News – Page 379
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NewsCompleted ALFA-X test train unveiled
JAPAN: East Japan Railway has formally unveiled its Series 956 ALFA-X high speed test train, which is due to start trial running at up to 400 km/h later this month. The completed 10-car trainset was displayed at its Sendai Shinkansen rolling stock workshops on May 9. Launched in July 2017, ...
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Metro Report InternationalLondon orders fuel cell powered double-deck buses
UK: Transport for London has placed a £12m order for Wrightbus to supply what the authority says will be the world’s first hydrogen-powered double-deck buses, and their associated fuelling infrastructure. The 20 buses will be fitted with FCveloCity-HD 85 kW fuel cell modules from Ballard Power Systems. They are ...
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NewsBanks back Turkish railport
TURKEY: Two US$30m loans to finance the US$86m development of a privately-run inland rail terminal in Kocaeli province, to the east of Istanbul, have been agreed by the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development and majority Chinese-owned Turkish bank ICBC Turkey. The terminal is being developed by a 67:33 joint ...
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Metro Report InternationalTransdev wins Fairfax County bus contract
USA: Virginia’s Fairfax County Department of Transportation has awarded Transdev Group a contract to operate and maintain the Fairfax Connector bus network for five years from July 1, with an option for a further 10 years. The contract is worth almost €400m. It covers the operation of 16 million bus-km/year ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Abellio UK said on May 9 it was ’pleased and proud to be confirmed today as the new operator of the East Midlands rail franchise by the Department for Transport’, following the conclusion of the extended standstill period. Managing Director Dominic Booth said ‘we’re looking forward to working with the ...
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![Southern California Regional Rail Authority has awarded Talgo and Systra a contract to refurbish coaches (Photo: Lvi56 [CC BY 3.0]).](https://d1c4d7gnm6as1q.cloudfront.net/Pictures/100x67/7/9/6/23796_tn_us-metrolink-bilevel-lvi56_ccby3.jpg)
NewsMetrolink fleet modernisation contract awarded
USA: Southern California Regional Rail Authority has awarded a joint venture of Talgo and Systra a contract worth up to $138·9m for the refurbishment of up to 121 Bombardier BiLevel coaches used on Metrolink commuter services. There is a firm order for the modernisation of an initial 50 coaches, ...
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Metro Report InternationalAnaheim Transportation Network orders battery buses
USA: California’s Anaheim Transportation Network has awarded BYD a contract to supply 40 battery-electric buses. Half of these will be the BYD K9M design, the others the shorter BYD K7M and articulated K11M. The order is being placed through two existing contracts in Washington and Georgia, which local authorities and ...
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Rail Business UKBreeze hydrogen multiple-unit order expected soon
UK: Alstom is hopeful of confirming an order before the end of this year for its Breeze hydrogen multiple-unit trains being developed in partnership with leasing company Eversholt Rail, suggesting that the first trains could enter service ‘as early as 2022’. Unveiling a scale model of the three-car HMU ...
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NewsStandard gauge plans on hold in Kenya
KENYA: Little more than a year after the opening of the Chinese-built 1 435 mm gauge railway between Mombasa and Nairobi, there are signs that East Africa’s love affair with China’s Belt & Road Initiative may be waning. On May 8, Kenya’s Transport & Infrastructure Minister James Macharia and ...
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NewsEurostar provides guide for travellers with autism
EUROPE: Eurostar has launched a virtual guide designed to help passengers with autism have a stress-free journey. The cross-Channel high speed train operator reviewed its travel experience with the Ambitious About Autism charity, which advised that travellers with autism are more comfortable if they have seen information about sights and ...
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News
KUBE to support internet of things on GSM-R
ASSET MONITORING: Kapsch CarrierCom is planning the first trial deployment of KUBE, an industrial internet of things device which can be used to collate and preprocess data from a range of asset monitoring sensors before using existing GSM-R networks to send the information to an infrastructure manager’s data hubs. Staff ...
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Rail Business UKTransport for the South East seeks statutory status
UK: The Transport for the South East group of 16 local authorities covering the region from Hampshire and Berkshire to Kent has begun consultation on its draft case for acquiring statutory status as a subnational transport body. This would give it the right to be consulted on new franchises, a ...
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Rail Business UKLNER launches Hitachi Azuma trainsets
UK: ‘The launch of the Hitachi Azuma fleet is another step in the history of a route which has long been associated with iconic trains’, LNER Manging Director David Horne told guests on a preview train on May 14, the day before the new fleet is set to enter passenger ...
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News
Stadler inaugurates Salt Lake City factory
USA: Vehicles being built for Caltrain and TEXRail were used to re-enact the completion of the transcontinental railway at Promontory Summit 150 years before as part of celebrations marking the official inauguration of Stadler US Inc’s factory in Salt Lake City on May 9. ‘It seems fitting that as we ...
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Metro Report International
Stadler inaugurates Salt Lake City factory
USA: Vehicles being built for Caltrain and TEXRail were used to re-enact the completion of the transcontinental railway at Promontory Summit 150 years before as part of celebrations marking the official inauguration of Stadler US Inc’s factory in Salt Lake City on May 9. ‘It seems fitting that as we ...
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Metro Report InternationalElevated section of Buenos Aires commuter line inaugurated
ARGENTINA: President Mauricio Macri inaugurated a new viaduct on the Retiro – Tigre branch of the Mitre suburban railway serving Buenos Aires on May 10. The 3·9 km structure between Avenida Dorrego and Avenida Monroe eliminates eight level crossings. Two stations on the section have been rebuilt. Belgrano station ...
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NewsElevated section of Buenos Aires commuter line inaugurated
ARGENTINA: President Mauricio Macri inaugurated a new viaduct on the Retiro – Tigre branch of the Mitre suburban railway serving Buenos Aires on May 10. The 3·9 km structure between Avenida Dorrego and Avenida Monroe eliminates eight level crossings. Two stations on the section have been rebuilt. Belgrano station ...
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Metro Report InternationalUrban mobility a feature of FS Group’s investment plan
ITALY: State railway holding FS Group Chief Executive Gianfranco Battisti unveiled an ‘unprecedented’ spending programme on May 10, with €58bn to be invested across various modes in 2019-23. A total of €28bn is to be spent on rail infrastructure and €14bn on the strategic road network through FS Group’s ...
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NewsRussian Railways to increase electric operation
RUSSIA: Plans to increase the use of electric traction were announced by Russian Railways on May 14, with the national operator saying this would offer environmental benefits compared to the use of diesel or road and air transport. RZD said the electrification of its most heavily used lines and the ...
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NewsMore Frecciarossa trains to come as FS unveils €58bn investment plan
ITALY: State railway holding FS Group’s 2019-23 business plan envisages total investment worth €58bn across various modes, with a core focus on enhancing the conventional rail network and improving suburban passenger services. According to FS, the ‘unprecedented’ spending programme, unveiled in Roma on May 10 by Chief Executive Gianfranco Battisti, ...