All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 257
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NewsTemporary rules to keep the Channel Tunnel open
EUROPE: The European Parliament has approved temporary measures designed to ensure that rail operations through the Channel Tunnel can continue once the Brexit transition period ends on January 1 2021. The European Parliament approved the temporary rules under an urgent procedure on December 17 with 684 votes ...
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NewsIntegral DMUs extend S28 to Wuppertal
GERMANY: Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr has extended its Kaarst – Düsseldorf – Mettmann S-Bahn route S28 to Wuppertal Hbf with effect from the December 13 timetable change. The local service which previously terminated at Mettmann Stadtwald has been extended by around 7 km using a mix of reactivated tracks ...
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NewsMission to rethink freight transport
FRANCE: The Senate’s Committee for Regional Planning & Sustainable Development has launched a fact-finding mission to examine the future of freight transport in the face of environmental concerns. The mission’s work is expected to take around six months, with hearings being held across France. The team of ...
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NewsDirect award planned for hydrogen train services
GERMANY: Niedersachsen transport authority LNVG and the city of Bremen have advance given notice of their intention to directly award a contract for the proposed operation of hydrogen fuel cell trains on service RB33 Cuxhaven – Bremerhaven – Bremervörde – Stade. The authorities said there is currently ...
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NewsMFD Rail aims to build leading intermodal wagon business
SWITZERLAND: The management team and funds advised by Oaktree Capital Management have invested in MFD Rail, a start-up which aims to become one of Europe’s leading intermodal wagon leasing company over the next few years. MFD Rail says building a business from scratch ‘without having to ...
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NewsVästtrafik Zefiro Express EMU completed
SWEDEN: Bombardier Transportation has completed assembly of the first of 45 three-car Zefiro Express 200 km/h electric multiple-units ordered by Västra Götaland regional transport authority Västtrafik.
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NewsAutomated locomotive completes first trip
FRANCE: ‘A semi-autonomous train’ has run ‘under real operating conditions’ on the 16 km Longwy – Longuyon line in eastern France, national operator SNCF announced on December 16.
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NewsČD’s RegioPanter fleet grows further
CZECH REPBLIC: National operator ČD has awarded a consortium of Škoda Transportation and Škoda Vagonka firm orders for 48 additional RegioPanter 3 kV DC/25 kV 50 Hz dual-voltage regional EMUs. The orders confirmed on December 11 comprise 19 two-car units with 140 seats, procured under a ...
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NewsEstonian electrification design contract awarded
ESTONIA: Infrastructure manager Eesti Raudtee has awarded a joint venture of Spanish engineering companies Ardanuy Ingeneria and Ayesa Ingenieria y Arquitectura a €3·7m contract to produce the technical requirements and preliminary designs for its 500 track-km 25 kV 50 Hz electrification programme. Ardanuy said the contract would ...
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NewsBombardier Transportation steps up output at Crespin
FRANCE: Production of rolling stock at Bombardier Transportation’s Crespin factory in northern France is to be stepped up thanks to a €25m investment programme. Dubbed Plan 1000, the package announced by the company on December 4 will give the plant the ability to turn out 1 000 ...
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NewsFinnish Rail and Turku One Hour Train companies formed
FINLAND: Companies have been established by the government and local authorities to plan two major rail projects. Suomi-rata Oy, or Finnish Rail, will develop plans for new alignments and additional tracks needed to provide a 1 h journey time on the main corridor between Helsinki and Tampere, ...
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NewsStadler to supply freight locomotives to Uruguay
URUGUAY: Stadler has won its first contract in Uruguay, covering the supply of seven Euro4001 six-axle diesel locomotives which PORTREN will use to haul trains between UPM’s new pulp mill at Paso de los Toros and the port of Montevideo. PORTREN is a consortium of the Cointer ...
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NewsPreferred bidder for Perth station contract
AUSTRALIA: ADCO Constructions has been selected as preferred bidder to design and build Lakelands station as part of Perth’s Metronet suburban rail expansion programme. To be located 7 km north of Mandurah, the station will include a pedestrian overpass, bus interchange, 400-bay car park and associated infrastructure. ...
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NewsRDC takes over Sylt freight services
GERMANY: With effect from December 14, RDC Autozug Sylt has taken over from CFL Cargo as the operator of freight services across the causeway to the North Sea island of Sylt. RDC Autozug Sylt already runs car-carrying shuttle trains to and from the ...
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NewsPassenger counting partnership
EUROPE: London-based data technology company BlockDox has announced a strategic partnership with Berlin-based 3D sensor supplier Iris, which will provide high-precision sensors for its passenger counting systems. BlockDox’s PassengerCount provides train and bus operators with key analytics including boarding and alighting times and crowd and disruption management. ...
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NewsTurnout condition monitoring for more efficient maintenance
SWEDEN: Trafikverket has awarded Vossloh and DB Systemtechnik a multi-year contract to provide condition monitoring for a total of 1 000 turnouts. Sensors will continuously record data on selected parameters, which will be automatically transmitted to a Vossloh-owned cloud-based platform for processing and conversion into recommendations for ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
Battery manufacturer Saft has launched Saft Urja as the brand for products manufactured and sold by its subsidiary in India. ‘Urja means energy in Sanskrit, so by branding our products under the name of Saft Urja, we are reflecting the spirit of the country and showing Saft’s ...
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NewsTwo presidents inaugurate Afghanistan – Iran railway
AFGHANISTAN: The country’s first standard gauge railway, which links Herat province with Khaf in eastern Iran, was formally inaugurated with a ceremony on December 10. Afghanistan’s President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani and Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani participated by video conference because of the coronavirus ...
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NewsERRAC outlines nine strategic railway research priorities
EUROPE: The European Rail Research Advisory Council has published a list of nine ‘transforming projects’ which it believes are needed to maximise rail’s contribution towards meeting European transport and environmental goals. Intended to offer a framework for further decision-making on joint actions, the Strategic Research & Innovation ...