Urban transport news – Page 18
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Metro Report InternationalThessaloniki automated metro operating contract signed
GREECE: The operating and maintenance contract for the Thessaloniki metro has been signed, with opening now planned for the fourth quarter of year 2024. Project promoter Hellenic Metro announced in June that it had selected the THEMA Consortium of Milano transport operator ATM (51%) and French ...
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Metro Report InternationalItalian government funds more urban rail investment
ITALY: The national Ministry of Infrastructure & Transport announced on September 27 that it had allocated €362·1m towards the completion of tram Line 12 in Torino, extension of the Genova metro and safety improvements on three metro lines in Milano. The agreement means that the full ...
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Rail Business UKBattery trains could take Merseyrail to places it couldn’t previously reach
UK: Speaking to Rail Business UK at the opening of Headbolt Lane station in Kirkby, Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram expressed enthusiasm for extending Merseyrail services to more destinations by using battery power to avoid the need for electrification. Merseyrail trains reach Headbolt Lane using ...
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Rail Business UKHeadbolt Lane station opens with battery train service
UK: Headbolt Lane station in Kirkby opened on October 5, with services operated by Merseyrail and Northern terminating from opposite directions. Services run by the two operators previously terminated end-on at Kirkby, where the 750 V DC third rail electrification on the Merseyrail network ends. Merseyrail’s ...
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Metro Report InternationalPhiladelphia launches contactless payment
USA: Philadelphia transport agency SEPTA has rolled out contactless payment on its metro, light rail and bus services, with commuter rail services to follow in early 2024. The technology was supplied by Conduent under an ongoing fare collection systems contract. Fares are the same as using ...
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Metro Report InternationalIslamabad holds light rail talks
PAKISTAN: The Capital Development Authority has met with Chinese railway officials to discuss the potential development of a light rail system in Islamabad. Four possible lines were considered by CDA and two routes have been selected for further development. The first would run for 30·5 km ...
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Metro Report InternationalNew York Subway seeks cool ideas
USA: New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority has invited proposals for innovative, cost-effective and low emission ways to cool its subway stations. MTA is concerned that the subway network is vulnerable to extreme weather events, warning that extreme heat conditions are expected to increase as a result ...
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Metro Report InternationalUrban transport industry news round-up
This week’s round-up of news from the urban transport sector.
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Metro Report InternationalWearable devices provide tram driver fatigue warnings
UK: Light rail industry association UKTram says prototype FOCUS+ wearable devices developed to detect tram driver fatigue have shown ‘remarkable results’ in independent testing, with an accuracy rate greater than 98%. The devices have been developed by Integrated Human Factors Ltd, following a Driver Innovation Safety ...
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Metro Report InternationalLightweight single-section tram enters service in Poznań
POLAND: The first single-section Moderus Gamma LF 05 AC tram built by local supplier Modertrans entered service on Route 99 in Poznań on September 18. The tram is less than 15 m long. Operator MPK Poznań and Modertrans believe it is the first single-section, fully low-floor ...
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Metro Report InternationalJ-Train consortium wins Jerusalem Blue Line tramway contract
ISRAEL: The city of Jerusalem and the national transport and finance ministries have selected the J-Train consortium for a PPP contract to finance, build, operate and maintain the light rail Blue Line. J-Train comprises bus operator Dan Bus, construction company Denya Cebus and Spain’s Comsa. The ...
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Metro Report InternationalSuspended monorail with glass floor opens in China
CHINA: The Optics Valley Skyrail suspended monorail has opened in Wuhan, with glass-floored vehicles giving passengers a view downwards as well as sideways. The 10·5 km first phase of the line, which is primarily aimed at tourists, runs from Jiufengshan in Jiufeng National Forest Park to Longquanshan. ...
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Metro Report InternationalPolice robot to patrol New York Subway station
USA: A police security robot is being trialled at the New York Subway’s Times Square station. The K5 robot has been supplied by Knightscope, which develops autonomous security robots and emergency communication systems. The manufacturer said the K5 was designed to provided ‘force multiplying physical deterrence’, ...
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Metro Report InternationalTunnel dust collection train designed to clear the air
SOUTH KOREA: Korea Railroad Research Institute has developed a train which can remove fine dust from metro tunnels to improve the air quality for passengers. The train was unveiled at KRRI’s research centre in Osong on August 31, at an event which included representatives of 50 ...
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NewsMTA Metro-North Railroad orders electro-diesel locos
USA: Siemens Mobility has been awarded a firm order to supply six more Charger electro-diesel locomotives for use on MTA Metro-North Railroad commuter services between Connecticut and New York. The order announced on September 26 has been placed by New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority on behalf ...
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Metro Report InternationalNext-generation Baltimore metro car unveiled
USA: Maryland Transit Administration has unveiled the first of 78 metro cars being supplied by Hitachi Rail to replace the existing fleet on the Baltimore Metro Subway Link. MTA said on September 14 that the new vehicles would represent ‘a significant leap forward in our mission ...
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Metro Report InternationalChelyabinsk orders more trams
RUSSIA: Sole bidder UKVZ has won a contract to supply 11 fully low-floor single-section trams to Chelyabinsk at a maximum price of 814m roubles. The first seven cars, expected to be Type 71-628-01 vehicles, are to be delivered by November 1, and the remainder by May ...
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NewsTesla shuttle train launches
GERMANY: A free shuttle train has been launched to serve Tesla’s Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg site to the east of the capital. Giga Berlin now has its own train shuttle, capable of moving 400 people per ride 🚆 pic.twitter.com/gmvy80GFFn — Tesla Europe (@teslaeurope) September 4, 2023 ...
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Metro Report InternationalEnergy bank to boost tramway power supply
NETHERLANDS: The use of an ‘energy bank’ to reinforce a tramway power supply without needing to build a substation is to be piloted in Rotterdam from December. The energy bank will be installed at the Posthumalaan turning loop, which is currently only used at times of ...
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Metro Report InternationalUrban transport industry news round-up
This week’s round-up of news from the urban transport sector.