Passenger rail news – Page 142
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Rail Business UKJoint venture to bid for HS2 rolling stock contract
UK: Bombardier Transportation and Hitachi Rail Europe have agreed to submit a joint bid for the contract to supply a fleet of high speed trainsets for High Speed 2, the companies confirmed on July 4. In November 2017 project promoter HS2 Ltd shortlisted Alstom, Bombardier Transportation UK, Hitachi Rail Europe, ...
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NewsÖBB orders Bombardier EMUs
AUSTRIA: National operator Austrian Federal Railways has placed a €188m firm order for 25 six-car Talent 3 regional electric multiple-units, Bombardier Transportation announced on July 3. The is the second order to be placed under a framework agreement for up to 300 Talent 3 units which was agreed in December ...
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NewsHa-Sharon Railway extension opens
ISRAEL: The Ha-Sharon Railway extension running west from the interim terminus at Hod Ha-Sharon/Sokolov station to the new Ra’anana South and Ra’anana West stations opened to passengers with the introduction of national operator ISR’s summer timetable on July 3. Guests including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Transport Minister Israel Katz ...
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NewsČD orders 50 coaches from Siemens and Škoda
CZECH REPUBLIC: National operator ČD has awarded a consortium of Siemens and Škoda Transportation a €115m contract to supply 50 Viaggio Comfort locomotive-hauled coaches. Announcing the order on July 3, ČD Chief Executive Pavel Krtek said the order would ‘further strengthen our competitiveness in main line transport, not only within ...
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News
Amtrak plans Amfleet I replacement
USA: Amtrak has issued a request for information seeking to explore options for ‘all types of rail vehicles including coach cars, trainsets and self-propelled units’ that could eventually replace its Amfleet I coaches. The single-deck coaches supplied by Budd in the 1970s are used primarily on shorter-distance routes east of ...
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NewsRijeka integrated transport agreement signed
CROATIA: An agreement for multimodal transport integration in the city of Rijeka was signed by the local authorities, passenger train operator HŽPP and bus operator Autotrolej on June 12. The agreement defines new ticket prices and timetables, with Autotrolej to revise its bus network to feed the rail services. ...
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NewsQueensland invests in Maryborough upgrade
AUSTRALIA: Visiting the Downer Rail rolling stock plant at Maryborough on June 26, Queensland’s Minister for Transport & Main Roads Mark Bailey announced that the state government is providing a A$10m grant for infrastructure improvements to support work on a range of refurbishment projects for Queensland Rail. The grant is ...
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NewsMälartåg double-deck train on show
SWEDEN: The first of 33 four-car Stadler double-deck EMUs for use on Mälartåg services in the Stockholm region was displayed at Stockholm C station on June 27. Leasing company Transitio ordered the 200 km/h units in June 2015 on behalf of the Mälab joint venture of local transport authorities in ...
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Rail Business UKAccessibility technology projects awarded funding
UK: Seven technology projects which aim to assist passengers with disabilities have been awarded a total of £600 000 of government funding to support development. Accessibility Evaluation Survey for Stations is a tool to help people responsible for station accessibility to identify problems and prioritise improvements.Less Visible Impairments will ...
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NewsSouth African road-rail bus launched
SOUTH AFRICA: Gauteng-based manufacturer RailPro is testing a road-rail vehicle intended for passenger transport on a railway line east of Pretoria. State-owned transport group Transnet is working with RailPro on the trials, which are being carried out on a 21 km route between Cullinan and Mamelodi via Rayton. Five ...
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NewsKathmandu rail link accord signed
ASIA: Construction of a trans-Himalayan rail link connecting China and Nepal is expected to be completed within seven years, following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two countries on June 21. No fewer than 14 separate co-operation agreements were signed during a visit to Beijing by Nepalese ...
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NewsBLS exercises EMU option to operate long-distance routes
SWITZERLAND: Regional operator BLS has accepted the Federal Office for Transport's June 12 ruling that it will be granted only two Interregio routes under the long-distance operating concession due to commence in December 2019. It expects to place orders in the next few weeks for eight MUTZ double-deck EMUs to ...
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NewsLEO Express confirms Praha – Kraków launch date
EUROPE: LEO Express is to launch its Praha – Kraków service on July 20, the Czech open access operator announced on June 25. Trains will leave Praha hl n at 16.10 on Fridays and Sundays, serving stations including Ostrava, Bohumín, Katowice and Oświęcim before arriving in Kraków at 23.19. The ...
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NewsFour shortlisted to supply Québec – Windsor trainsets
CANADA: Four companies have prequalified to submit proposals for the supply of trainsets to replace the fleet which national passenger operator VIA Rail currently uses on the Québec city – Windsor corridor. They are Bombardier Transportation Canada, Siemens Canada, Stadler US and Talgo. The shortlist announced on June 18 follows ...
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NewsNewag Impuls II EMU unveiled
POLAND: Newag unveiled the first of its next-generation of Impuls electric multiple-units at its factory in Nowy Sącz on June 18. The launch customer for the Impuls II is Łódź suburban operator ŁKA, which has ordered 14 three-car units under a 236·8m złoty contract signed in February 2017 which includes ...
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NewsOpen access operator SagaRail suspends services
SWEDEN: Private open access passenger operator SagaRail announced on June 20 that it had suspended the Stockholm – Linköping service which it had launched in February. The company said it was not viable to operate the service without being able to sell tickets through state incumbent SJ’s online channels. SagaRail ...
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NewsLithuanian Railways restructuring approved
LITHUANIA: National railway LG is to be restructured with effect from September 1, following government approval last month of proposals drawn up by the Ministry of Transport & Communications. LG will be reorganised into separate passenger, freight and infrastructure divisions, all controlled by a 100%-state owned holding company. Minister of ...
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NewsConnecticut regional passenger service launched
USA: Connecticut Governor Daniel Malloy joined federal, state, and local officials on June 16 to mark the launch of CTrail commuter rail services along a 100 km route linking New Haven and Hartford in Connecticut with Springfield, Massachusetts. The line is shared with Amtrak services, and the national passenger ...
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NewsTrenitalia signs Puglia operating contract
ITALY: Trenitalia signed a 15-year passenger operating contract with the region of Puglia on June 12. The total value of the contract is €1·58bn, including €72m/year for infrastructure usage and annual ticket revenues of €32m. The region is to provide subsidies to support an increase in train-km on the ...
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NewsOrbital line opens in Seoul
SOUTH KOREA: The Seohae Line orbital suburban railway serving Seoul was inaugurated on June 16. The 23·4 km route runs north-south from Sosa to Wonsi to the southwest of Seoul. The 12 stations include interchange with metro Line 1 at Sosa and Line 4 at Choji. All stations are ...