All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 1442
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Netherlands sizes up power conversion
INTRO: Everybody agrees that 25 kV AC is essential on three primary international routes; phased conversion between 2005 and 2017 is the best option for the rest of the trunk network, but who will pay?BYLINE: Robin HemelrijkSenior Project LeaderRailned InnovatieTHE DUTCH national network is 2739route-km of which 1991 km is ...
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Coruña tramway
JUNE saw the inauguration of a 4 km tramway in the Spanish city of A Coruña, linking the castle of San Antón and the Tower of Hercules. A 15min interval service is provided by two ’heritage’ trams built in the 1920s which have been rebuilt by CAF at Zaragoza.The line ...
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Cruising through the Rockies
AMERICAN Orient Express ran a series of three-day luxury rail cruises through the Rocky Mountains between Denver and Salt Lake City in July and August, hauled by two Genesis locos provided by Amtrak. On each of the 14 scheduled trips, a maximum of 100 passengers were carried in 15 refurbished ...
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Faster through the curves on JR-Central
INTRO: Since Japanese National Railways was divided into separate companies in 1987, JR-Central has put into service around 600 new vehicles for its 1067mm gauge network that carries over half a million passengers a day. Tilting trains have helped cut journey times on key routesBYLINE: Kazuhiro YoshikawaManager, Rolling Stock DepartmentConventional ...
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Out for the day
AVAILABLE until September 27, Passbask offers a day’s unlimited second class travel on French, Spanish and Basque Railways services between Bayonne and San Sebasti
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Refurbishment deal
BANGLADESH Railways diesel 2410 was rolled-out of the company’s Central Locomotive Works at Parbatipur on June 2, marking a milestone in a loco maintenance programme being funded by the Canadian International Development Agency. BR Director-General M A Manaf and Canadian High Commissioner Nicholas Etheridge participated in the ceremony to mark ...
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Sale delayed
AS BIDDING was about to close on the sale of Australian National, the federal finance ministry announced on June 20 that privatisation would be delayed by a month. The Office of Asset Sales had shortlisted 15 bidders, who were given until July 31 to submit offers for AN’s freight operations ...
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Heathrow Express passes delivery milestone
JUNE 23 saw the first Heathrow Express Class 332 EMU built by Siemens and CAF handed over to airport operator BAA plc at a ceremony at the new HEx Old Oak Common Train Care facility in west London. BAA Chief Executive Sir John Egan received a three-car set from his ...
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SNCB to renew diesel fleet
Belgian National Railways is to purchase a fleet of 80 two-car diesel multiple-units for its non-electrified secondary routes. SNCB’s Board of Directors decided on June 27 to award the contract to GEC Alsthom Transporte of Spain, following a Europe-wide bidding process which started in January 1996.To be delivered in 1999-2002, ...
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Redwing puts drivers in the picture
Driver-only operation offers cost savings, but the associated equipment - cameras, TV monitors and mirrors - are prone to vandalism. To view train doors, the driver must be able to stop the train accurately at the viewing point, and it is often difficult to continue to view the area around ...
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NY expansion
NEW YORK’s Metro-North Commuter Railroad has announced plans to relieve a major bottleneck its 123 km Harlem line, which has seen ridership increase by an average of 2·6% annually since 1984. Whereas the Hudson and New Haven lines each have three or four tracks throughout, the mid-Harlem section has only ...
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UIC faces up to revolution
The International Union of Railways marked its 75th birthday with a seminar in Paris on June 19 which revealed just how widely opinions differ on the best way to replace monolithic state-owned railways. But on one point there was consensus: the earthquake that has hit the industry in the 1990s ...
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Finance
Brazil: Ferrovia Sul-Atlântico is planning to invest US$56m this year, despite making a loss of nearly US$19m.Canada: CP Rail is to spend C$87m on capital projects in British Columbia; C$47m will go on an intermodal terminal near Vancouver.China: The Ministry of Railways has applied for a US$300m World Bank loan ...
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Flexible Thalys supplements
WITH the aim of making Thalys services more accessible to passengers travelling between the Netherlands and Belgium, a Flexi Supplement valid for two months is available until December 13. With the new product, passengers holding full-fare international tickets can board a Thalys service where the train manager will allocate them ...
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Franco-Dutch mouse takes on Netherlands Railways
ANNOUNCEMENT by Compagnie Générale d’Entreprises Automobiles on July 4 that it had acquired a 70% stake in the independent Dutch operator Lovers Rail confirms beyond all doubt that the French company is seeking to become a major player in providing contracted rail passenger services across Europe.From humble beginnings running branch ...
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Paris opening launches next round of French tram projects
PRESIDENTS Louis Gallois of French National Railways and Jean-Paul Bailly of Paris Transport Authority joined Minister of Transport Claude Gayssot to inaugurate the French capital's second modern tramway on July 1. Originally intended to open last year, the 11·3 km Tram Val de Seine links La Défense to Issy-Val ...
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Replaceable units keep GE locos rolling
INTRO: Computer diagnostics and the ability to replace electronic assemblies translates directly into higher asset utilisation, bringing major financial benefitsBYLINE: Vic SergeantSenior Systems Engineer,General Electric Transportation SystemsGENERAL ELECTRIC introduced the first ever microprocessor controlled diesel locomotive in production quantities in 1985. With the 4 000 hp C39-8, the concept of ...
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RDC to revive Guatemala Railways
ON JUNE 6 the government of Guatemala awarded a 50 year concession for the restoration, reopening and operation of the country's 914mm gauge national rail network to Compañía Desarrolladora Ferroviaria SA, an affiliate of Pittsburgh-based Railroad Development Corp. The government will receive 5% of gross income for the first two ...
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Hotel train power
GREAT Scottish & Western Railway Co, operator of The Royal Scotsman land cruise, has taken delivery of two ex-British Rail MkIII sleeping cars purchased from Porterbrook Leasing and converted by EMC (International) Ltd at Carnforth. Each 41·5 tonne vehicle now houses a 160 kW Volvo diesel generator set to meet ...
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Spadina LRT inaugurated
TORONTO Transit Commission was due to open its Spadina Avenue light rail extension on July 27, adding 3·7 km and 12 stops to the 2·1 km Harbourfront line opened in 1990. At the northern terminus, the line interchanges with the east-west Bloor-Danforth subway. TTC has shelved plans for a ...