All News articles – Page 322
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News
Verona LRT turnkey awarded
A CONSORTIUM led by Siemens Transportation Systems was selected in mid-November to build and equip the first two routes of a planned three-line light rail network in the northern Italian city of Verona. Italian companies Mazzi and CCC will be responsible for civil engineering and trackwork. Siemens will undertake the ...
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e-express arrives on Westbahn
November 2 saw the introduction of a new catering concept on inter-city services between Wien and Salzburg. Insisting that it is essential for the catering service to ’catch up’ with passenger expectations, ÖBB Executive Board Member Ferdinand Schmidt said the ’e-express’ concept would offer high-quality menus. Passengers can now order ...
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Amtrak boom was a chimera
DESPITE the vote on November 9 by the Amtrak Reform Council to start proceedings that could end up liquidating Amtrak (RG 12.01 p799), such a drastic move now looks unlikely. Within a week of the Council’s action, a group of 21 Republican and Democrat Senators vowed to prevent the annihilation ...
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Alsace invests in rolling stock
On November 24 2000 the Alsace region announced a programme to invest Fr1·3bn in modernising its TER fleet between now and 2006. By then 28 new diesel railcar sets and two-car EMUs will have replaced the current locomotive hauled push-pull trains, mostly dating from the 1960s.The relatively recent RRR stainless ...
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Good Trains for All in five years
DANISH State Railways has launched a five-year programme to expand and upgrade its passenger services, including new rolling stock, routes and stations. Director-General Henrik Hassenkam says the Good Trains for All programme will help DSB win more traffic with comfortable trains and more cost-effective operations. By 2006 DSB will be ...
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AGC deal signed
FRENCH National Railways President Louis Gallois signed a €1·65bn contract with Bombardier President Robert Brown on December 13 for the supply of up to 500 high-capacity regional multiple-units designated AGC (Autorail à Grande Capacité). The 160 km/h fleet will include diesel-electric, electric and electro-diesel versions, with capacity ranging from 160 ...
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Aid train reaches Afghanistan
UZBEKISTAN Railways diesel locomotives began operating into Afghanistan on December 9, following the reopening of the Friendship Bridge across the Amudarya river near Termez. Built by the Soviet Union during the 1980s, the line into Afghanistan has been out of use for the past five years.The victory of Northern Alliance ...
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Acela may help the cause of US high speed
THIS MONTH should see the launch of a 2h 28min timing by an Acela Express trainset between New York and Washington DC. Just 2min faster than the introductory schedule of April 2 1969 for the original Metroliner EMUs, the non-stop timing builds on the launch in December of a single ...
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ABC-NACO assets bought
TCF Railco Acquisition Corp is to acquire the operating assets of ABC-NACO for US$75m, subject to assumption of certain liabilities and the receipt of regulatory approval. The assets include ABC-NACO’s US Rail Products, Track Products and Rail Services units, and the stock of its European subsidiaries and Chinese joint ventures. ...
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Rio tenders metro Line 6
RIO DE JANEIRO state governor Anthony Garotinho has released funding for preliminary work on the city’s planned metro Line 6. The grant will enable the state transport ministry to call tenders shortly for consultants to undertake technical and economic feasibility studies based on preliminary engineering design work. Estimated cost of ...
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Line 6 opened
THIS MONTH is due to see the opening of the final four stations on Seoul metro Line 6. These remained uncompleted when services began on the final section of the line on December 15. Fitting out and commissioning of the four stations was delayed when contractor Shinhwa Construction went bankrupt ...
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DB joins the 300 km/h club
INTRO: Trial running at up to 330 km/h starts this month on German Railway’s Neubaustrecke between Köln and FrankfurtTHIS MONTH should see a specially-equipped ICE3 trainset begin test running along almost the whole length of German Railway’s first Neubaustrecke designed for commercial service at 300 km/h. Under construction since December ...
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VAG U3 automation contract
NÜRNBERG transport authority VAG awarded a €185m contract to Siemens on November 16 covering the supply of automatic train control equipment for its Rubin project. This covers the construction of a fully-automated U-Bahn Line U3, and the conversion of Line U2. The deal also includes the supply of 30 ATO-equipped ...
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CityRail gets A$273m
NEW SOUTH Wales is to invest an extra A$273m over the next four years to improve the safety and reliability of Sydney’s urban rail network. Announced by NSW Premier John Carr on December 22, the package will be targeted at lines with the greatest increase in passenger numbers and the ...
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China speeds up again
CHINA: October 21 saw the introduction of Chinese Railways’ 2001-02 national timetable, implementing a further network- wide increase in train speeds. Vice- Minister of Railways Liu Zhijun announced that passenger train speeds would be raised from 120 to 140 and 140 to 160 km/h, following the completion of upgrading ...
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Toronto turnround
THREE YEARS ago, the Conservative government in the Province of Ontario dumped financial responsibility for GO Transit on local authorities under a deal that saw it taking on funding of education. It also scrapped subsidies for Toronto Transit Commission. Now it has had second thoughts.The province intends to restore funding ...
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Sidetrack
No go at Lo WuMORE than 200 passengers were stranded at Hong Kong’s Lo Wu border crossing on September 29, after refusing to leave a KCR East Rail train. Newspapers had incorrectly reported that opening hours at the checkpoint had been extended by 30 min to handle extra passengers on ...
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Subways recover swiftly
NEW YORK City Transit officials were amazed how well subway lines near the World Trade Center withstood the collapse of the two towers on September 11, especially as the top of some 85 year-old tunnels ran just 1·5m below street level. Credit was given to the subway’s designers, who supported ...
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Pointers
n Watch for firm plans to be drawn up for the 300 km link between Kashi in Xinjiang province and Andizhan in Uzbekistan, through Kyrgyzstan, following China’s formal agreement in September to participate in the scheme (RG 4.01 p223).n Look for Iranian Islamic Republic Railways to announce plans ...
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PEOPLE
PEOPLEMohammad Saeedi Nejad has become head of Iranian Islamic Republic Railways.Priyal de Silva was appointed General Manager of Sri Lanka Railways from October 6. On October 1 Robert Etmans took over as Director of Personnel for DB Cargo, succeeding Birgit Gantz-Rathmann who moves to a similar post at DB’s headquarters ...