News – Page 240
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NewsKyrgyzstan Railways ‘keeping pace with the times’ at modern wagon servicing centre
KYRGYZSTAN: Russian company United Wagon Co has opened an authorised service centre in Bishkek to provide warranty and post-warranty maintenance for modern wagons it has supplied. Repairs will be undertaken by national railway KTJ, which will maintain a warehouse with stocks of components. UWC has designated ...
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NewsDirect award planned for Germany – Poland services
EUROPE: Berlin-Brandenburg transport authority VBB has annouced its intention to negotiate a directly-awarded contract for DB Regio to continue to operate cross-border regional passenger services to Poland. The contract would include services RB91 Frankfurt (Oder) – Rzepin, RB92 Guben – Zielona Góra and RB66/RE66 (Berlin–) Angermünde ...
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NewsPartnership will promote industry research
BRAZIL: Industry association Abifer has signed a ‘strategic alliance’ with the Brazilian Agency for Industrial Research & Innovation (Embrapii) to promote research and innovation. The agreement aims to cement the relationship between Abifer’s member companies and Embrapii’s network of research centres and institutions to ‘make it ...
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NewsNishi-Kyushu Shinkansen to open next year
JAPAN: JR Kyushu President & CEO Toshihiko Aoyagi announced in Fukuoka on April 28 that the 66 km high speed line from Takeo Onsen to Nagasaki is to be known as the Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen.
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NewsLe Train eyes Arcachon – La Rochelle TGVs
FRANCE: Taking advantage of the forthcoming liberalisation of domestic passenger services, open access operator Le Train has applied to transport regulation authority ART for powers to run regional high speed services in the southwest.
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NewsLineas acquires Dutch operator Independent Rail Partner
NETHERLANDS: Belgian freight operator Lineas has acquired Independent Rail Partner, saying the move is an important step in its strategy to partner with or acquire ‘dynamic’ private operators to build a ‘true European rail freight backbone’ to drive modal shift. Zwijndrecht-based IRP was founded in 2011 ...
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NewsCastex agrees to fund Bordeaux – Toulouse high speed line
FRANCE: The French government will contribute €4·1bn to help finance the long-planned high speed line between Bordeaux and Toulouse, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on April 28. Toulouse is France’s fourth largest city and the capital of the Occitanie region. It would be the last major conurbation ...
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NewsSNCF to sell Ermewa leasing business
FRANCE: Following an auction, SNCF has entered into exclusive negotiations for the sale of its Ermewa transport asset leasing business to a consortium of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and a fund managed by DWS Group Operating in 80 countries, Ermewa has 42 000 ...
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NewsProgress Rail locomotive on test in Russia
RUSSIA: Yakutia Railway has taken delivery of a Progress Rail EMD 2TE3250 twin-section diesel locomotive for testing in the region’s extreme environment. The locomotive was transported to the US west coast by rail and then by sea to Vladivostok and to Yakutia. ...
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Rail Business UK‘Revolutionary’ wagons join GB Railfreight fleet
UK: Following prototype testing and approval, GB Railfreight has taken delivery of the first of 84 Ecofret2 close-coupled triple-wagon sets which it described as the ‘latest innovation in maritime container transport’ and ‘a revolutionary addition’ to its fleet. The wagons were ordered in two batches through ...
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NewsRail’s market share to rise in Brazil's National Logistics Plan
BRAZIL: Rail’s role in the national transport matrix will increase under proposals set out in the 2035 National Logistics Plan unveiled by the government on April 20. Already made available for consultation by interested parties, the Plan has been prepared to support the establishment of a ...
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NewsFinnish ETCS Level 2 test route contract awarded
FINLAND: Transport infrastructure agency Väylävirasto has awarded Thales a contract to design, supply, install and test ETCS Level 2 signalling on the Kouvola – Kotka/Hamina line, with commercial use of the new signalling expected to begin in early 2023. The branch which serves an important port ...
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In depthViewpoint: Unlocking Africa’s economic growth
Railway reform and regulatory stability will help to revitalise Africa’s railways and put them at the heart of sustainable transport strategies across the African Continental Free Trade Area, suggests ARIA Chief Executive Officer Mesela Nhlapo.
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NewsChicago commuter operator seeks battery locomotive proposals
USA: Chicago commuter operator Metra is to issue a request for proposals for the conversion of three EMD F40PH-3 diesel locomotives to zero-emission battery power. It hopes to award a contract this autumn, with the first loco to be delivered around 30 months later. Metra estimates ...
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NewsProvence – Côte d’Azur upgrade funding agreed
FRANCE: The government has agreed a €3∙5bn funding package to launch the first two phases of the long-planned upgrade of the route along the Mediterranean coast between Marseille and Nice, including sections of new line.
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NewsTaiwan Railway Administration Class 900 EMUs enter service
TAIWAN: National operator Taiwan Railway Administration has put into service the first of 52 Class 900 suburban EMUs ordered from Hyundai Rotem in June 2018 at a cost of 908·9bn won. The 10-car trainsets for the 1 067 mm gauge national network are being assembled at ...
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Rail Business UKFatigue cracks sideline GWR Class 800s
UK: Great Western Railway has taken some of its Class 800 inter-city trains out of service following the discovery of fatigue cracking in the yaw damper bolsters on a number of vehicles.
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NewsSpain to evaluate national gauge conversion programme
SPAIN: The government has reopened the long-running debate over which gauge should be adopted for the principal sections of the main line rail network, with the Ministry of Development and infrastructure manager ADIF establishing a panel of multi-disciplinary specialists to assess the strategy for the core ...