Freight news – Page 184
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North-south corridor ready
CONTAINER TRAINS between Berlin and Tehran will start running in August, according to the President of Russian Railways Gennadi Fadeyev. That month will see the formal launch of the North-South corridor linking Europe with Central Asia and shipping routes from the Gulf to India. Fadeyev visited Germany at the beginning ...
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Transcontinental link completed
On January 15 the first FreightLink container train for Darwin will leave Adelaide, arriving at the Northern Territory port two days later. The inaugural service on the Alice Springs - Darwin marks the completion of the 150 year dream of linking Australia's Top End with the cities in the south ...
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Raising loads and lowering charges
Wagons now being delivered to operators in several European countries are making use of bogies designed to minimise impact forces on the track
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NewsTurning coal and containers into profit
Since moving into the private sector in 1996, Freightliner has reshaped its intermodal business and expanded into coal and other bulk cargo. Murray Hughes talked to Chief Executive Alan Galley
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Alpine plan cleared
PLANS TO introduce rolling motorway services over the 175 km Fréjus corridor between Aiton-Bourganeuf in France and Orbassano in Italy have been cleared by the European Commission. On August 4 the EC confirmed that it had given the go-ahead for the formation of Autoroute Ferroviaire Alpine, a 50:50 joint venture ...
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NewsRealities and costs drive Kazakhstan's railway reform
The Kazakh government has integrated the three distinct rail networks it inherited at independence, and is now introducing reforms to encourage private-sector investment and reduce the need for domestic services to cross international borders, explains Gordon Feller
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A ‘huge opportunity’ in open access
Rail Traction Company was the first open access freight operator to begin running in Italy. Founder and Director-General Giuseppe Sciarrone explained his strategy to Chris Jackson
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The cost of being profitable
Rail freight rates in North America are not merely the lowest in the world, but they have been falling steadily since deregulation over 20 years ago. Independent consultant David Burns asks how the US railroads have been able to charge such low rates and still show a positive balance sheet
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Ikea launches furniture 'pipeline'
Swedish-based Ikea Rail AB is one of the first private companies to have bought train paths across two borders. Richard Hope finds out how the train will cover 1044 km in three countries at an average speed of 65 km/h, using three drivers and two locomotives
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NewsModalohr tests the market
Against a background of increasing concern over the safety and environmental impact of road freight using the Alpine crossings, the feasibility of carrying trailers by rail between France and Italy is to be tested using swing-tray wagons. As the first trial bores are dug for a new Mont Cenis base ...
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NewsIntegrating 'global brilliance'
IN HIS KEYNOTE speech to the 7th International Heavy Haul Conference in Brisbane on June 11, former Spoornet Chief Executive Braam le Roux, currently Representative for Southern Africa at the International Union of Railways, drew attention to the constant threat facing railways from their competitors. Telling 580 delegates from 27 ...
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Five phases of HAL research bring billion dollar savings
With the fifth phase of HAL research due for completion next year, it is clear that substantial benefits accrue from heavy axleload operation. Cumulative savings from the use of HAL techniques and equipment in North America during the 1990s are of major significance
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NewsTechnology transfer - from heavy haul to passenger and back
With privatisation sweeping the world, passenger carriers are increasingly subject to the same pressures as those affecting freight railways. Heavy haul operators have invested considerable time and effort learning how to run the world's most efficient rail businesses, and their experiences should be of interest to all railway managers, including ...
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30 tonnes on the Malmbanan
SWEDISH heavy-haul iron ore operator MTAB held ceremonies on March 7 to mark the start of regular operations with 30 tonne axleloads on the Luleå - Kiruna - Narvik corridor. The opening celebrations also marked the entry into revenue service of MTAB's first new trainset, funded by iron ore mining ...
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Railion recruits another member
WHILE EUROPE's politicians wrestle with ways to introduce competition between operators (below), the national railways continue in their slow march towards a series of alliances. Earlier rumours about Danish State Railways' freight business, DSB Gods, were confirmed on December 15 when it joined the Railion holding group formed by German ...
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VSFT aims to corner Europe's diesel market
BOUGHT by Vossloh from Siemens in 1998, the former MaK diesel locomotive plant in Kiel is back in the loco business in a big way. Now known as Vossloh Schienenfahrzeugtechnik, the company has won two major orders that secure its place in the traction market. First on the order books ...
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Wisconsin moves into Jordan
Tonnage carried by the Aqaba Railway is expected to triple by 2002 after a Raytheon-led consortium takes a 25 year lease AUGUST 18 saw the signing of an agreement under which management and operation of the 292 km Aqaba Railway in Jordan will pass to a consortium that includes Wisconsin ...
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Malmbanen locomotives ordered
SWEDEN: iron-ore mining group LKAB announced on September 16 that it had selected the Adtranz modular Octeon design for the nine twin-unit locos it is to buy for the Luleå - Narvik Malmbanen corridor (RG 9.98 p585).
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LKAB invests in 30 tonne axleloads
Swedish mining giant LKAB is investing SKr1·1bn in three new trainsets and nine locos for the Malmbanan iron ore corridor. Heavier axleloads to boost rail capacity and cut transport costs form a key element in the company's strategy to boost production from 20 to 30 million tonnes a year
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NewsBHP tries radio-controlled ECP braking
Australian's largest iron ore producer BHP is experimenting with the latest heavy haul technology by fitting radio-controlled ECP brakes to four locos and 240 wagons