All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 773
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NewsPrivate operation ends on Sarmiento route
ARGENTINA: The Sarmiento commuter route in Buenos Aires was due to return to full state control on October 24, transferring to federal railway operating company SOFSE and infrastructure company ADIF SE. Since the government revoked the concession held by Trenes de Buenos Aires in 2012, the Sarmiento network had been ...
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NewsFremantle Port rail expansion contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: York Civil was awarded a contract to extend the North Quay Rail Terminal at Fremantle Port near Perth on October 23. The A$31m project is funded by the central government, which is contributing A$18·6m, and the state of Western Australia, which is providing A$12·4m. The work will extend ...
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NewsEurope's railways are getting even safer
EUROPE: The number of people killed in railway-related accidents in the EU during 2012 was the lowest since data collection to common standards began in 2006, according to figures published by the European Railway Agency on October 21. The member states' national safety authorities recorded 36 passenger and 46 employee ...
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NewsTyne & Wear Metro launches door safety campaign
UK: A campaign to encourage passengers not to obstruct train doors has been launched on the Tyne & Wear Metro. This includes a specially-commissioned animation 'Use your brain near a train' which is being published via social media. The campaign has been launched in response to recommendations made by ...
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NewsSouth West Trains prepares to introduce longer trains
UK: South West Trains has taken delivery of the first two five-car Class 458/5 electric multiple-units rebuilt from former Gatwick Express Class 460 vehicles. The first 10-car formation is expected to enter service by early December, increasing peak capacity on commuter routes from Reading and Hounslow to London Waterloo station. ...
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NewsSantiago metro lines 3 and 6 E&M contract awarded
CHILE: A consortium of Eurovia subsidiary ETF and Colas Rail has been awarded a €150m contract to build and maintain track and catenary on lines 3 and 6 of the Santiago metro. ETF's share is 55% The contract covers 75 track-km and 15 track-km in two depots. Once built, ETF ...
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NewsPere Calvet
Pere Calvet, Director General of Spanish operator FGC, has been named President of UITP’s Metro Assembly.
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NewsCuvillier confirms high speed alignments to Toulouse and Dax
FRANCE: Noting that his government ‘would prioritise the everyday transport needs of the French people without turning its back on high speed rail’, Transport Minister Frédéric Cuvillier confirmed on October 23 the government’s intention to build two new high speed lines under the 410 km Grand Projet Ferroviaire du Sud-Ouest. ...
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NewsSiemens funds rolling stock academy
UK: Siemens is to provide 50% of the cost of a training academy specialising in traction and rolling stock skills, to be built at its King's Heath depot in Northampton which maintains electric multiple-units for London Midland and is the headquarters for Siemens' UK service operation. The remainder of ...
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NewsFuture EU transport infrastructure policy to focus on TEN-T corridors
EUROPE: The European Commission has announced details of ‘the most radical overhaul of EU infrastructure policy since its inception in the 1980s’, setting out plans to shift the focus of future transport infrastructure investment from individual projects to nine defined trans-European corridors. This focus on major corridors announced on October ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news in brief
President Ollanta Humala of Peru has officially opened a sleeper manufacturing facility at the Arequipa plant of cement manufacturer Yura SA, representing an investment of US$15m. Vossloh is to establish a rail fastening factory in Waco, Texas. Production is scheduled to begin in mid-2014, creating 50 jobs and enabling ...
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NewsNetwork Rail signs five-year rail supply deals
UK: Infrastructure manager Network Rail has signed rail supply framework contracts with three steel manufacturers. The deals run for five years, with an option for a further five. The largest part of the framework will see Tata Steel's Scunthorpe plant supply around 140 000 tonnes of rail per year, depending ...
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NewsWorld rolling stock market October 2013
Australia: Mineral Resources (Equipment) Pty has awarded CSR Yangtze a contract to supply wagons worth 190m yuan. Chile: State railway EFE has ordered a further 12 Alstom X’Trapolis two-car EMUs as an option within a €54m contract for 12 announced in 2012. They are due to enter ...
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NewsMatterhorn Gotthard Bahn provides easier access to the Alps
SWITZERLAND: The first of 11 low-floor coaches ordered to increase train capacity and improve facilities for passengers with reduced mobility entered traffic on the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn on October 11, after a formal unveiling two days earlier. The air-conditioned coach built by Stadler Rail's Bussnang plant has wide doors, folding ...
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NewsUrban rail news in brief - October 2013
A study has found that the number of pedestrians in central Jerusalem has increased by 46% since the opening of the tramway in 2011. Delhi Metro Rail Corp has invited tenders for the supply of 75 standard gauge cars for the Kochi metro. On behalf of the state ...
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NewsSalvador metro Phase II PPP contract awarded
BRAZIL: Bahia state government and CCR signed a 30-year public-private partnership concession worth R$4bn for Phase II of the Salvador metro on October 15. The contract covers a 5·6 km extension to Line 1 from Pirajá to Acesso Norte, and preparation to extend the line 3·6 km to Águas ...
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NewsZürich suburban light rail line approved
SWITZERLAND: The federal government has approved the proposed 13·4 km Limmattalbahn light rail line which would link the Zürich suburbs of Altstetten, Dietikon and Killwangen-Spreitenbach. The project is backed by the cantons of Zürich and Aargau, which would pay 75% and 25% of the estimated SFr670m cost; a third of ...
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NewsCzech passenger market opening in sight
CZECH REPUBLIC The government has backed the Ministry of Transport's plans to call tenders by the end of the year for the operation of subsidised long-distance passenger services on five routes from December 2016: Praha - Ústí nad Labem - Cheb Praha - Ústí nad Labem - D??ín ...
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NewsZSSK Cargo seeks partners
SLOVAKIA: National freight operator ZSSK Cargo has invited expressions interest in acquiring stakes in two of the three subsidiaries which are to be established under the reform plan which the government approved in July. ZSSK Cargo is to become purely an operating company, 100% state owned but holding stakes in ...
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NewsFortaleza awards East Line contract
BRAZIL: A consortium of Acciona and Cetenco Engenharia has been awarded a R$2·3bn contract to build the Fortaleza metro East Line. The 12·4 km East Line will have 12 stations, of which 11 will be underground. It is expected to carry 400 000 passengers/day, and will provide interchange with ...