Main line rail industry news – Page 513
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NewsTerms agreed for SNC-Lavalin to buy Atkins
WS ATKINS: The boards of WS Atkins plc and SNC-Lavalin Group Inc of Canada announced on April 20 that they had agreed terms for SNC-Lavalin to acquire the entire issued share capital of Atkins. This values Atkins at £2∙1bn and represents a premium of 35% on the closing price of ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
A record 470 people took part in HaCon‘s 20th annual HAFAS multi-modal route planning and booking software user conference in Hannover this month, attending lectures and workshops covering trends including bots, big data and mobility as a service. Google presented software that compiles real-time data from across New York MTA’s ...
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NewsPerformance contracts signed despite regulator's concerns
FRANCE: Three 10-year performance contracts between the government and the SNCF group were formally signed on April 20 by Finance Minister Michel Sapin, Transport Minister Alain Vidalies, Frédéric Saint-George as head of the SNCF supervisory board, Patrick Jeantet as President of infrastructure manager SNCF Réseau and Florence Parly, Director-General of ...
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NewsHS2 rolling stock procurement moves forward
UK: The competition for a £2·75bn contract to design, build and maintain trainsets for High Speed 2 was formally launched by project promoter HS2 Ltd on April 20, with the despatch of an OJEU tender notice. The winning bidder would work with HS2 Ltd to develop ‘around 60’ trainsets suitable ...
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NewsPresident launches construction of Tanzanian standard gauge line
TANZANIA: Construction of a 207 km standard gauge line linking Dar es Salaam with Morogoro is set to get underway on May 5, following the ceremonial launch of work by President John Magufuli in Pogo on April 12. The line is to be built by a joint venture of ...
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NewsOpen access operators launch Alliance of Rail New Entrants
EUROPE: The Alliance for Rail New Entrants was launched on April 20 to bring together non-incumbent passenger and freight operators who are ‘committed to fair competition and open markets as the only way to shift freight and passengers from road to rail by offering attractive and additional choices’. ALLRAIL has ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
Network Rail undertook more than 200 engineering projects with a total value of £70m over the four-day Easter period. RSSB has published guidance to help railway companies cut their non-traction energy bills, reduce their carbon footprint and improve sustainability. RSSB said nearly 20% of energy use is for ...
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NewsStadler selected to supply Szeged tram-trains
HUNGARY: National passenger operator MÁV-Start has selected Stadler Rail Valencia to supply eight electro-diesel tram-trains to operate on the planned route between Szeged and Hódmezővásárhely. The order announced on April 18 includes an option for four more vehicles. The project is being fully financed by the EU, with rolling ...
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NewsSwedish railcars arrive in Montevideo
URUGUAY: Seven Fiat Y1 diesel railcars originally built for SJ of Sweden were unloaded at the port of Montevideo on April 15. National operator AFE has purchased the vehicles from rolling stock leasing and maintenance company NetRail. With one vehicle to be used to provide spare parts, AFE is to ...
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NewsIndian Railways selects 200 km/h upgrade option
INDIA: The Delhi – Chandigarh line is to be upgraded to permit ‘semi-high speed’ operation at speeds up to 200 km/h, Indian Railways has announced. Reference design studies will now be undertaken with a view to calling a design and build tender by the end the year. The 245 km ...
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NewsRegioJet expands fleet and introduces sixth class
CZECH REPUBLIC: Open access passenger operator RegioJet announced on April 18 that it had ordered eight Bombardier Transportation Traxx multi-voltage electric locomotives with an option for 20 more. The company has also awarded Astra Vagoane Călători a €16m contract to supply a further 16 open saloon passenger coaches with 80 ...
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NewsToshkent orbital railway plan
UZBEKISTAN: President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has approved plans for a 71 km electrified double-track passenger railway paralleling the Toshkent ring road. The orbital line would be designed to reduce road congestion and pollution in the capital, and reduce the need for public transport users to travel via the ...
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NewsBelkommunmash wins Pavlodar tram order
KAZAKHSTAN: Belkommunmash has won a contract to supply up to 25 trams to Pavlodar. The contract is worth 2·7bn tenge. The European Bank for Reconstruction & Development is providing 2bn tenge under a loan agreement signed in 2015. The remainder will come from the government, which is also funding ...
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NewsUnited Wagon announces additional public share offering
RUSSIA: United Wagon Co has announced plans for a secondary public offering of ordinary shares on the Moscow stock exchange. UWC intends to place up to 2·5 million additional shares from the end of April. The exact dates are to be confirmed, and the price would be determined by the ...
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NewsVistadome glass-ceiling coach launched by Indian Railways
INDIA: A Vistadome coach which has glass panels in the roof to provide tourists with all-round views on scenic lines was launched on the Vishakhapatnam – Araku route on April 16. Two Vistadome coaches have been built for the route by the Integral Coach Factory in Chennai. As well as ...
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NewsLviv fast tram route completed
UKRAINE: The second phase of the fast tram route in Lviv opened on April 15 to the Sykhiv district in the south of the city. The 1·5 km extension has four stops and runs south from Kinoteatr Dovzhenka to Vul Akademika Vernadskoho. Routes 2 and 8 serve the extension, ...
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NewsNew Moscow metro train enters passenger service
RUSSIA: The first Type 81-765 trainsets for the Moscow metro have entered revenue service on Line 7. Moscow Metro signed a contract with Metrowagonmash in December 2014 for the supply of 96 eight-car trainsets. A prototype was delivered to Vykhino depot in February, and six series-built sets are now ...
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NewsWorld rail market April 2017
Belgium: A consortium of Systra, Geste and Tractebel is to provide consultancy services for the modernisation of Brussels metro lines 1 and 5. Brazil: CRRC Times Electric is to supply platform screen doors for São Paulo metro Line 17. Germany: IVU Traffic Technologies has signed a framework agreement ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
CRRC Dalian has manufactured the first two of four Type CDN10A diesel locomotives ordered by Alborzniroo for use on open access services in Iran. They are customised to withstand high temperatures and sandstorms. Kiruna Wagon has completed initial static testing of a side dump wagon and unloading station ...
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NewsWorld rolling stock market April 2017
Australia: Sydney Trains has exercised a A$225m option to extend Downer EDI’s maintenance contract for its fleet of 35 four-car Millennium EMUs for a further 10 years from June. Alstom has been awarded a €100m contract to supply a further nine six-car X’Trapolis 1·5 kV DC EMUs for Melbourne’s ...