Main line rail industry news – Page 396
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
Matthew Rose is to step down as Executive Chairman of BNSF Railway in April 2019, having held the role for six years. He previously served as Chief Executive Officer from 2000-13. ČD Cargo has cancelled a tender for the supply of five high-power main line diesel locomotives for cross-border operation ...
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NewsBreakthrough for new Albula tunnel
SWITZERLAND: Rhätische Bahn’s 5 860 m long new Albula tunnel was holed through on October 2. Train services are expected to start in late 2021 or early 2022, with more than 15 000 trains carrying 1·2 million passengers/year. The existing 5 864 m long tunnel on the Chur – St ...
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NewsBlockchain-based locomotive data analysis trial announced
RUSSIA: Locomotive and rolling stock supplier Transmashholding has announced a partnership with blockchain developer Vostok to provide verified and distributed fleet data collection, analysis and storage. Vostok’s private blockchain platform is to be integrated with the SmartMaintenance diagnostics and forecasting system developed for TMH by data mining company ...
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NewsTexas Central names contractor and starts engineering design
USA: High speed rail promoter Texas Central announced on October 4 that it had appointed Italian civil engineering group Salini Impregilo to lead the civil construction consortium that would build its proposed Houston – Dallas route using Japanese Shinkansen technology. It has also issued a Limited Notice to Proceed, allowing ...
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NewsCatania metro extension delayed
ITALY: The extension of the Catania metro to Monte Po is now due to open in June, rather than this month as previously envisaged. Work on the 1·7 km section from Nesima began in December 2015. Tunnelling was completed in March this year, but the two stations are not ...
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NewsInland Rail PPP concession launched
AUSTRALIA: The public-private partnership to build and maintain a key section of the Inland Rail corridor through southern Queensland was launched on October 4, at an event in Toowoomba attended by federal Infrastructure Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack. Australian Rail Track Corp has invited registrations ...
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NewsDoha metro fleet expanded ahead of World Cup 2022
QATAR: Qatar Railways Co has awarded Kinki Sharyo a contract to supply a further 35 three-car driverless trainsets for the Doha metro project. The contract announced on October 4 takes the total order to 110 trainsets, which are branded Al Faras. The additional vehicles have been ordered ...
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NewsWork begins on Gebze metro
TURKEY: Construction of the first metro line in Gebze started at Cumhuriyet Meydanı on September 29. The 15·7 km driverless line will link Gebze and Darıca, serving 12 stations. Construction is expected be completed in early 2023 at an estimated cost of TL2·8bn. It is envisaged that ...
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NewsInterim CEO sets out Rail Baltica priorities
EUROPE: Ignas Degutis has set out his priorities for the Rail Baltica project, having been appointed Interim CEO of tri-national project promoter RB Rail following the resignation of Baiba Rubesa. Rubesa held a personal press conference immediately after resigning on September 27, during which she strongly criticised the way the ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
Toyota Motor Corp and East Japan Railway have agreed to work together to develop hydrogen fuel cell technology for trains and cars. This could include establishing hydrogen fuelling stations on land owned by JR East and introducing fuel-cell powered road and rail vehicles. Bombardier Transportation has launched a new corporate ...
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NewsRotherham tram-train to launch this month
UK: Tram-train services from Sheffield to Rotherham are to be launched on October 25, operator Stagecoach Supertram, infrastructure manager Network Rail and the South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive announced on October 4. There will be three services an hour from Sheffield Cathedral to Rotherham Central station and Parkgate Retail ...
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NewsFirst section of Moscow – Kazan high speed line to open in 2024
RUSSIA: A construction agreement covering the first section of the Moscow – Kazan high speed line was announced by RZD First Deputy Director Alexander Misharin at the ProMotion 1520 conference in Sochi on October 2. The agreement calls for work to start next year on a 301 km alignment between ...
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News400 km/h ALFA-X experimental train to roll in 2019
JAPAN: East Japan Railway's ALFA-X experimental Shinkansen trainset is on course to start test running in May 2019, the railway announced on October 3. Designated Series 956, the ALFA-X is intended to pave the way for a new fleet of high speed trains as part of the railway’s Transform 2027 ...
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NewsIzmit tram extensions approved
TURKEY: Kocaeli Metropolitan Municipality Mayor İbrahim Karaosmanoğlu announced three extensions of the Izmit tramway on October 3. These have been approved by Izmit Municipality. The first phase of the city’s tram network opened in June 2017. The 7·4 km line runs from Otogar in the east and Sekapark in ...
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NewsIowa Interstate Railroad orders locomotives
USA: Railroad Development Corp’s Iowa Interstate Railroad has ordered three GE Transportation Evolution Series diesel locomotives, which are to be supplied in early 2020 and will be used to haul grain, ethanol, metals and other freight between Chicago and Omaha. The locomotives will be equipped with GE Transportation’s GoLINC networking ...
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NewsPassenger service reinstated
URUGUAY: Regular passenger services from Montevideo to Pando and Sudriers were reinstated on October 1, having been withdraw in May 2012. The service initially runs once a day, towards Montevideo in the morning and retuning in the evening. A second round trip is to be added in November, and a ...
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NewsFour-storey Bangkok Bang Sue station takes shape
THAILAND: Construction of a new passenger hub for Bangkok is around 70% complete and on course for opening towards the end of 2020, according to municipal officials. Bang Sue Grand Station will be a four-storey structure covering 300 000 m2 and would replace Hua Lamphong as the city’s principal main ...
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NewsRATP opens Singapore office
SINGAPORE: RATP Group has opened an office in Singapore that will serve as its headquarters for the Asia-Pacific region. Shaun Tan heads the RATP Dev Asia Pacific subsidiary. RATP Group said that it intends build strong co-operation with Singapore’s public transport authorities and operators through partnerships. ‘Throughout its ...
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NewsFlixTrain: ‘We want to make sustainable mobility accessible to everyone’
Having grown from a tech startup to an international coach company in just five years, FlixMobility has now entered the rail market. The e-commerce platform seeks to become a multimodal provider of sustainable transport, CEO & Co-Founder André Schwämmlein tells Railway Gazette International
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NewsOpen access operator's competition complaint upheld
FINLAND: Transport regulator Trafi has instructued state operator VR to make its charges for handling cross-border freight more transparent, following a complaint from the country’s only private operator. Fenniarail has been hauling trains between the Russia-Finland border and UPM’s paper mills since January. Its complaint related to VR’s pricing of ...