All News articles – Page 270
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News
VIA revenue up
INCREASING passenger numbers contributed to improved financial results at VIA Rail Canada during 2002. The Crown Corporation’s revenue for 2002 was C$270·8m, an increase of 90% since 1990. In the same period passenger numbers have risen by over half a million. Last year brought an increase of 116000 passengers to ...
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Swedish spend
ON APRIL 15 Banverket presented a formal application to the Swedish government to invest SKr275m during 2004. The money would form the first stage of a 12-year package totalling SKr101·5bn which is due to be approved later this year. Banverket is currently undertaking public consultation on its long-term investment plan ...
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STC to upgrade
CONSULTANT SYSTRA is to design a modernisation of STC Mexico City Metro’s busiest lines-1, 2 and 3. The eight-month contract involves a technical assessment of the three lines and development of an action plan for their complete overhaul, starting in November. Systra will also produce a detailed programme of works ...
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Suckers no more
MAY 4 sees a 33% hike in the flat fare on the New York subway, from US$1·50 to $2·00. Despite a wave of protests, Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s board of directors voted unanimously in favour of the increase on March 6, along with a 25% increase in commuter rail fares. MTA ...
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Wind tunnel
EUROTUNNEL has signed an agreement with two firms planning to build a wind farm on land at its French terminal. If planning permission is obtained, five 2MW turbines will be erected at Coquelles by Canadian energy company Boralex and Innovent, a French company specialising in the design and management of ...
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Tunnelling under Valencia
THE SPANISH Ministry of Development has begun public consultation on a €804·5m package of works in Valencia that would enable high speed trains to serve the city centre without reversing at the Estació del Nord terminus, as is currently the case for inter-city services on the conventional network. The programme ...
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The writing’s off the wall
PAINT or ink scrawled across signs coated with K20209 AntiGraf film cannot stick to its fluoropolymer surface, and instead ’floats’, making removal with spirit-based solvents a simple task. The 50
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Record attendance at Rail-Tech 2003
UTRECHT is the location for Rail-Tech Europe 2003, which will be held at the Royal Dutch Jaarbeurs exhibition complex from April 1 to 3. Organiser Europoint expects a record attendance at the fourth Rail-Tech event, which will be opened by Antoine Martens, Chief Operating Officer of Belgian National Railways. Tickets ...
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Line 9 gets CBTC
BARCELONA Line 9 is to be equipped for fully-automatic driverless operation using communications-based train control. On March 6 the regional government’s construction authority GISA signed a €72·5m contract with a consortium of Siemens Transportation Systems and Invensys subsidiary Dimetronic SA.Due to open in phases between 2005 and 2008, the 41·4 ...
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Karelia accord signed
A TRIPARTITE agreement boosting railway investment in the Russian republic of Karelia was signed at Petrozavodsk on February 22. First Deputy Minister of Railways Vladimir Yakunin was joined by October Railway President Gennady Komarov and Karelia's Governor Sergei Katanandov. The ministry has allocated 7·2bn roubles for electrification of 410 km ...
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GE plant accord
GENERAL Electric Transportation Systems confirmed on March 7 that it was planning to build a diesel engine factory near St Petersburg. Director of Locomotive Programmes Douglas Rockwell said the company was negotiating to supply 765 engines to Russian Railways over the next five years. He expected an agreement with the ...
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Achieving public value through co-operation
Alexander van Altena, Director for Rail in the Ministry of Transport & Public Works, spoke to Andrew Grantham about the new Railways Act, and the Dutch government’s plans for the future of the national rail network
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NS adopts standard pointwork
INTRO: A range of standard high performance turnouts and crossings being introduced across the Dutch network uses ’plug-and-play’ technology to reduce possession time and ensure rapid availability after installationWITH two new lines under construction and several major upgrading projects in hand, track renewal has become a significant issue on the ...
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Spanish reform moves ahead
FOLLOWING SEVERAL months of consultation with the major trade unions, at its meeting on March 14 the Spanish cabinet agreed to submit the government’s railways bill to the lower house of parliament. This will write European Union directives 2001/12/CE, 2001/13/CE and 2001/14/CE into Spanish law, separating infrastructure management from operations ...
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Straight Ahead ’risks re-regulation’
CANADIAN Minister of Transport David Collenette published Straight Ahead - a Vision for Transportation in Canada at the end of February. Intended as a strategic document, Straight Ahead sets out principles and guidelines designed to ’reflect the currents of change that will shape Canada’s economy and society’ for the next ...
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Rough ride ahead
THE STAGE is set for serious discord between Austrian Federal Railways and the newly-elected government, a coalition of conservative and far-right forces. Transport Minister Hubert Gorbach is not expected to favour the status quo, and there are early indications of trouble. ÖBB’s new Director of Infrastructure Dr Alfred Zimmerman said ...
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Hard times in Buenos Aires
THE FAILINGS of the once-vaunted privatisation of suburban operations in Buenos Aires were thrown into sharp relief when senior executives from concessionaires Ferrovías, Metropolitano, Trenes de Buenos Aires and Metrovías where summoned to a meeting on February 27 with Minister of Production Aníbal Fern
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DLR starts airport branch
CEREMONIES were held in East London on March 4 to mark the start of work on the 4·4 km extension of the Docklands Light Railway to London City Airport and King George V station in North Woolwich. Completion is scheduled for autumn 2005. Participants at the event included DLR Ltd ...
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More trouble at Alstom
SO FAREWELL, Michel Moreau. The President of Alstom Transport left the company last month, and will be replaced by Philippe Mellier, who will join Alstom from the Volvo Group on May 1. Meanwhile, Deputy President of the Transport sector Gérard Blanc has been named Acting President. Confirming rumours that all ...
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Malmö tunnel approved
THE SWEDISH government announced on March 6 that it had approved construction of the Citytunnel link in Malmö. As well as confirming detailed plans for the 17 km cross-city route, the decision paves the way for the calling of tenders for civil engineering work. The link will connect Malmö Central ...