Canada: CN reported a profit for 1996 of C$142m, compared to a C$1·1bn loss in 1995. Much of the 1996 fourth-quarter loss of C$166m was blamed on restructuring costs of C$365m to cover job losses. CN has announced plans to consolidate its four revenue management centres at a single Toronto ...
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Denver light rail extends
GROUNDBREAKING ceremonies were held on January 21 for Denver’s 14 km Southwest Corridor light rail extension. Regional Transportation District Chairman Ben Klein said the event marked ’the culmination of a dozen years of studies, planning and preparation.’ Detailed engineering design is due to be finished by the end of this ...
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Maintenance bids
February 12 was the closing date for expressions of interest in bidding for contracts to maintain the infrastructure formerly owned and managed by the State Rail Authority of New South Wales. Rail Access Corp, now responsible for infrastructure in NSW, intends to introduce competitive tendering by 2001 for all maintenance, ...
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Sidetrack
Model passengersAs part of its drive to encourage courteous and safe behaviour, Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway Corp has presented gold pendants to 20 Model Passengers. The winners received their awards from four celebrities who star in MTR safety literature to demonstrate the ’proper modes of behaviour’ for the travelling ...
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Alerted in a flash
passengers can be warned of the imminent closure of automatic coach doors on Zürich’s S-Bahn thanks to warning flashers developed by Bron Elektronik AG. A flash energy of 8 J at 1 Hz was found to achieve the desired effect of getting passengers to keep clear of the doors, whilst ...
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Time for change
A software tool developed by Cognos Ltd is helping London Underground to keep ticket machines in full service.Deciding when to refill specific machines with change, so that passengers did not have to enter the exact fare only, was previously up to the judgement of station staff. Instead station managers can ...
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Calculating RailNoise
WS Atkins Noise & Vibration has developed RailNoise, a software package for the calculation of operational noise following an official procedure published in 1995 by Britain’s Transport Research Laboratory. A three-dimensional site model is constructed incorporating the railway (of any type) and natural or man-made features that may reflect, ...
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ZW track machines load themselves
Plasser & Theurer has developed the ZW range of compact self-loading track maintenance machines, designed for use on regional and urban railways. Each of the four ZW models is equipped with four hydraulic jacks which raise the machine clear of the rails, allowing a flatbed road trailer to be positioned ...
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Amtrak signs Illinois contract
AN AGREEMENT securing Amtrak’s continued operation of three Chicago ’corridor’ services was announced on January 14. Illinois Department of Transportation had been threatening to invite open tenders for the State House to St Louis, Illini to Carbondale and Illinois Zephyr to Quincy, in an effort to lower the state’s subsidy ...
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LCR shortlists St Pancras bidders
on January 21 London & Continental Railways shortlisted eight groups for a contract to develop St Pancras Chambers. They are: Bouygues, DEGW/TG and Lynton consortia, British Land Co plc, The Burrell Co, Midland Grand Hotel Group, Rainham International and St Pancras Chambers Hotel Group.LCR subsidiary London & Continental Stations & ...