News – Page 216
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NewsNorth Korea tests train-launched missile
NORTH KOREA: A railway-borne missile regiment has conducted a test launch to confirm the practicality of firing a missile from a train and to assess the combat readiness and capability of the newly-formed unit. The regiment deployed to the central mountainous area of the country at ...
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NewsNew leasing company targets non-electrified routes with SmartHybrid locos
EUROPE: Private equity infrastructure investor InfraVia Capital Partners has formed Nexrail Lease to supply low-emission locomotives for unelectrified routes. The new leasing company has placed a framework order for up to 50 Vossloh Locomotives DE18 Stage V SmartHybrid locos, and taken over 53 existing locos. CRRC ...
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NewsAlstom awarded Sydney ETCS contracts
AUSTRALIA: Transport for New South Wales and Sydney Trains have awarded Alstom two contracts to design, supply and support ETCS Level 2 trackside equipment. This forms part of the Digital Systems element of the state’s More Trains, More Services programme, which aims to modernise Sydney’s rail ...
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NewsThree and four section electric locomotives approved
RUSSIA: Ural Locomotives has obtained Customs Union approval for its 3 kV DC 3ES6 and 4ES6 locomotives, which are based on the 2ES6 twin-section design with one or two intermediate sections added to provide additional power. This follows testing at the VNIIZhT experimental ring in Shcherbinka. ...
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Rail Business UKDirect awards agreed with Greater Anglia and West Midlands Trains
UK: The Abellio-led Greater Anglia and West Midlands Trains businesses have agreed directly-awarded National Rail Contracts with the Department for Transport, ahead of the expiry of their Emergency Recovery Measures Agreement contracts on September 19. Both business are currently run as joint ventures between Abellio and ...
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NewsFunds confirmed to support rail freight relaunch strategy
FRANCE: Transport Minister Jean-Baptiste Djebbari has affirmed that the government will provide €170m a year to support the rail freight sector until 2024 as part of a National Rail Freight Development Strategy.
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In depthFreight: An intermodal gateway emerges in northeast Europe
Connected since July to the Polish border by a standard gauge link, the Kaunas Intermodal Terminal in Lithuania is set to become a strategic hub for the Baltic States as part of the wider Rail Baltica programme.
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NewsGabon railway concession extended as investors fund expansion
GABON: Sociéte d’Exploitation du Transgabonais’ concession to operate the 650 km railway linking Franceville with the capital Libreville and the port of Owendo has been extended, and a new investor has committed to providing finance and expertise to support a modernisation to increase capacity on the ...
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NewsIron ore miner orders heavy-haul battery locomotive
AUSTRALIA: Mining company Roy Hill has ordered a Wabtec FLXdrive battery-electric heavy-haul freight locomotive. This will replace one the four ES44ACi diesel-electric locos used to haul its 2 700 m long iron ore trains, and is expected to reduce fuel costs and emissions by ‘double digit’ ...
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In depthFreight: CargoFlex enters the digital era
Fitted to intermodal trains in Switzerland, Voith’s CargoFlex autocoupler builds on experience in the passenger sector, and is now being upgraded with a full digital capability.
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NewsChannel Tunnel to handle unaccompanied freight
EUROPE: Channel Tunnel operator Getlink is to launch a service carrying unaccompanied lorry trailers, using its ‘unique customs expertise’ to speed up post-Brexit cross-border traffic. The service between the Channel Tunnel terminals in Calais and Folkestone is to be launched on September 18, in addition to ...
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NewsStadler signs MoU for Ukrainian fleet renewal
UKRAINE: A memorandum of understanding setting out principles for co-operation to replace ageing rolling stock and develop the rail sector has been signed by the Ministry of Infrastructure, national railway Ukrzaliznytsia, Stadler and Swiss export risk insurance agency SERV. The MoU was signed at a meeting ...
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NewsThailand looks at battery traction
THAILAND: The Ministry of Transport is pushing ahead with the procurement of battery railcars, and consideration is being given to local production and the conversion of existing diesel locomotives to battery power. The Department of Rail Transport and State Railway of Thailand have been tasked with ...
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NewsCanadian Pacific closes in on KCS merger
NORTH AMERICA: Canadian Pacific announced on September 12 that it ‘looks forward to executing a definitive merger agreement’ with Kansas City Southern, after the smaller railroad’s board deemed that CP’s latest bid now amounted to a ‘Company Superior Proposal’ compared to a previous offer from Canadian National.
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NewsJR Central targets Shinkansen business travellers with work-oriented offering
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway Company is to revamp its offering for business travellers using Tokaido Shinkansen services, in response to changing travel patterns and working practices driven by the coronavirus pandemic.
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NewsFirst new Nightjet stock ready for testing
AUSTRIA: The first two vehicles for Austrian Federal Railways’ new fleet of Nightjet overnight trainsets have been dispatched from Siemens Mobility’s Simmering plant in Wien for the start of testing and certification. The first vehicles to be released are a push-pull driving trailer seated car and an ...
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NewsDSB awards EMU depot contract
DENMARK: DSB has awarded a DKr641m contract to MT Højgaard Danmark for construction of the first of two dedicated maintenance depots to support the fleet of inter-city EMUs on order from Alstom. The København depot is to be developed on the site of the capital’s former ...
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NewsCzech infrastructure manager buys Vectron prototype to power test train
CZECH REPUBLIC: Infrastructure manager SŽ has purchased pre-production Vectron MS electric locomotive 193 901 from Siemens Mobility for KC72·95m to operate diagnostic test trains in the Czech Republic and abroad. Built in 2010, the 6 400 kW multi-system locomotive with a top speed of 200 km/h ...
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NewsDB and CFL co-operate on ‘extended reality’ rail training technology
EUROPE: An agreement to co-operate to develop the use of virtual and augmented reality tools in specialist rail industry training has been signed by Germany’s Deutsche Bahn and Luxembourg’s CFL. DB says the relevance of immersive technologies in vocational training is increasing, enabling a merger of ...