Technology news – Page 4
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NewsWatco to deploy TugVolt autonomous self-propelled wagons
USA: Short line railway, terminal and port operating group Watco has reached a commercial agreement to deploy Intramotev’s TugVolt autonomous self-propelled wagon battery-electric wagons on its network.
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Rail Business UKDigital ticket trial goes live between Leeds and Harrogate
UK: The latest phase of the Department for Transport-sponsored digital pay-as-you-go ticketing trial programme has gone live on Northern Trains’ Harrogate to Leeds route.
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NewsFirstClass safety systems installed at Etihad Rail depot
UAE: FirstClass Safety & Control has supplied and installed two bespoke Depot Protection Systems at Etihad Rail’s largest maintenance facility.
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Rail Business UKReal-time disruption map videos launched to help passengers during unexpected train delays
UK: Visual Disruption Maps have been launched to explain what is happening when train services are disrupted, how services are affected and what travellers should do next.
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NewsMoovit aims to simplify public transport for visitors to Roma
ITALY: The Moovit app can now be used to both plan and pay for multi-modal journeys around Roma, in a development which public transport operator ATAC expects to be particularly useful for the millions of tourists who arrive in the eternal city every year.
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NewsIndia tests rail-borne ballistic missile launch system
INDIA: An intermediate-range ballistic missile has been successfully test launched from a rail-based mobile launcher system under a ‘full operational scenario’, the Ministry of Defence has announced.
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NewsLoco with software-defined safety system authorised for operation
BELGIUM: Operational authorisation has been granted for the first locomotive equipped with a software-defined onboard automatic train protection platform developed by Škoda Group subsidiary The Signalling Company.
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Rail Business UKLondon Trams to trial VibeSafe alert system
UK: London Trams is to trial technology which uses track vibrations to alert pedestrians when trams are approaching crossings.
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Rail Business UKSwedish predictive maintenance technology to support Drax wagon fleet
UK: Davis Wagon Services is to use Swedish company Predge’s data-driven approach to help minimise downtime and improve reliability of electricity generator Drax’s biomass wagon fleet.
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In depthHungary: ETCS deployment makes slow progress
The maximum speed on two Hungarian lines has been increased to 160 km/h following the introduction of ETCS Level 2, and officials report progress with its deployment by Chinese contractors on the Budapest – Beograd corridor. Benjámin Zelki investigates.
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NewsSolent Breeze Mobility‑as‑a‑Service app trial to end
UK: A five‑year trial of the Breeze app, described as the UK’s first fully integrated, multi‑city Mobility‑as‑a‑Service transport app, is to end on October 31.
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NewsDriverless tram enters passenger service
RUSSIA: A fully automated driverless tram has entered regular passenger service in Moskva, following a multi-stage testing programme.
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Metro Report InternationalBART launches Tap & Ride contactless payment
USA: The San Francisco Bay Area’s BART has introduced tap-in tap-out payment with contactless bank cards and mobile services.
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NewsTÜV Süd puts digital automatic couplers to the test
GERMANY: TÜV Süd’s Görlitz rolling stock test centre is carrying out extensive stress tests on digital automatic couplers from several manufacturers to support the authorisation process.
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NewsKRRI develops a high speed train bogie 30% lighter and with lower air resistance
KRRI is developing a lightweight bogie concept aimed at increasing the operating speed of high speed trains, reducing the bogie weight by 30% and improving air resistance to cut energy consumption.
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NewsMarmon Rail launches safer tank wagon cleaning system
NORTH AMERICA: Marmon Rail has launched a mobile system for the on-site cleaning of tank wagons without the need for anyone to enter confined spaces containing hazardous residues.
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NewsNokia launches ‘industry-first’ 5G radio to support FRMCS migration
INTERNATIONAL: Nokia has launched what it says is the industry’s first commercial 5G radio for the 1 900 MHz band as part of its work to support railways’ transition to the emerging FRMCS telecoms standards.
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Rail Business UKEast Midlands Railway begins digital pay-as-you-go ticketing trial
UK: The first of four Department for Transport sponsored trials of GPS-based digital pay-as-you-go ticketing using smart phones rather than dedicated smartcards or contactless bank cards is now underway.
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Rail Business UKLive trial suggests Virtual Worksite Marker Boards could save the rail industry £23m per year
UK: The effectiveness and safety of using Virtual Worksite Marker Boards instead of physical marker boards has been successfully trialled during engineering works on the East Coast Main Line.
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NewsSeamless terminal interfaces to make rail freight more competitive
GERMANY: The Protostellar joint venture of Hitachi Rail, MT Logistics, and DB Cargo has developed the cloud-based InGa-Z terminal operating system to improve efficiency at intermodal freight facilities.