Passenger rail news – Page 153
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NewsÖBB orders Talent 3 multiple-units
AUSTRIA: National railway ÖBB has ordered an initial build of 21 Talent 3 multiple-units from Bombardier Transportation under a framework agreement signed on December 27 which covers the supply of up to 300 trainsets for regional and suburban services. The company had been selected in September as preferred bidder for ...
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NewsShanghai – Kunming high speed line completed
CHINA: Ceremonies were held at the new Kunming Nan station on December 28 to mark the opening for revenue service of the Guiyang – Kunming Passenger-Dedicated Line. The link is the final stage in the 2 252 km Shanghai – Kunming corridor, one of the four east-west and four north-south ...
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NewsConstruction starts on China – Laos railway
LAOS: Ceremonies were held in the northern city of Luang Prabang on December 25 to mark the launch of construction of the 414·3 km rail link from the Chinese border to Vientiane. Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith formally turned the first sod and struck a gong to mark the start ...
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NewsNetwork Rail plans Bolton station expansion
UK: As part of the electrification and modernisation of the Manchester – Preston corridor, a fifth platform is to be opened at Bolton next year, Network Rail has announced.A series of enhancements to Bolton station are being taken forward by NR and the local council, which is co-ordinating construction of ...
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NewsShiki-Shima luxury cruise train on test
JAPAN: East Japan Railway is testing a luxury cruise train ahead of its planned launch on May 1. Known as the Train Suite Shiki-Shima (Island of Four Seasons), and bearing the designation Series E001, the 10-car set has an observation car at each end offering passengers unobstructed panoramic views. Three ...
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NewsEMUs enter service in Kazakhstan
KAZAKHSTAN: Four Type EP3D electric multiple-units supplied by Transmashholding’s Demikhovsky Engineering Plant entered service with national railway KTZ this month. They are being used on the 240 km route from Astana south to Karaganda and the 300 km route north from Astana to Kokshetau. The order for the EMUs placed ...
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NewsPorterbrook and Northern to develop electro-diesel MU
UK: Faced with an ongoing shortage of diesel multiple-units and delays to Network Rail’s electrification programme, rolling stock company Porterbrook Leasing and Northern franchise operator Arriva announced on December 22 that they are to develop an electro-diesel multiple unit by converting former Thameslink dual-system Class 319 EMUs. Northern has already ...
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NewsMore Cityjets for Wien
AUSTRIA: Transport Minister Jörg Leichtfried announced on December 15 that national operator ÖBB is to order a further 64 three-car Desiro ML trainsets from Siemens. To be deployed mainly on S-Bahn services in eastern Austria, the trains will be delivered between February 2018 and the end of 2019. Worth €400m, ...
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NewsKenyan standard gauge locomotives unveiled
KENYA: The three types of 1 435 mm gauge diesel locomotives which CRRC Qishuyan is supplying for the 473 km Mombasa – Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway were unveiled at the factory in China on December 16. The company is supplying a total of 56 locomotives. There will be 43 DF8B ...
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NewsGerman operating contracts awarded
GERMANY: A series of passenger operating contracts has been awarded by transport authorities in Nordrhein-Westfalen. DB Regio will continue to operate service RE8 Mönchengladbach – Köln – Koblenz for 15 years from December 2019, and RB33 Aachen – Lindern – Heinsberg/Mönchengladbach – Duisburg – Essen for 14 years from December ...
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NewsDB Regio wins latest round of Nürnberg S-Bahn tendering
GERMANY: The protracted tendering of the operation of Nürnberg S-Bahn services came closer to reaching a conclusion on December 19, when Bayern transport authority BEG announced that DB Regio had submitted the best offers for the two parallel contracts running for 12 years from December 2018. Subject to any further ...
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NewsPassengers ride first Renatus EMUs
UK: Wabtec Faiveley UK has completed refurbishment of the first two of 30 Class 321 electric multiple-units owned by Eversholt Rail, which are being upgraded for train operator Greater Anglia under the Renatus programme. With the first unit now receiving an AC traction package under a parallel programme being undertaken ...
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NewsJoint company to manage Ethiopia – Djibouti railway
AFRICA: Ethiopia's Minister of Transport Ahmed Shide and his Djiboutian counterpart Mohammed Abdulkadir Musa have signed an agreement to establish a joint company to manage the new railway linking the countries. The company will be have its headquarters in Addis Ababa, and be responsible for the provision of passenger, freight ...
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NewsCoradia Liner inter-city multiple-unit on test
FRANCE: Testing of the first Alstom Coradia Liner inter-city electro-diesel multiple unit has begun on the Paris Est – Troyes – Belfort line. SNCF awarded Alstom a €346m contract in October 2013 covering the supply 34 six-car Coradia Liner multiple-units to replace locomotive-hauled stock on trains d'équilibre du territoire inter-city ...
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NewsFRA recommends $120bn investment in Northeast Corridor
USA: A 30-year programme of route modernisation, including four-tracking and some new alignment, has been recommended by the Federal Railroad Administration under its proposal to develop the Northeast Corridor linking Boston, New York and Washington DC. A four-year consultation and market testing exercise known as NEC Future was launched ...
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NewsStadler selected to supply bespoke Merseyrail train fleet
UK: The leaders of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority gave the go-ahead on December 16 for a £460m project to replace the Merseyrail suburban electric multiple-unit fleet. This includes the selection of Stadler to supply a fleet of 52 trainsets for entry into service from the end of 2020. ...
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NewsChina Railway Corp and MTR co-operate to go global
CHINA: State railway group China Railway Corp and Hong Kong-based international transport operator MTR Corp signed a letter of intent to explore strategic co-operation ‘within and outside of’ China on December 16, aiming to support the Chinese rail industry’s ‘Go-Global’ strategy. CRC and MTR are to form a strategic partnership ...
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NewsDSB sets IC4 withdrawal date to close an ‘unhappy chapter’
DENMARK: DSB’s trouble-plagued fleet of IC4 diesel multiple-units must be kept going for the time being, but will be phased out from 2024, according to an evaluation report presented to the Parliamentary Transport Committee by the state-owned operator on December 15. Under an agreement with the previous government setting out ...
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NewsWork starts on Dakar airport rail link
SENEGAL: A ceremony was held in Dakar on December 14 to mark the launch of preparatory works for construction of a 55 km regional express railway, which is intended to link the city centre with a new airport.Among the guests at the ceremony were Senegalese President Macky Sall and representatives ...
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NewsLocomore launches crowd-funded open access service
GERMANY: Crowd-funded open access passenger operator Locomore launched its inter-city service between Stuttgart and Berlin on December 14. Leaving the southern city 39 min behind its scheduled 06.21 departure time, the inaugural train arrived at Berlin Hbf 5 min early. Test running for the service began on December 5. The ...