News – Page 214
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Metro Report InternationalWearable devices provide tram driver fatigue warnings
UK: Light rail industry association UKTram says prototype FOCUS+ wearable devices developed to detect tram driver fatigue have shown ‘remarkable results’ in independent testing, with an accuracy rate greater than 98%. The devices have been developed by Integrated Human Factors Ltd, following a Driver Innovation Safety ...
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NewsMSC takes 50% stake in open access high speed train operator Italo-NTV
ITALY: Global Infrastructure Partners has entered into a binding agreement to sell an approximately 50% stake in open access high speed train operator Italo-Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori to Mediterranean Shipping Co. The other approximately 50% stake will continue to be owned by New York based investor GIP, ...
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NewsRetro-styled open-sided coaches developed for tourist trains
RUSSIA: Vagonremmash has developed a range of retro-styled open-sided coaches for use on tourist and cruise trains. They have a capacity of 80 passengers, with heated benches, power sockets and bicycle spaces. Over summer the coaches were used on the steam-hauled Ruskeala ...
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Metro Report InternationalLightweight single-section tram enters service in Poznań
POLAND: The first single-section Moderus Gamma LF 05 AC tram built by local supplier Modertrans entered service on Route 99 in Poznań on September 18. The tram is less than 15 m long. Operator MPK Poznań and Modertrans believe it is the first single-section, fully low-floor ...
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NewsWhoosh opens as the fastest railway in southeast Asia
INDONESIA: The 142·3 km Jakarta – Bandung high speed line, now branded as Whoosh, was officially inaugurated by President Joko Widodo on October 2. This follows the launch of a limited free trial service during September, which the President said would continue until the start of revenue ...
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NewsNightjet unveiled as the ‘flagship of European night train traffic‘
AUSTRIA: Austrian Federal Railways has unveiled the first of its next generation of Nightjet fixed-formation loco-hauled trainsets for overnight trains, calling it ‘the new flagship of the European night train traffic’. The unveiling took place in the former Wien Nordwest station on September 30 as part ...
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In depthCanada: PPP model underpins High Frequency Rail aspirations
Canada’s High Frequency Rail programme is now at the procurement stage as the government seeks a PPP partner to deliver mostly dedicated tracks for inter-city passenger trains in the 1 000 km corridor between Toronto and Québec City by the mid-2030s. Nick Kingsley reports.
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NewsGerman infrastructure manager InfraGO to be launched in January
GERMANY: Deutsche Bahn’s supervisory board has endorsed the decision to merge DB Netz AG and DB Station & Service AG into a single infrastructure management business to be known as DB InfraGO AG with effect from January 1 2024. The decision was taken at the board’s regular ...
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NewsBank backs digital railway R&D
ITALY: The European Investment Bank is providing MerMec with a €30m loan to finance research and development of digital railway technology, including signalling for driverless trains, and diagnostic and management technology for rolling stock and infrastructure assets. An agreement covering the first €20m was signed by ...
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Metro Report InternationalJ-Train consortium wins Jerusalem Blue Line tramway contract
ISRAEL: The city of Jerusalem and the national transport and finance ministries have selected the J-Train consortium for a PPP contract to finance, build, operate and maintain the light rail Blue Line. J-Train comprises bus operator Dan Bus, construction company Denya Cebus and Spain’s Comsa. The ...
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Metro Report InternationalSuspended monorail with glass floor opens in China
CHINA: The Optics Valley Skyrail suspended monorail has opened in Wuhan, with glass-floored vehicles giving passengers a view downwards as well as sideways. The 10·5 km first phase of the line, which is primarily aimed at tourists, runs from Jiufengshan in Jiufeng National Forest Park to Longquanshan. ...
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Rail Business UKRailway engineering degree apprenticeship announced
UK: The University of South Wales and Coleg y Cymoedd have announced a railway engineering degree apprenticeship programme. The four-year course will give apprentices the opportunity to gain a university-accredited engineering degree. The first course will start in January 2024, and it will then run annually ...
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In depthComment: Rail safety credentials matter
Politicians contines to raise doubts with rail safety, despite railways being one of the safest forms of land transport. Benjámin Zelki considers that while continuous improvement is welcome, sweeping claims about rail safety may not always align with the evidence.
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NewsRail training programmes developed for young Saudis
SAUDI ARABIA: Alstom and Saudi Railway Polytechnic have formed a partnership to provide Saudis aged 18 to 26 with Rolling Stock & Traction and Signalling & Telecom technical and vocational training. The programme will begin with 20 trainees. Male participants will have six months of intensive ...
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Rail Business UKRail leaders court Labour as fears of ‘managed decline’ grow
UK: Amid mounting concern about potential cuts to rail provision, senior leaders in the passenger and freight markets have begun to engage more closely with the Labour Party ahead of a likely general election in 2024.
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NewsBeacon Rail completes MRCE acquisition
EUROPE: Beacon Rail announced on September 29 that it had completed the acquisition of locomotive leasing business Mitsui Rail Capital Europe from Mitsui & Co. The transaction had been agreed on August 7. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in the Netherlands, MRCE has a fleet of ...
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NewsBLS Cargo orders XLoad Vectron locomotives
SWITZERLAND: BLS Cargo has ordered 10 Siemens Mobility Vectron electric locomotives for use on north-south routes from Belgian and Dutch ports to Italy. The multi-system locos ordered on September 25 will be equipped for operation in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium. They will ...
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NewsPrivate operator’s Vectron locomotive arrives in Finland
FINLAND: What future operator Fenniarail says is the first electric locomotive to be acquired by a private operator in Finland arrived at the port of Hanko from Germany on September 17. Fenniarail ordered the Siemens Mobility Vectron electric locomotive in September 2022. The 1 524 mm ...
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Metro Report InternationalPolice robot to patrol New York Subway station
USA: A police security robot is being trialled at the New York Subway’s Times Square station. The K5 robot has been supplied by Knightscope, which develops autonomous security robots and emergency communication systems. The manufacturer said the K5 was designed to provided ‘force multiplying physical deterrence’, ...