All Railway Gazette International articles in March 2017 – Page 7
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NewsFirst metro train arrives in Hanoi
VIETNAM: The first metro train has arrived in Hanoi, and is due to begin test running on the elevated metro Line 2 at the end of September. CRRC is supplying 13 four-car trainsets, with the remaining 12 due to be shipped in three batches. The first train took a ...
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NewsVancouver Island commuter rail study
CANADA: Options for establishing a commuter service on 15 km of the former Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway corridor between Westhills in Langford and Victoria West on Vancouver Island are to be studied, British Columbia’s Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure announced on March 9. A working group is to be formed ...
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NewsAmsterdam – Brussels EMUs approved
NETHERLANDS: Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem informed the lower house of parliament on March 8 that he had approved a request from national passenger operator NS to purchase two additional Alstom electric multiple-units, as an option on its Inter-city New Generation procurement programme. Authorised by the Ministry of Finance as the ...
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Metro Report InternationalAlstom and NTL launch Aptis electric bus prototype
FRANCE: Alstom and NTL presented a prototype of the Aptis electric bus at NTL’s factory in Duppigheim in eastern France on March 9. Alstom says that the vehicle is based on a tram design, with roof-mounted equipment and a mostly low floor. The vehicle is 12 m long, 2 ...
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NewsRail industry leaders attend Brexit round table
UK: Minister for Exiting the European Union David Jones and Transport Minister Paul Maynard attended a round table meeting on March 1 to hear rail industry leaders’ views on the forthcoming Brexit negotiations. Issues discussed included market access, cross-border services, the supply chain, safety, technical standards, trade, customs and research ...
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NewsCRRC Changchun to supply more metro cars to Mashhad
IRAN: CRRC Changchun is to supply 20 five-car trainsets for the second phase of Mashhad metro Line 2, which is due to open in May. The first three sets will be manufactured in China, with the remainder being made in Iran by a joint venture that CRRC ...
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NewsNurminen Logistics prepares to launch locomotive business
FINLAND: Nurminen Logistics has reported good performance from its Russian railway logistics activities during 2016. Demand for domestic was steady, with flows 'lively' as a result of sanctions. Efficiency improvements, the sale of covered wagons and successful sales efforts improved the overall finaincial result compared to the previous year. However, ...
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NewsVeronique Hakim
Currently President of New York City Transit, Veronique Hakim has been appointed Interim Executive Director of New York MTA following the retirement of Chairman & CEO Tom Prendergast in January.
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Metro Report InternationalFoshan hydrogen fuel cell tram contract signed
CHINA: CRRC Qingdao Sifang is to supply eight hydrogen fuel cell trams for a route being developed in Foshan, the supplier announced on March 9. Each tram will have capacity for 285 passengers and a maximum speed of 70 km/h. They will be powered by hydrogen fuel cells developed ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
East Japan Railway has announced that its third European Suppliers Tour will visit München on May 16 and Brussels on May 18, offering companies the chance to discuss business opportunities in areas including, but not limited to, rolling stock, track and signalling. Smiths Group has unified its EMC Technology, ...
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Metro Report InternationalLondon creates its first low-emission bus zone
UK: The first of 12 low-emission bus zones planned for London’s most polluted streets started operating on March 9. The zone in the southwestern district of Putney will only permit buses achieving strict Euro-6 emissions standards to operate across the seven routes that pass through it. This will see ...
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NewsLéman Express moves closer
EUROPE: During a ‘summit’ between the two railways held in Paris on March 9, SBB CEO Andreas Meyer and SNCF President Guillaume Pepy signed a co-operation agreement for the operation from December 2019 of the Léman Express network of cross-border regional and suburban services centred on Genève. Under the agreement, ...
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NewsFreight operators fined for stifling competition
SPAIN: National competition authority CNMC announced on March 6 that it would be imposing fines totalling €75∙6m on freight operators, following an investigation which had revealed anti-competitive practices in breach of Spanish and European Union law. CNMC says that national operator RENFE and various companies within the DB group, together ...
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NewsWestern Sydney Airport rail study consortium appointed
AUSTRALIA: A consortium led by SNC-Lavalin Rail & Transit and including Aquenta, Architectus, Norman Disney & Young, SMEC and Stacey Agnew has been selected to undertake the Rail Feasibility Design study which will provide detailed costings and timescales for the proposed rail link to the future Western Sydney Airport at ...
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NewsStrategic contracts bring positive results for Talgo
SPAIN: Rolling stock supplier Talgo SA has reported a 3·8% year-on-year increase in profit to €61·9m in 2016, with net turnover up 11·3% to €579·8m. CEO José María Oriol said 2016 had been ‘a year of positive results and business performance’. Pointing out that turnover and operating margins depend on ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
On March 3 the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee published its 'Modernising the Great Western Railway' report into the significant delays and 'staggering and unacceptable' cost overruns on electrification of the route between London, Bristol and South Wales. The PAC concludes it is still unclear whether the revised target ...
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NewsRail industry marks International Women's Day 2017
INTERNATIONAL: The railway operations and supply industries around the world marked International Women's Day on March 8. Special events were organised, and the diverse range of career opportunities available in the rail sector was highlighted.
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NewsSiemens rolls out first Cascades Charger locomotive
USA: The first of eight SC-44 Siemens Charger diesel-electric locomotives ordered by Washington State Department of Transportation has been rolled out at the manufacturer’s Sacramento plant. The locomotives are to be used with Talgo coaches on the Cascades service from Eugene, Oregon, to Vancouver in Canada, which is operated by ...
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NewsVTG reports an 'exciting and eventful year'
EUROPE: Synergies following the acquisition of AAE and improved efficiency across the business meant wagon leasing and rail logistics company VTG AG saw a 2·6% rise in operating profit to €345·3m in 2016, despite a 4·0% fall in revenue to €986·9m. Announcing the company’s preliminary results on March 7, CEO ...
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NewsSydney Trains extends maintenance contract
AUSTRALIA: Sydney Trains has exercised a A$225m option to extend Downer EDI’s maintenance contract for its fleet of Millennium electric multiple-units for a further 10 years from June 2017. Downer supplied 35 four-car Millennium sets from 2002 and has been responsible for their maintenance from new. Downer is ...