All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 1450
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Mr Henri Kuitunen has been named President & Chief Executive Officer of VR Group Ltd. He replaces Mr Panu Haapala, who became President on January 1, but died suddenly on March 15. Mr Albert Vilalta has been appointed President of the Spanish rail infrastructure authority GIF. Mr Francisco Ballesteros ...
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RT preferred to RS
ON MARCH 17 the Californian city of Folsom abandoned plans to buy RegioSprinter diesel railcars for a commuter rail line in favour of an extension to Sacramento Regional Transit’s electric light rail network. RT has agreed to build the 12 km link from Sunrise Boulevard to Folsom by 2000 at ...
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TER prototypes take to the rails
INTRO: The first of two pre-production TER regional diesel trainsets for French National Railways was unveiled at Orléans on March 26NINE of France’s 20 région presidents attended the ceremonies at Orléans station on March 26 to mark the arrival of French National Railways’ first TER diesel trainset. Their presence was ...
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Publications
Railways & Renewable Energy SourcesThe Community of European Railways’ response to a European Commission Green Paper on Energy for the Future notes that electrified railways can harness a wide variety of renewable energy sources, and suggests that the creation of a high-speed rail network in Europe by 2010 will reduce ...
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Punggol tenders
SINGAPORE’s Land Transport Authority has called tenders for design, supply and installation of trackwork on the planned 20 km North East line and the 6·4 km Changi Airport branch off the existing MRT East line. The NEL package also includes trackwork for the Sengkang depot, which will accommodate a fleet ...
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SBB restructures from within
INTRO: Swiss Federal Railways has completed the largest restructuring programme in its history, without the help of external consultants. Impetus for reform came from within SBB and from recent European and national legislation BYLINE: Hans-Jurg SpillmannSecretary General, Swiss Federal Railways SBB has just completed an extremely complex process of reform ...
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Sidetrack
Steaming backWITH a national electricity shortage following the run-down of the Chernobyl nuclear plant and soaring prices for imported oil, Ukrainian Railways has resorted to traditional motive power for trains in the Dniepropetrovsk coalfield and around Lviv in the west of the country. Hungarian-built steam locos mothballed in the 1960s ...
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‘Stupendous deal’ nets £1bn for right to revive West Coast fortunes
ON FEBRUARY 19, Virgin Rail was awarded a 15 year franchise to operate InterCity services on Britain’s West Coast Main Line between London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow. Handover of the operation took place at 02.00 on March 9. Announcing the details of the award, Franchising Director John O’Brien hailed ...
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Active and semi-active suspensions smooth 300 km/h ride
INTRO: Compressed air controlled by accelerometers restrain sway and yaw of the rear car of JR West’s Series 500; controlled dampers perform a similar function to improve the ride of first class cars and those carrying pantographsBYLINE: Hisashi NorinaoRolling Stock DeptJR WestON MARCH 22, Japan joined the exclusive club of ...
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Manila LRT expansion accelerated
PROPOSALS for a fourth light rail line in Manila were formally approved by the Philippines’ Investment Co-ordination Committee on March 6, clearing the way for the Department of Transport & Communications to invite private sector bids for the US$690m project.Line 4 would be a fully-elevated 15·1 km link from ...
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Laos signs rail construction accord
LAOS: Trains are set to reach Laos by the end of next year, with the signing of an agreement in mid-February between the government and Thai conglomerate Shaviriya Group. This paves the way for the private sector steel, information technology and property group to develop a network of up ...
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BHP puts its ACES on train health monitoring
INTRO: Significant improvements in operating safety and reduced rolling stock maintenance costs have followed the introduction of automated train health monitoring systems on Australia’s Mount Newman iron ore lineBYLINE: Janusz DudekPrincipal EngineerAdvanced Technical Research OrganisationPILBARA heavy-haul railway operator BHP Iron Ore has introduced a whole train condition monitoring system on ...
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Adtranz scoops RZD three-phase deal
ON FEBRUARY 14 Russia’s Ministry of Railways signed a contract with ABB Daimler-Benz Transportation (Schweiz) AG for the development of three-phase-motored electric locomotives for the country’s 1524mm gauge network. Adtranz is to provide complete traction packages for an initial build of 21 six-axle locos, worth around SFr80m. Designated Class EP10, ...
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CargoSprinter spearheads DB’s attack on the merchandise market
German Railway’s second CargoSprinter prototype was handed to its owners at a colourful ceremony in the test shop of Waggonfabrik Talbot in Aachen on February 27. Klaus Junke from DB Cargo and Dipl-Ing Peter Fabel, Head of Freight Projects in DB’s New Systems Division in Minden, received the crimson-painted unit ...
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Spoornet moves to automate train health monitoring
INTRO: Condition monitoring of a range of equipment on moving trains can lead to fewer delays, lower maintenance costs and smaller component stocks. The key is to marry detection equipment with automatic vehicle identification so that management knows precisely where and when to target resourcesBYLINE: J J Marais Pr EngSenior ...
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Madrid awards suburban DBOM
ON FEBRUARY 25 the Madrid regional government selected the UTE consortium of Madrid Metro and contractors OCP, Cubiertas & MZOV, Entrecanales and FCC for a concession to design, build, operate and maintain a 20 km suburban railway from Vic
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DB backtracks on lineside signals
GERMAN Railway’s management board has overturned its November 1996 decision not to provide lineside signals on the 135 km central section of the K
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Extra capacity to Richards Bay at lower cost
INTRO: Spoornet’s coal exports are set to grow - if costs are cut to beat competition. While extra substations are going in, the target of 65 million tonnes a year will mainly be achieved through more efficient operationsBYLINE: Philip van HeerdenSenior Manager (Planning)SpoornetBYLINE: Dave BudlerSenior Manager (Strategic Planning)Excoal, SpoornetSOUTH AFRICA’S ...
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Valencia calls LRT bids
PREQUALIFICATION BIDS were due at the end of March for construction work on the first phase of a 23 km light rail line in the Venezuelan city of Valencia. CA Metro de Valencia plans to announce a shortlist of approved tenderers in May. One contract covers a 2·3 km section ...
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Bordeaux revives light rail
PLANS FOR a three-route light rail network have been given the go-ahead in Bordeaux; on February 28 the Communauté Urbaine voted in favour of a Systra-Sofretu-Sofrerail proposal. Two years ago plans for a VAL mini-metro were abandoned after studies costing FFr370m.The 21·3 km first phase is costed at between Fr2·8bn ...