Passenger rail news – Page 205
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NewsAmtrak to start Acela Express fleet replacement
USA: Amtrak has abandoned plans to lengthen its current fleet of 20 Acela Express trainsets to increase capacity, and instead intends to procure a new fleet of high speed trains to operate on the Northeast Corridor between Washington DC, New York and Boston. Amtrak ridership has increase by 50% over ...
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NewsTendering starts for Brazilian high speed line
BRAZIL: On December 13 federal transport agency ANTT announced the start of tendering for the planned 510 km high speed railway between Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Campinas. Bidders have been given until August 13 2013 to submit their proposals for the operation and maintenance of the route, preceded ...
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NewsStadler awarded Łódź EMU contract
POLAND: Stadler Rail has been awarded a contract to supply 20 two-car Flirt electric multiple-units to Łódzka Kolej Aglomeracyjna, a voivodship-owned company which is to take over the operation of services around the city of Łódź next year. EU sources are meeting 59% of the cost of the LKA ...
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NewsMulhouse - Müllheim reopens to passengers
EUROPE: SNCF began operating regular passenger services between Mulhouse in France and Müllheim in Germany with the December 9 timetable change, following the completion of a programme to upgrade the 17·5 km freight route between Mulhouse and the border at Chalampé. There are now seven TER services each weekday ...
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NewsLondon Overground orbital route completed
UK: Mayor of London Boris Johnson and Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin inaugurated an extension of the London Overground network through south London on December 10, creating an orbital service around the capital. Passenger services had begun the previous day. The project required construction of a 1·3 km link joining existing ...
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NewsKTX-Sancheon achieves reliability target
SOUTH KOREA: National train operator Korail marked the successful completion of ‘100 fault-free days’ with its latest five KTX-Sancheon trainsets by presenting a certificate to manufacturer Hyundai Rotem on December 7. The five additional trains put into service by Korail in August incorporate a number of modifications to address various ...
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NewsCross-border service trial
INTERNATIONAL: Russian Railways’ Federal Passenger Company subsidiary is to operate a trial international passenger service from Petrozavodsk in the Republic of Karelia to Joensuu in Finland on December 28-29. The overnight service will operate via Sortavala and cross the border at Värtsilä. It is expected to comprise six coaches ...
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NewsTrenitalia orders 70 EMUs from Alstom
ITALY: Alstom announced on December 5 that it had been awarded a €440m contract to supply 70 Coradia Meridian EMUs to Trenitalia. Deliveries were expected to start ‘slightly over one year’ after contract signature, with the new trains to be deployed in several regions as well as on the rail ...
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NewsQueen Beatrix inaugurates the Hanze Line
NETHERLANDS: The 50 km Hanze Line between Lelystad and Zwolle was officially opened on December 6 with a ceremony attended by Queen Beatrix and Transport Minister Melanie Schultz van Haegen. After a presentation at Lelystad, the Queen rode the inaugural train to Zwolle, accompanied by several ministers and other ...
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NewsAlstom wins PRASA's 20-year fleet renewal programme
SOUTH AFRICA: The Gibela Rail Transport Consortium of Alstom and its local partner Actom has been selected as preferred bidder for a 20-year programme to design, manufacture and supply commuter EMUs for Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa. PRASA Chief Executive Lucky Montana and Transport Minister Dikobe Ben Martins announced ...
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NewsInterCity West Coast interim contract agreed
UK: The Department for Transport announced on December 6 that it had agreed terms with Virgin Trains for the continued operation of InterCity West Coast services following the end of the current franchise on December 9. DfT has been seeking to ensure the continuity of service following the collapse of ...
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NewsKatzenberg cut-off inaugurated
GERMANY: Federal Transport Minister Peter Ramsauer joined the celebrations at Efringen-Kirchen on December 4 to mark the formal opening of a 17·6 km cut-off at the southern end of Deutsche Bahn’s Rhein Valley line in Baden-Württemberg. He was accompanied by DB Chairman Rüdiger Grube, Baden-Württemberg’s Transport Minister Winfried Hermann and ...
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NewsEurostar to trial London – Aix-en-Provence service
EUROPE: International high speed operator Eurostar is to operate a new service between London and the south of France on a trial basis in May and June 2013. Building on its long-standing seasonal service between London St Pancras International and Avignon-Centre which has operated on Saturdays in ...
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NewsInter-regional coach approved
RUSSIA: Transmashholding's Tver Carriage Works has received federal vehicle approval for an improved version of its Type 61-4458 passenger coaches. Designed for inter-regional daytime services running at up to 160 km/h, Type 61-4458 cars have stainless steel bodyshells and two interior layout options. First class cars have 40 passenger seats ...
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NewsHarbin – Dalian PDL opens
CHINA: The 921 km Passenger-Dedicated Line between Harbin and Dalian opened to traffic on December 1, connecting the capital of Heilongjiang province with Changchun, Shenyang and Dalian, the largest port in northeast China. Designed for a maximum speed of 350 km/h, the route serves a total of 22 stations, including ...
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NewsX-Train to revive Los Angeles – Las Vegas service
USA: Inter-city passenger trains between Southern California and Las Vegas are set to resume in January 2014, following an inaugural run planned for December 31 2013. Trial running is expected to begin in October, 16 years after Amtrak’s Los Angeles – Salt Lake City – Chicago Desert Wind was withdrawn ...
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NewsCommuter co-operation in Costa Rica
COSTA RICA: President Laura Chinchilla ratified an agreement with Spanish Development Minister Ana Pastor in Madrid on November 15, which will see the two countries working together to develop the rail network serving the Costa Rican capital San José. Under the terms of the three-year agreement, Spanish companies would be ...
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NewsSJ expands indirect sales network
SWEDEN: National passenger operator SJ has extended its distribution agreement with transaction processing specialist Amadeus to provide travel agencies and corporate travel management companies worldwide with access to its fares inventory. Under the agreement, SJ becomes the latest operator to sign up to the Amadeus Global Rail ...
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NewsHandover marks start of EP20 series production
RUSSIA: The first series-produced EP20 passenger locomotive was handed over to Russian Railways by manufacturer Transmashholding at a ceremony near Rostov on November 30. The first Russian electric locomotive design capable of hauling inter-city trains at up to 200 km/h, the EP20 is a single-section Bo-Bo-Bo passenger ...
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NewsTrenord to buy 23 multiple-units
ITALY: The board of Lombardia regional train operator Trenord announced plans to exercise options for the purchase of 23 additional multiple-units on November 30. A firm order worth €130m is to be placed for nine three-car and four five-car AnsaldoBreda TSR double-deck electric multiple-units. A further 10 four-car Stadler ...