All Railway Gazette International articles in March 2014 – Page 3
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NewsFyra dispute settled as AnsaldoBreda buys back V250 trainsets
NETHERLANDS: National passenger operator NS has reached agreement with AnsaldoBreda and its parent company Finmeccanica to settle the ongoing dispute over the V250 trainsets supplied for the aborted Fyra high speed services linking Amsterdam with Brussels and Breda. Under an agreement announced on March 17, AnsaldoBreda will take back all ...
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NewsSiemens Charger passenger locomotive contract finalised
USA: Siemens announced on March 18 that the states of Illinois, California, Michigan, Missouri and Washington had formally issued a notice to proceed with production of 32 diesel-electric passenger locomotives suitable for speeds up to 200 km/h. The procurement is being led on behalf of the five states by ...
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NewsSeries E7 debuts on Nagano Shinkansen
JAPAN: JR East officially launched its first dual-system Series E7 Shinkansen trainsets in revenue service on March 15, in conjunction with the country’s national timetable change. Developed jointly with JR West, which has ordered its own build designated Series W7, the new trainsets are intended to operate Hokuriku Shinkansen services ...
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NewsJernbaneverket plans ahead
NORWAY: Jernbaneverket has set out details of how it is to implement the government’s national transport strategy for 2014-23 which was unveiled last year. The infrastructure manager said on February 13 that there is agreement about the main priorities, but it feels greater emphasis should be given to maintenance, ...
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NewsAddis Abeba tram supplier selected
ETHIOPIA: CNR Corp announced on March 17 that it had been selected to supply 41 trams to Addis Abeba. The three-section 70% low-floor vehicles would have a minimum floor height of 350 mm and a maximum speed of 70 km/h. The first trams are to be delivered at the ...
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NewsNorthern focus needed, says HS2 Chairman
UK: Deferral of the proposed link between High Speed 2 and High Speed 1 and extension of the first phase route from Lichfield north to Crewe are among the recommendations of a report issued on March 17 by HS2 Ltd Chairman Sir David Higgins outlining how the UK’s proposed high ...
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NewsSouth Africa's 'largest ever' locomotive order awarded to four suppliers
SOUTH AFRICA: Transnet announced the 'largest-ever loco supply contract in South Africa's history' on March 17. The country's 'single biggest infrastructure investment initiative by a corporate' comprises orders for four companies to supply a total of 1 064 locomotives worth R50bn. CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive is to supply 359 electric ...
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NewsFreiburg tram network extends north
GERMANY: A northern extension of Freiburg’s metre-gauge tram route 5 from Reutebachgasse to Zähringen opened on March 15, six weeks ahead of schedule. ‘For the first time in the city’s history of over 100 years, light rail goes beyond the city limits — a sign of how highly integrated ...
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NewsHasselt – Maastricht fast tram agreement signed
BELGIUM: Flanders Transport Minister Hilde Crevits signed an agreement with Limburg province in the Netherlands on March 11 to push ahead with construction of a fast tram line between Hasselt in Belgium and Maastricht in the Netherlands. The 32 km Spartacus line would partly use the alignment of Infrabel’s ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news in brief
The VOTG subsidiary of wagon hire and rail logistics company VTG has set up a dedicated fleet of tank containers for foodstuffs and obtained GMP+ B4 certification of cleanliness and responsible handling along the production chain. CMI has acquired depot equipment manufacturer Sogema Engineering. Knorr-Bremse has acquired ...
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NewsSignalisation et automatismes ferroviaires - Railway signalling & automation
Co-ordinated by Walter Schön BOOK REVIEW: This three-volume overview of signalling and train control has been compiled by academics and engineers associated with the masters degree course in railways and guided transport systems which has been offered by French engineering universities since 2008. Aimed at present and future rail ...
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NewsBuenos Aires metro car converted to diesel-electric railcar
ARGENTINA: A former Buenos Aires metro car is being converted into a diesel-electric railcar by the Ferrocarril Central Buenos Aires co-operative, which hopes to restore passenger services to the currently disused Fátima - Rojas section of the 1 435 mm gauge Urquiza network. Intended to operate with two trailer vehicles, ...
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NewsLinz buys accessible ticket machines
AUSTRIA: Linz city transport operator Linz Linien has ordered 200 Scheidt & Bachmann FareGo Sales ST|40 ticket vending machines meeting TSI PRM accessibility standards, with an option for 110 more. The TVMs will feature menus with audio response via speakers, and tactile elements on the front panel to ensure ease ...
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NewsConstruction of 2·2 km Amur bridge begins
ASIA: A ceremony on February 26 officially launched construction of a 2 209 m railway bridge across the River Amur or Heilong between Nizhneleninskoye in Russia's Jewish Autonomous Oblast and Tongjiang in China's Heilongjiang province. Construction is expected to take 2½ years, for opening in December 2016. The bridge is ...
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NewsMendoza light rail Phase 2 contract signed
ARGENTINA: A Ceosa-Sogesic joint venture has signed a contract to build the second phase of the Mendoza light rail network. The 5·4 km northern extension from Central to Las Heras will include three stops. It is to be built in 24 months at a cost of 224·7m pesos. The ...
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NewsDen Haag orders more Siemens Avenio trams
NETHERLANDS: Den Haag city transport operator HTM placed a €55m order for 20 more Siemens Avenio low-floor trams on March 13, as an option on a contract for 40 signed in 2011. As with the original order, these will be produced in Siemens’ Wien factory. This batch of trams ...
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NewsAnkara opens metro line M2
TURKEY: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan officially opened Ankara metro Line M2 on March 13, one month after Line M3 opened and nearly one year ahead of the original schedule. The 16·6 km line runs west from Kızılay to Çayyolu, serving 12 stations. It is operated by the state-owned ...
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NewsKing opens rebuilt Rotterdam Centraal station
NETHERLANDS: King Willem-Alexander ceremonially inaugurated the rebuilt Rotterdam Centraal station on March 13, during celebrations which included dancing and musical performances. The station has been rebuilt to cope with predicted growth from the current 110 000 passengers/day - as many people as use Amsterdam Schiphol airport - to 323 000 ...
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NewsTendering to start for new line to Toluca
MEXICO: Secretary of Communications & Transport Gerardo Ruiz signed off tendering documentation for the project to build an electrified passenger railway from Mexico City to Toluca at a ceremony held on February 28. The new line would run for 58 km from Observatorio, the western terminus of Line 1 of ...
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NewsUlaanbaatar Railway orders coaches
MONGOLIA: Ulaanbaatar Railway has awarded Transmashholding's Tver Carriage Works a contract to supply 12 second and two first class compartment coaches, and a staff car with a compartment adapted for a person with reduced mobility and an accompanying person. The air-conditioned coaches will be based on the 61-4440 and 61-4445 ...