Passenger rail news – Page 255
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NewsTalgos on test for Moscow - Europe services
RUSSIA: By the end of April the Shcherbinka research centre near Moscow will complete tests which aim to assess whether Talgo automatic gauge-changing technology could be used under Russian conditions. Coaches supplied by the Spanish firm will also undergo running trials on the Moscow - St Petersburg and Moscow - ...
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NewsDSB buys into German passenger market
GERMANY: Danish national railway DSB has acquired 50% stake in Frankfurt-based regional train operator VIAS GmbH, giving it a foothold in the German market which it will use to bid for future operating contracts. Subject to regulatory approval the deal will be completed by May. 'VIAS is a well run ...
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NewsVeolia strengthens position
GERMANY: With the December timetable change NordWestBahn took over Niers-Rhein-Emscher-Netz services under a 16-year contract with the Rhein-Ruhr transport authority which is expected to generate total revenue of €500m. The contract will be expanded at the end of this year with the addition of services from Oberhausen to Duisburg-Ruhrort and ...
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NewsMetrolink's Crash Energy Management coaches arrive
USA: The first two of 117 double-deck coaches incorporating Crash Energy Management being supplied by Hyundai Rotem to southern California commuter operator Metrolink under a $229m contract were unloaded at the Port of Long Beach on March 2. The initial pair of cars were built in South Korea, but the ...
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NewsOregon joins Wisconsin to get better price on Talgos
USA: Oregon Department of Transportation has announced an $36·6m order for two 13-car passenger trainsets to be supplied by Talgo America for use on Amtrak's Cascades service from 2012. The Eugene - Vancouver route is currently operated using three Talgo Pendular 200 sets owned by the state of Washington and ...
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NewsAngel Trains in Grand Central HST sale and lease-back deal
UK: Rolling stock leasing company Angel Trains has bought three High Speed Train sets from Sovereign Trains, sister company of open access operator Grand Central Railway. The inter-city diesel trains will be leased back to the operator under a contract running to December 2016, Angel Trains announced on March 2. ...
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NewsJR-East prepares to test Series E6
JAPAN: East Japan Railway confirmed in February that it expects to take delivery in July of its first pre-production Series E6 mini-shinkansen trainset, designed for 320 km/h operation on the Tohoku Shinkansen route. The train will undergo an extensive testing and commissioning programme before entering revenue service in March 2013 ...
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NewsNetanyahu’s rail expansion plans approved
ISRAEL: The Ministry of Transport & Road Safety announced on February 24 that the government had approved the US$7·2bn first phase of the ‘Israel Ways’ transport investment package, promoted by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Transport Minister Yisrael Katz. The ambitious plan originally envisaged expenditure of US$14bn ...
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NewsZS awards first of three train contracts
SERBIA: ZS has selected Russian firm Metrowagonmash to supply 10 two-car diesel multiple-units for regional and suburban services. These will form the first of three batches of rolling stock being procured to modernise the national railway’s passenger fleet. The order is being partly funded by a ...
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NewsSmart and secure
TICKETING: Four major players in the smart card ticketing sector have launched a joint initiative to drive smart media convergence around a common open standard. Card manufacturers Giesecke & Devrient and Oberthur Technologies have teamed up with chip suppliers Infineon Technologies and Inside Contactless. They are encouraging other companies in ...
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NewsHessische Landesbahn orders Coradia DMUs
GERMANY: Alstom Transport announced a €65m order to supply Hessische Landesbahn with a further 23 two-car Coradia Lint 41 diesel multiple-units on February 26. HLB ordered the units through Hannover Mobilien Leasing after being selected by the Rhein-Main transport authority to operate regional services between Limburg, Gießen, Fulda and Gersfeld ...
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NewsNo IEP contract before election, Adonis confirms
UK: A contract to supply the next generation of long-distance trains under the Intercity Express Programme will not be signed before the upcoming general election, it was confirmed on February 26. In a written statement, Secretary of State for Transport Lord Andrew Adonis said that since the programme was launched ...
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NewsNothing rotten in the state aid of Denmark
DENMARK: National railway DSB is not being over-compensated for services operated under public service contracts which the government awarded without tendering, the European Commission announced on February 24. The Commission launched an inquiry into DSB’s 2000-04 and 2005-14 contracts in response to complaints from Gråhundbus and Dansk ...
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NewsFirst Régio2N double-deck train order signed
FRANCE: SNCF has signed the firm order for the first 80 Régio2N high-capacity double-deck electric multiple-units, Bombardier Transportation announced on February 24. The order was placed on behalf of the regions which are funding the units, and is the first within a framework agreement for up to 860 sets worth ...
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NewsJoint venture to revive DMU manufacturing
USA: A joint venture company has been established to restart production of diesel multiple-units to the designs of the former Colorado Railcar, which ceased operations in 2008. Colorado Railcar's assets were acquired by Value Recovery Group to form US Railcar LLC, which will now restart production through the US ...
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NewsSiberia across your screen
RUSSIA: Google and Russian Railways have launched a ‘virtual’ Trans-Siberian journey from Moscow to Vladivostok. Anyone with a broadband internet connection will be able to make a 'journey' along the route starting from any city or station without leaving home. Video footage totalling around 150 h was shot through a ...
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NewsCrash investigations underway in Brussels
BELGIUM: Domestic and international train services into Brussels Midi remain severely disrupted as investigations continue into the cause of the fatal train crash at Buizingen during the morning rush hour on February 15. The worst railway accident in Belgium for more than 50 years killed 18 people, including one of ...
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NewsAmtrak plans fleet renewal programme
USA: As part of its annual budget submission to Congress, national passenger operator Amtrak published its long-term fleet renewal strategy on February 15, envisaging total expenditure of around US$23bn over the next 30 years. With the average vehicle age now exceeding 25 years, Amtrak President Joseph Boardman says ‘the need ...
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NewsChinese firm's European bid unsuccessful
POLAND: Warszawa regional operator Koleje Mazowieckie announced that Bombardier Transportation had been selected to supply 11 electric locomotives on February 12, beating low bidder CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive. Bombardier's bid to supply Traxx locomotives for €41m undercut Siemens Mobility's offer of €44m. CSR Zhuzhou had been the lowest bidder at ...
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NewsLow-floor train to boost Lausanne suburban capacity
SWITZERLAND: Invited guests rode on the first of six RBe 4/8 electric multiple-units being built for the metre-gauge Lausanne-Echallens-Bercher railway on February 17, just 14 months after Stadler Rail was awarded the SFr41m contract to supply them. They will enter passenger service from May. Over the past 10 years traffic ...