Main line rail industry news – Page 788
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NewsKraków plans three-line metro network
POLAND: The city of Kraków’s spatial planning team has published a study for a three-line metro, which has been endorsed by Mayor Jacek Majchrowski. The report targets construction to start in 2018 if the city authorities approve financing estimated at 3bn złoty. A significant part of this ...
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NewsPhase One of National Gateway completed
USA: The ‘on-time, on-budget’ completion of Phase One of the National Gateway programme was announced on September 5, enabling double-stack intermodal services to be operated between the CSX terminals in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, and North Baltimore, Ohio. Enlarging bridges and tunnels to accommodate double-stack trains between the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, the ...
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NewsLondon Underground depot upgraded to maintain new trains
UK: London Underground has completed a £180m modernisation of its Neasden depot to provide facilities for the routine maintenance of Bombardier Transportation S Stock trainsets used on the Metropolitan Line. BAM Nutall undertook the civil, mechanical and electrical works for the depot modernisation, Thales was responsible for signalling including ...
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NewsAfter-sales service for Lorraine Régiolis fleet
FRANCE: In preparation for the delivery later this month of the first of 10 Régiolis multiple-units to operate local TER services in the Lorraine region, Alstom officially opened an after-sales service centre within the SNCF rolling stock maintenance workshops in Metz on September 5. The event was attended by Patrick ...
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NewsICF signs R&D agreements
INDIA: Integral Coach Factory has signed three memoranda of understanding as part of a strategy of improving the standard of the coaches produced at its plant in Chennai. The National Institute of Design in Ahmedabad is to assist with developing improved sleeping cars and air-conditioned coaches. The Indian Institute of ...
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NewsAgreement signed for Barcelona port link
SPAIN: On September 4 an agreement to build a new rail connection to the Port of Barcelona was signed by the Ministry of Development and the Catalunya regional government. Other partners in the project include railway infrastructure authority ADIF and regional operator FGC. Through equal contributions from ADIF and Barcelona ...
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NewsHong Kong awards SCL Phase 1 signalling contract
CHINA: MTR Corp has awarded Thales a HK$642·5m contract to install communications-based train control on the first phase of the Shatin – Central Link. ‘Extending and upgrading a heavily-used network without impacting on our customer service is a challenging task. We look forward to having Thales’s team with their ...
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NewsLine 2 opens in Alacant
SPAIN: Line 2 of the Alacant tramway opened on September 4, connecting Sant Vicent del Raspeig with the rest of the network. Speaking at the opening ceremony, President of Valencia Generalitat Alberto Fabra said that the new route ‘makes the city much more sustainable, ecological and comfortable for its citizens’. ...
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NewsRed Line funded in Maryland’s $1·5bn transport package
USA: Construction of Baltimore’s east-west Red Line light rail route is expected to get underway in 2015, following the announcement of a $1·5bn transport investment programme by Maryland’s Governor Martin O’Malley on September 4. This is intended to support schemes totalling $4·4bn included in Maryland Department of Transportation’s draft six-year ...
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NewsSiemens to supply mobile reactive power compensation systems
SWITZERLAND: In what Siemens says is a world first, Swiss Federal Railways has awarded Siemens’ Smart Grid Division a SFr9·3m contract to design and supply mobile 15 MVAr reactive power compensation systems which can be deployed by rail. These will be used to stabilise the traction voltage and improve ...
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NewsGB Railfreight expands Class 66 fleet
UK: Eurotunnel subsidiary GB Railfreight announced on September 3 that it had ordered a further eight Class 66 locomotives from Electro-Motive Diesel Inc. The manufacture and supply agreement was signed at Rannoch station on the route between Glasgow and Fort William by GB Railfreight Managing Director John Smith and Paul ...
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NewsEFE orders more Alstom EMUs
CHILE: State railway EFE has ordered a further 12 X’Trapolis Modular EMUs from Alstom, exercising an option within a €54m contract for 12 units announced in October 2012. Each capable of accommodating 376 passengers, the new two-car EMUs are due to enter service during the first half of 2014 on ...
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NewsSee-through station planned for Bydgoszcz
POLAND: Railway holding company PKP SA has unveiled proposals for the modernisation of Bydgoszcz Główna station. This follows a feasibility study undertaken by Ernst & Young and Atkins. Instead of demolishing and replacing the historic island platform building, a new structure is to be built outside the tracks. This would ...
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NewsAlstom to refurbish Baltimore light rail vehicles
USA: Maryland Transit Administration has selected Alstom to overhaul the fleet of light rail vehicles operated in Baltimore. The signature of the $150m contract was announced on September 3. Alstom is to renew propulsion systems, automatic train control, CCTV, air-conditioning units, doors, seating and carpets to each of the ...
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NewsMaglev testing extended
JAPAN: Trials resumed on August 29 at the magnetic levitation test facility in Yamanashi prefecture following completion of work to extend the guideway. Transport Minister Akihiro Ota and JR Central Chairman Yoshiyuki Kasai were on board a demonstration run that day which attained a speed of 505 km/h. Tests on ...
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NewsCompetition concerns spark traction energy price changes
GERMANY: The European Commission is seeking comments on Deutsche Bahn’s proposals to change its 15 kV 16·7 Hz traction current pricing system in response to concerns that the existing model restricts competition in the freight and long-distance passenger markets. If the consultation confirms that the changes would remedy the European ...
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NewsTri-Rail operating contract extended
USA: South Florida Regional Transportation Authority has exercised an option for Veolia Transportation to operate Tri-Rail passenger services for a further three years. The operating contract began in July 2007 and will now run to June 2017. Tri-Rail serves a 116 km corridor between West Palm Beach and Miami, including ...
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NewsStrukton Rail wins Citybanan fit-out
SWEDEN: National infrastructure authority Trafikverket has awarded a SKr207m contract to Strukton Rail for fitting out the 6 km Citybanan line now under construction under the centre of Stockholm. The contract announced on September 2 covers the entire double-track route between the existing stations at Tomteboda and Stockholms Södra, including ...
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NewsTurkish steelmaker orders wheel production line
TURKEY: German metalworking equipment supplier Schuler has announced the largest single order in its history, a €90m contract to supply Kardemir Iron Steel Industry & Trade Co with a wheel production line with a capacity of 200 000 wheels/year. This is the second order for Schuler's recently developed rolling machine, ...
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NewsCFR Marfa sale agreement signed
ROMANIA: A contract for the privatisation of a 51% stake in state-owned rail freight operator CFR Marfa was formally signed on September 2 by Transport Secretary Cristian Gribu and Sorin Chinde, Chief Executive of Grup Feroviar Român. The event attended was by Transport Minister Ramona Manescu and GFR’s co-owner Gruia ...