All Railway Gazette International articles in September 1997 – Page 2

  • News

    Finance

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    Czech Republic: The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed an Ecu200m loan towards upgrading the Czech section of the Warszawa - Wien corridor between Ostrava and Breclav.France: District de l’Agglomération de Montpellier has received a Fr375m loan from the EIB to fund construction of its planned 15 km light rail ...

  • News

    Tigers invest in urban rail expansion

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    Urban rail development is proceeding apace in an arc of the Pacific Rim from Singapore to South Korea. Chris Jackson looks at some of the projects which are setting the pace

  • News

    ÖBB to renew electric fleet

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    AUSTRIAN Federal Railways has ordered a fleet of 230 km/h electric locomotives from Siemens, following a fiercely contested bidding race with Adtranz. According to Director-General Dipl-Ing Dr Helmut Draxler, final bids were received on July 24 and the ÖBB Board approved the deal on July 29.The Sch3bn contract covers supply ...

  • News

    Railcard sales drive

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    BRITAIN’S Association of Train Operating Companies, representing all 25 passenger franchises, has targeted young and ’young elderly’ travellers in its year-long drive to add 200000 more people to the 2 million holders of railcards granting up to one-third discount on many tickets. Sales of railcards, valid for 12 months, and ...

  • News

    Super power down south

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    Having carried 1·9 million tonnes of freight in the first five months of this year, an astonishing 43% up on the same period in 1996, freight concessionaire Nuevo Central Argentino is expecting to see another 600000 tonnes a year move over the former General Mitré network from October. Minera Alumbrera ...

  • News

    Natural disasters

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    SERIOUS flooding has damaged railways in both Europe and North America this summer, resulting in at least two passenger train derailments because of bridge collapses. One was Amtrak’s Southwest Chief, which left the track at around 145 km/h while traversing a damaged bridge over a desert gully in northwestern Arizona ...

  • News

    ERRI leads the quest to cut railway noise

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    INTRO: While railways can rightly claim many ’green’ credentials, noise reduction is one field where they need to make rapid progress. The European Rail Research Institute is tackling the issue urgently BYLINE: Brian Hemsworth BSc, CEng, FIOA and William Bird MA, CEng, MIMechE, MCIT*BYLINE: * Brian Hemsworth is Manager, Noise ...

  • News

    Talgo curving trials

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    The US Federal Railroad Administration has allowed Amtrak and Burlington Northern Santa Fe to test a Talgo 200 Pendular trainset at higher speeds on curves between Portland, Oregon, and Blaine, Washington, just south of the Canadian border. During the three weeks of trials, which began on August 5, the train ...

  • News

    Crane delivered to Tanzania

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    KIROW Rail & Port AG, based in Leipzig, has completed a KRC 900 rail-mounted rescue crane, and delivered it to Tanzanian Railways Corp. Work is now under way on a similar crane for Ghana.Kirow has completed the take over of Kocks Krane International, which specialises in container and heavy-lift cranes, ...

  • News

    Russians implement cost saving programme

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    SWEEPING proposals to reduce the cost of operating Russia’s 87469 km rail network are being implemented under an ’anti-crisis programme’ agreed at a board meeting of the Ministry of Railways in July. Recently appointed Railways Minister Nikolai E Aksyonenko said that the restructuring of Russian Railways (RG 3.97 p149) was ...

  • News

    Cross-Manila conflict

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    ON AUGUST 1 Philippine National Railways Assistant General Manager Rafael Jiminez called for the planned Manila - Calabarzon Express (MCX) commuter rail network and the Northrail link to Clark Air Base to be integrated to offer through services between north and south Luzon via central Manila. Developer Ayala Land Inc ...

  • News

    S-Bahn ring nears completion

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    BERLIN S-Bahn services will resume on the 3·5 km Neuk

  • News

    US suppliers convene in Kansas City

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    NORTH AMERICAN track maintenance experts and suppliers will be congregating in Kansas City, Missouri, this month, for the Expo 97 show organised by the Railway Engineering-Maintenance Suppliers Association. Running from September 7 to 10, Expo 97 will be held in the H Roe Bartle Hall of the Kansas City Convention ...

  • News

    No reason to celebrate

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    SWISS Federal Railways’ sesquicentenary celebrations this summer were marred by a series of unhappy events ranging from the suicide of Personnel Director Jean-Pierre Kalin on July 29 to a clutch of failures by the high-profile Cisalpino tilting trains. Arguments over who should take responsibility for the Cisalpino problems spawned much ...

  • News

    Last chance to catch the night train

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    MANY long-distance passenger trains outside Europe and Japan must by nature run overnight, with seating accommodation convertible to sleeper berths or bunks. In Europe, daytime inter-city trains predominate, with high speed services taking a steadily growing share of the business. This intense focus on high speed has left many of ...

  • News

    Kumamoto low-floor car enters service

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    AUGUST 2 saw the start of revenue operations with Japan’s first 100% low-floor tram in the city of Kumamoto. Ordered in June 1996 from Niigata Engineering and Adtranz, the two-section car was delivered for commissioning trials in April and was approved for operation by the Japanese Ministry of Transport in ...

  • News

    In Brief

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    Amtrak has formed a Customer Advisory Committee in an effort to improve its understanding of ’customers’ needs and concerns’. A maximum of 31 members will represent Amtrak’s various corridor, long-distance and short-distance services. The 14-day advance purchase qualification for discounted Eurostar Day Trip tickets from London to Calais, Lille and ...

  • News

    In Brief

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    n The US Surface Transportation Board has announced it will issue its decision on the break-up of Conrail between CSX and Norfolk Southern on April 14 next year, followed by a written ruling on June 8. The deadline for comment, protests and opposition evidence is October 21, followed by oral ...

  • News

    Luxury lounge boosts image

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    THE FIRST FRUITS of German Railway’s programme to modernise its major stations were unveiled on July 23, when the premier DB Lounge was opened at Frankfurt-am-Main Hauptbahnhof. The main building has been extensively modified, with a glazed cupola flooding the public areas with natural light.At ground level is a spacious ...

  • News

    TAF to boost capacity on urban routes

    1997-09-01T10:00:00Z

    INTRO: Italian Railways and Nord Milano Railway are about to put into service a fleet of 50 double-deck EMUs for the cross-city Passante route; each high-capacity TAF trainset will carry up to 848 passengers in air-conditioned comfortBYLINE: Ing Giancarlo PiroTony TrainaStrategic Business UnitRolling Stock & Traction DivisionItalian RailwaysIN ...