Main line rail industry news – Page 489
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NewsSwitch cabinet LED lamp
LAMP: Lütze Transportation has launched a space-saving LED lighting element for use in switch cabinets, which it says are often in difficult to reach locations. The 24 V DC LED lamp is 500 mm long and can be switched on or off by an integrated button or by the door ...
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NewsPacific concession could revert to state
COLOMBIA: During the course of a public hearing held on August 3, national infrastructure agency ANI declared the concession held by Ferrocarril del Pacífico SAS to have lapsed. The concession covers the upgrading, maintenance and operation of freight services on the Buenaventura — Cali, Cali — La Felisa and Zarzal ...
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NewsVan rebuilt as military escort coach
UKRAINE: A military escort coach which Refrigerator Wagon Co produced by rebuilding a refrigerated van is expected to enter service with Ukrainian Railways this month. The vehicle is intended to be better suited to the military role than the 102 conventional coaches which Ukrainian Railways currently deploys on such trains. ...
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NewsAndy Mellors
FirstGroup and MTR have appointed Andy Mellors as Managing Director of the replacement UK South Western passenger franchise, due to start on August 20. He is currently Engineering Director & Deputy Managing Director at Great Western Railway.
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
A joint Russian-Latvian joint working group on railways which was formed in 2008 met for the first time in four years on August 2. The national railways agrees to continue to co-operate to increase the volume of freight from India and China, and to try to attract cross-border passenger traffic. ...
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NewsElectrostar grab rail coatings replaced
HANDRAILS: TBM Rail is refurbishing the passenger grab poles, rails and handles on almost 700 Bombardier Class 377 Electrostar electric multiple-unit cars used on Govia Thameslink Railway’s Southern services. ‘We were asked to source and provide a solution to the aging polyester coatings that in today’s climate are no longer ...
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NewsAmtrak and Lyft announce partnership
USA: Passengers can now use the Amtrak mobile app to access rideshare company Lyft’s app to book first and last mile travel to and from a station. Announcing the partnership on August 1, Amtrak said Lyft operates in more than 360 locations, covering 80% of the population and 97% of ...
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NewsClio Liegeois
Clio Liegeois, Legal Advisor at Belgium’s Federal Public Service Mobility & Transport, has been elected Chair of the EU Agency for Railways Management Board, succeeding Mats Andersson.
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NewsLocomore insolvency proceedings begin
GERMANY: Partly crowd-funded open access operator Locomore announced on August 2 that insolvency proceedings had opened the previous day. The company said it was still trying to find a positive solution to its problems, but train services would remain suspended ‘until further notice’. Locomore launched a daily return service between ...
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NewsDB signs 100-locomotive framework for Rhein-Alpine freight corridor
EUROPE: The signing of a framework agreement for the supply of up to 100 Vectron multi-system electric freight locomotives with a €250m firm order for an initial 60 was announced by Deutsche Bahn and Siemens on August 4. The first five of the ETCS-equipped 6·4 MW locomotives with a maximum ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
On August 2 Jacobs announced a definitive agreement to acquire CH2M in a cash and stock transaction with an enterprise value of $3·27bn. Completion is expected in the first quarter of Jacobs’ 2018 financial year. ‘By increasing our industry reach and adding to our already extensive skills, this transaction enhances ...
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NewsGE reveals Indian Railways Evolution locomotive livery
INDIA: The livery of the Evolution Series diesel locomotives which GE Transportation is building for Indian Railways was unveiled on August 3 when the first painted locomotive was rolled out of the Erie plant’s paint shop. The ES43ACmi required 190 litres of paint, with the red chosen to represent energy ...
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NewsStadler completes first US-assembled Flirt
USA: Stadler has completed the first Flirt multiple-unit to be assembled in the USA at its plant at North Salt Lake in Utah. The DMU for the TEX Rail project will be officially unveiled at the ATPA Expo in Atlanta in October. In 2015 the Fort Worth ...
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NewsInner Mongolia high speed line opens
CHINA: Revenue services on the 126 km Hohhot – Ulanqab section of the future Hohhot – Zhangjiakou high speed line in Inner Mongolia began on August 3. Trial running had begun on June 29. Construction of the 287 km Hohhot –Zhangjiakou line started in April 2014, and revenue services on ...
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NewsZSSK awards Mravec DMU conversion contract
SLOVAKIA: National passenger operator ZSSK has awarded ŽOS Zvolen a €11m contract to convert Class 810/011 railcars and non-powered trailers into eight Class 813/913.1 two-car diesel multiple-units for use on regional services in central Slovakia. Deliveries are scheduled by the end of 2017. To be branded Mravec (‘ant’), each DMU ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
The contracts to design and build the civil works including bridges, tunnels, embankments and viaducts for High Speed 2 Phase 1 from London to Birmingham and a junction with the West Coast Main Line near Handsacre were formally signed on August 1. The signatories were HS2 Ltd and the SCS ...
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NewsCRRC and Siemens consortium to supply Kuala Lumpur light metro trains
MALAYSIA: Project promoter Prasarana announced on August 2 that it had awarded a consortium of CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive Co, Siemens China and Tegap Dinamik a 1·56bn ringgit contract for the supply of 42 six-car driverless light metro trainsets for the LRT3 project in Kuala Lumpur. Each air-conditioned trainset would have ...
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NewsFrench regions prepare for market opening
FRANCE: Plans for the progressive introduction of competitive tendering in the regional passenger market have been confirmed by the government, and the proposals will be included in transport legislation due to be published in the first half of 2018. The organisation which represents the regions of France has told the ...
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NewsChina to reinstate 350 km/h operation
CHINA: Test running at speeds up to 350 km/h is underway on the Beijing – Shanghai line, as part of China Railway Corp’s plan to reinstate the previous national maximum speed six years after it was reduced to 300 km/h in the wake of the Wenzhou collision in July 2011. ...
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NewsFirst electric buses ordered for Brussels
BELGIUM: Brussels city transport operator STIB has ordered seven Urbino 8,9 LE electric buses from Solaris Bus & Coach. These are expected to enter service at the beginning of 2018 on the new Citybus route. The buses will be equipped with a 160 kW traction motor and a Medcom ...