Latest news – Page 1290
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NewsBelgrano to be split
ARGENTINA: The federal government has begun the process of returning the metre-gauge Belgrano network to public ownership, by means of a decree published on October 31. The concession awarded to Belgrano Cargas SA in 1999 was to be terminated within 90 days, while the ‘state of emergency’ under which the ...
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NewsCrossrail agreements signed
UK: A series of core funding and governance agreements paving the way for construction of the long-planned Crossrail route under London were signed on December 4 by Transport Minister Andrew Adonis and Mayor of London Boris Johnson. A parallel deal was finalised with the City of London Corporation which will ...
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NewsGrain branch upgrades funded
AUSTRALIA: Premier of Victoria John Brumby announced on October 20 that the state is to refurbish more freight-only branch lines as part of an A$38·7m funding package to support the state’s rural economy. The state government has launched a programme of works to raise speed limits and boost operating efficiency ...
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NewsNorwegian infrastructure budget up
NORWAY: The government’s 2009 budget allocates NKr8·84bn for rail spending, an increase of NKr1·3bn on 2008. There is a particular focus on maintenance and renewals. Funding for infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket is up 22% to NKr7·07bn, allowing spending on maintenance to be increased by 25%. This will improve reliability and capacity, ...
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NewsHeavy haul automation contract placed
AUSTRALIA: Ansaldo STS announced on December 4 that it had been awarded a €103m contract to provide automation technology for the driverless operation of Rio Tinto's Hamersley and Robe River heavy haul railway in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The automation project will be completed by 2012, enabling ...
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NewsTrans-Laos railway survey agreed
LAOS: Investment company Giant Group is to undertake surveys for a railway running 220 km across southern Laos from the Thai to the Vietnamese borders. A memorandum of understanding for the project was signed with the Ministry of Public Works & Transport on November 10. The proposed electrified line ...
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NewsDublin orders another eight trams
IRELAND: The Railway Procurement agency has ordered a further eight Alstom Citadis trams for use on Dublin 's Luas network from early 2010. The €21m contract announced on December 1 is an option on a March 2007 agreement. Alstom has previously supplied Dublin with 40 Citadis cars, and another ...
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NewsPointers December 2008
DSB Chairman Søren Eriksen has confirmed that the Danish state railway is looking to enter the German regional market, where around 20 operating concessions are due to be tendered during 2009. DSB is opening a project office in Germany, and Eriksen says it will also look at an opportunities to ...
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NewsBombardier to keep SFO peoplemover running
USA: Bombardier Transportation has signed an €80m contract to operate and maintain the peoplemover at San Francisco International Airport for a further eight years. Bombardier has operated and maintained the SFO AirTrain since its opening in 2003. A fleet of 38 CX-100 vehicles serves nine stations along 10 ...
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NewsViaduct pushed into place
FRANCE: As part of a €250m modernisation of the Paris - Rouen - Le Havre line, infrastructure manager RFF has replaced the Oissel viaduct at a cost of €18m. Spanning the Seine near Rouen, the viaduct carries around 250 trains a day. On November 8-11 the new 185 m metal ...
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NewsFinal GSM-R bids go in
FRANCE: Infrastructure manager RFF confirmed on December 2 that the four consortia prequalified for the 15-year concession to fund and install GSM-R communications equipment on the national network had submitted their final bids to meet the published deadline. The first PPP concession to be awarded for work on the ...
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NewsUTO target to boost metro capacity
SIGNALLING: Presentations to the IRSE Aspect 2008 conference in London on September 25-26 served to remind delegates not only of the benefits of communications-based train control, but also that it is quite feasible to install CBTC on existing lines without interfering with passenger services. This is because it can be ...
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NewsPolish partnership agreed
VTG: A partnership has been formed with Waggon Service which will enable the Hamburg-based rolling stock leasing firm VTG to expand its maintenance support activities in Poland. Waggon Service is a subsidiary of Transwaggon, in which VTG has a 50% stake. VTG has previously worked with Millsharp in Poland, ...
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NewsDB sale ruled out before election
GERMANY: The federal government has effectively cancelled the partial flotation of DB Mobility Logistics. On November 5 the Finance Ministry stated that the DB ML IPO could not go ahead before the general election in September 2009 unless market conditions improved - something which a ministry spokesman conceded was unlikely, ...
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NewsAnkara signalling contract
TURKEY: The city of Ankara has selected a consortium of Ansaldo Segnalamento Ferroviario and Alsim Alarko Sanayi Tesisleri Ve Ticaret as preferred bidder for a €175m contract to design, supply and commission signalling for metro lines M1, M2, M3 and M4 and undertake electro-mechanical works on M1 and M3. ...
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NewsStandard interface will simplify telematics
TELEMATICS: The adoption of a Standardised Message Structure forms a crucial element in the development of an open- standards telematics interface which will allow railway operators and suppliers to work towards cost-effective and compatible systems.
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News
Barcelona station contracts awarded
SPAIN: Catalunya’s infrastructure manager Ifercat has awarded concessions to build and manage 26 stations on Barcelona metro Line 9 to two consortia headed by FCC and Dragados. Both concessions will last for 30 years after completion of the civil works, and will inject private financing into the project budget. Ifercat ...
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NewsUrban rail news in brief - December 2008
A 100m taka feasibility study for the Dhaka mass transit project is due to start in December, financed from government funds. Originally proposed in 2002, progress on the proposed rail network in the capital of Bangladesh has been hampered by lack of finance. Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority is ...
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NewsCN buys back lines
CANADA: Three lines sold by Canadian National in the 1990s have been repurchased from Québec Railway Corp at a cost of C$49·8m. As well as the Ottawa Central Railway, New Brunswick East Coast Railway and Chemin de fer de la Matapedia et du Golfe, CN will take over a train ...