News – Page 418
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Metro Report InternationalFTA allocates $281m for five transport projects
USA: A total of $281m in additional Fiscal Year 2018 federal funding for transport projects through the Capital Investment Grants programme was announced by the Federal Transit Administration on November 28. The five projects either have a construction grant agreement or are nearing completion of all statutory and readiness requirements. ...
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NewsAlstom plant equipped to produce an EMU car per day
POLAND: A production line dedicated to the InterCity New Generation electric multiple-units ordered by Dutch national passenger operator NS has been officially inaugurated at Alstom’s Katowice plant. The 6 500 m2 hall has 20 work stations covering stages from pre-fitting to cabling and interior fit-out. Bodyshell welding and erection, painting ...
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NewsBrightline to negotiate land leases as Orlando – Tampa proposal progresses
USA: The state of Florida has chosen to accept a proposal from inter-city passenger company Brightline to develop a route between Orlando and Tampa, largely following trunk roads. Brightline had initially proposed the route as the third phase of its network; Florida Governor Rick Scott then issued a request for ...
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NewsImpuls purchases by voivodships
POLAND: Lubuskie voivodship has awarded Newag a 43m złoty contract to supply two three-car diesel multiple-units by the end of 2020. Ordered to increase capacity on the Krzyż – Gorzów Wielkopolski – Berlin corridor, the 130 km/h TSI-compliant units will have a capacity of almost 400 passengers including 150 seats. ...
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Metro Report InternationalPalermo approves four tram projects
ITALY: Palermo city council has approved changes to its public works plan to include the construction of four tramway extensions. A: an extension of the existing Line 1 from the Palermo Centrale station to the stadium; B: an extension from the Notarbartolo terminus of lines 2, 3 and 4 to ...
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NewsEIB loan to finance eight upgrades
CZECH REPUBLIC: The cabinet approved on November 7 a KC11·5bn loan from the European Investment Bank which will be used to modernise eight sections of rail corridors 1 and 2 in 2019–25. The sections involved are Velim – Poříčany; Choceň – Uhersko; Ústí nad Orlicí – Brandýs nad ...
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NewsElectric buses head to the Baltic seaside
LATVIA: The seaside resort of Jūrmala has ordered two Solaris Urbino 8.9 LE electric buses which are expected to enter service in the third quarter of 2019. Announcing the order on November 27, the manufacturer said they would be the first battery buses it has supplied to the Baltic States. ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
On November 28 the Länder of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein completed the sale of HSH Nordbank to affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management, JC Flowers & Co, GoldenTree Asset Management, Centaurus Capital and BAWAG. The bank which is active in the rolling stock leasing market plans to operate under the name Hamburg ...
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NewsAmsterdam metro train contract signed
NETHERLANDS: Amsterdam city transport operator GVB formally signed a contract for preferred bidder CAF to supply 30 three-car metro trainsets on November 28. Entry into service is planned from mid-2021, with the new trainsets replacing the S2 and S3/M4 fleets from 2024 and 2027 respectively. Branded Inneo by the ...
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NewsElectric locomotives handed over to Uzbekistan Railways
UZBEKISTAN: Two 3ES5K Yermak three-section 25 kV 50 Hz electric locomotives built at Transmashholding’s Novocherkassk plant in Russia were handed over to Uzbek national railway UTY on November 22. The 9·2 MW locomotives ordered in mid-2018 are intended to enable UTY to operate heavier trains in mountainous areas. The NEVZ ...
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Metro Report InternationalDarmstadt tram extension funding
GERMANY: The Land of Hessen has agreed to provide Darmstadt transport operator HEAG Mobilo with €12·3m towards the €19·6m cost of extending the tramway to Technischen Universität Darmstadt's Lichtwiese campus, Economics, Energy & Transport Minister Tarek Al-Wazir confirmed on November 28 The 1·1 km double track extension would run from ...
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NewsNagpur Metro’s first train unveiled
INDIA: CRRC Dalian has rolled out the first of 23 three-car trainsets it is building for the Nagpur Metro. Formed of stainless steel bodied cars with a 16 tonne axleload, the trains have a design speed of 80 km/h and can carry a crush load of 974 passengers. The trainsets ...
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NewsBaden-Württemberg backs ETCS in Stuttgart
GERMANY: The Land of Baden-Württemberg agreed in principle on November 27 to support proposals for the roll-out of the European Train Control System and digital interlockings in the Stuttgart region by 2030. The Baden-Württemberg cabinet has authorised the Land transport ministry to enter into financing negotiations with the federal government, ...
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NewsFreight association calls for English to be the second railway language
EUROPE: The conditions which are needed to make rail freight’s quality, reliability and cost of more attractive to customers were the main themes of the annual strategy day held by the European Rail Freight Association in Brussels on November 21. Bringing together organisations which want to promote ‘attractive, fair and ...
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NewsSalzburg expands trolleybus fleet
AUSTRIA: The city of Salzburg announced on November 26 that Swiss manufacturer Hess had been formally awarded a €15·3m contract to supply 15 articulated trolleybuses. Of the 15 vehicles, 11 will be equipped with batteries to permit off-wire operation. These will be charged while the vehicles are operating from ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Until January 25 the Office of Rail & Road is consulting on its proposed new regulatory policy for Network Rail, which would come into effect with the start of Control Period 6 in April. Intended to target issues that have the most serious impact on passengers, freight customers and ...
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NewsNew York MTA to acquire Grand Central Terminal
USA: New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority has agreed to purchase Grand Central Terminal and sections of the Hudson and Harlem commuter rail lines, correcting what it terms a ‘historical quirk’ of New York infrastructure ownership. The acquisitions, valued at $35m, were approved at an MTA finance committee meeting in mid-November. ...
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NewsEtihad Rail Stage 2 funding agreement signed
UAE: Tendering for the civil works for Stage 2 of the planned national railway network is expected to be launched shortly, after the UAE’s Ministry of Finance and Abu Dhabi’s Department of Finance signed a financing agreement on November 27. The 264 km Stage 1 was completed in 2015, and ...
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Metro Report InternationalGuadalajara LRT Line 1 extended
MEXICO: A 1 km, one-station extension of Guadalajara light rail Line 1 from Periférico Norte to Auditorio opened November 23, taking the line to 16·6 km with 20 stations. The former terminus at Periférico Norte has been rebuilt underground beneath a road junction, and all the stations ...
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NewsGlacier Express reveals Excellence Class coaches
SWITZERLAND: Two coaches which have been upgraded to provide a premium ‘Excellence Class’ on the tourist-focused Glacier Express service have been unveiled by operating partners Rhätische Bahn and Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn. The interiors were designed by Nose Design Experience, and refitting of the coaches provided by RhB and MGB was ...