A groundbreaking ceremony was held on June 23 for Toronto’s Scarborough Subway Extension project. This will extend metro Line 2 by 7·8 km from Kennedy to Lawrence Avenue East, Scarborough Centre and Sheppard Avenue East, replacing the life-expired Scarborough automated rapid transit system.
Two infill metro stations have opened in Tehran, at Modafean-e Salamat on Line 7 and Shahrak-e Azmayesh on Line 6.
Deutsche Bahn has applied to Germany’s Federal Railway Authority for planning approval for the electrification of the 19 km Ebersberg – Wasserburg line, which would enable München S-Bahn services to be extended to Wasserburg. The project is priced at €32m, with construction expected to start in 2024.
WMATA is testing new ticket gates at six metro stations in Washington DC, as a prelude to replacing 1 200 gates at all 91 stations across the network. ‘Metro’s faregates are more than 25 years old and at the end of their useful life’, said Metro General Manager & CEO Paul J Wiedefeld. ‘Modernising our fare payment technology will take Metro into the future. Customers can already pay with their mobile devices and soon new and improved faregates will make it quicker, and easier for anyone to ride.’
LOBO Systems has obtained approval to supply London Underground with its access platform system. This incorporates a patented clamp enabling the assembly of mobile or static scaffolding without the use of tools, facilitating safe maintenance in areas that are awkward to access. ‘LU has been identified as having a huge potential market for our scaffolding system’, said Managing Director Robert Bokros.
The USA’s Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, Department of Transportation and Occupational Safety & Health Administration have launched a toolkit to provide information on Covid-19 related workplace policies and regulations, vaccine availability and other preventive measures of relevance to public transport workers.
To help with social distancing during the pandemic, Moscow Metro’s Early Bird project which offers discounts for off-peak morning travel on line 7 and 15 has been extended until the end of 2021. The initiative has encouraged 8 000 passengers to change their routes, reducing peak crowding on the busiest sections of the metro.
The Chicago Transit Board has approved Lester Barclay as its next Chairman.