Main line rail industry news – Page 315
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NewsSerbia to invest €3·5bn in rail infrastructure
SERBIA: The government has announced planned railway infrastructure spending of €3·5bn as part of the €14bn Serbia 2025 national investment programme. The rail elements include modernisation of the 208 km Valjevo – Vrbnica section of the Beograd – Bar line, and construction of an integrated traffic control ...
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NewsEU co-financing for Galician high speed line
SPAIN: The European Commission is to provide a €226m grant to support the €2·1bn cost for constructing 48·5 km of the 83·3 km Lubián – Taboadela section of the high speed line running north west from Olmedo to Zamora and Ourense. The route traverses a remote mountainous ...
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NewsPrecision Scheduled Railroading ‘sustains momentum’ at Kansas City Southern
USA: ‘Kansas City Southern’s implementation of Precision Scheduled Railroading principles has sustained momentum in the fourth quarter, driving strong results in the form of more consistent and reliable operations, improved customer service, improved cost structure and growth in shareholder returns’, said President & CEO Patrick J Ottensmeyer ...
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NewsStagecoach Group joins new market entrants’ association ALLRAIL
EUROPE: Public transport operating group Stagecoach has joined the ALLRAIL association of new entrants to the European rail market. ‘As a major operator of rail services in the UK for over two decades and with significant experience of operating public transport services across Europe, we are pleased ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
Western Australia has granted a Special Rail Licence for the construction and operation of the 143 km heavy haul line which Fortescue Metals Group is building as part of its A$1·7bn Eliwana iron ore project. The line, with a capacity of 30 mtpa, is scheduled for completion ...
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NewsAkasol to supply batteries for hydrogen trains
GERMANY: Alstom has awarded Akasol a contract to supply battery systems for the series-built versions of its Coradia iLint hydrogen fuel cell multiple-unit which have been ordered by the Niedersachsen (14 units) and Rhein-Main (27) transport authorities. The contract is valued ‘in the low double-digit million euro ...
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NewsStandard gauge locos to handle traffic through Kaliningrad
RUSSIA: Five 1 435 mm gauge shunting locomotives have been delivered to Russian Railways’ Kaliningrad division, which is upgrading its fleet to handle an increase in traffic through the exclave. This includes China – Europe transit freight which is being routed through Kaliningrad to avoid congestion at ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
Bloomberg reported on January 21 that Bombardier and Alstom have held preliminary talks regarding a possible combination of their rail businesses, citing ‘people familiar with the matter’. Crowd flow modelling company Movement Strategies is to merge with GHD Group. The two companies have ...
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NewsDB confirms order for hybrid locomotives
GERMANY: Following the positive outcome of a feasibility study, DB Cargo has confirmed it is to buy 50 Toshiba diesel-battery hybrid 100 km/h locomotives for shunting and short-distance freight operations, and will lease a further 50 locos. The HDB800 locos will be equipped with Toshiba’s SCiB lithium-ion ...
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NewsBorder link reopens as South International Corridor progresses
PORTUGAL: The 11 km link between Elvas and Caia on the border with Spain near Badajoz was reopened in late January, following an investment of €20·4m. Much of the rehabilitation work was done by Teixeira Duarte under a €15m contract. Elvas station has been remodelled so that ...
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News‘Father Christmas’ helps fund Bordeaux – Toulouse high speed line
SNCF Réseau has estimated that TGVs could link Toulouse with Paris in just over 3 h using the Tours - Bordeaux high speed line which opened in July 2017. FRANCE: Construction of the 222 km high speed line from Bordeaux to Toulouse may start in two years’ ...
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NewsWork starts on Roskilde – Holbæk electrification
Source: Banedanmark DENMARK: Preparatory works are to get underway this month on the 25 kV 50 Hz electrification of the Roskilde – Kalundborg line in western Sjælland, infrastructure manager Banedanmark announced on January 22. This includes the removal of lineside vegetation on the first section of the ...
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NewsHaifa rail freight terminal opened
ISRAEL: The Depolog freight terminal at the Port of Haifa has opened, with Israel Railways’ first train carrying 21 containers. The terminal was built by ISR and marine engineering company Maagan. It three tracks with a total length of 1 500 m, including two tracks for loading ...
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NewsNew CEO aims to get Pesa back on track
POLAND: Rolling stock manufacturer Pesa is to announce a new strategy in the first quarter of this year, following the supervisory board’s decision to appoint the management board’s Vice-President of Operations Krzysztof Zdziarski as Chief Executive on January 8. Robert Tafiłowski was appointed as Chief Financial Officer. ...
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NewsMatthä to head CER as Fritzson steps down
EUROPE: Austrian Federal Railways’ CEO Andreas Matthä was elected as Acting Chair of the Community of European Railway & Infrastructure Companies at its meeting on January 20.
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NewsKattegat road-rail fixed link to be studied
DENMARK: There are good prospects for a road and rail fixed link across the Kattegat between Sjælland and Jylland, the government has announced. Further studies are to be undertaken, building on preliminary studies initiated by the previous government. The proposed east–west link would shorten the travel time ...
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NewsSeoul Great Train Express engineering services contract awarded
SOUTH KOREA: The SG Rail special purpose company formed to design, finance and build Line A of the Great Train Express network of commuter lines around Seoul has appointed Ricardo Rail to provide engineering and assessment services during the construction phase running to 2024. Three GTX fast ...
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NewsTAZARA urged to seek freight traffic ‘aggressively’
AFRICA: The Tanzania-Zambia Railway Authority board chaired by Tanzania and Zambia’s permanent secretaries responsible for transport has directed the railway’s management to ‘aggressively seek additional freight traffic in order to capture more business’. The railway should also take steps to improve safety, increase capacity accommodate more private ...
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NewsJoint venture to provide maintenance services for 71 Chinese high speed trains
CHINA: China State Railway Group has awarded the Bombardier Sifang (Qingdao) Transportation joint venture a 2·45bn yuan contract to provide maintenance services for 71 CRH1A-A, CRH1A, CRH1B, CRH1E and CRH380D high speed trainsets totalling 656 cars. The work will be completed by the end of 2020. The ...
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NewsLying not flying, as Nightjet sleeper train reaches Brussels
EUROPE: Under the slogan ‘lying not flying’, Austrian Federal Railways launched its twice-weekly Wien – Brussels Nightjet overnight train on January 19. The ceremony at Wien Hbf was attended by Austria’s Minister of Climate Protection, Environment, Mobility, Innovation & Technology Leonore Gewessler as well as members of ...