All Policy articles – Page 76
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NewsContractor takes over responsibility for NSW Country Regional Network
AUSTRALIA: Responsibility for the management, maintenance and upgrading of the New South Wales government's regional rail network transferred from the Country Rail Infrastructure Authority to contractor John Holland with effect from January 15. More than 300 employees have transferred to John Holland, which now has a directly employed workforce 'in ...
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NewsWork to begin on Chad rail network
CHAD: Construction of what may be the country’s first railway is set to begin in February, following the signing of an agreement between the Ministry of Transport & Civil Aviation and China Civil Engineering Construction Corp on December 24. The US$5·6bn four-year plan covers a 1 364 ...
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NewsDesign flaws and poor management caused Wenzhou collision, report confirms
CHINA: Investigators have confirmed that 'serious design flaws' in the signalling and train control equipment, along with 'sloppy management and the mishandling of a lightning strike' were among the reasons for the collision between two high speed trains near Wenzhou on July 23 2011 in which 40 people died. Originally ...
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NewsNS concession renewal
NETHERLANDS: Discussions between Nederlandse Spoorwegen and Infrastructure Minister Schultz van Haegen have led to an agreement for the national operator to retain its monopoly concession covering passenger services on the designated core network for a further 10 years from 2015. The concession will be merged with that covering the HSL-Zuid ...
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NewsMore TIGER grants awarded
USA: On December 15 the Department of Transportation announced the award of $511m of discretionary grants under the third round of the Transport Investment Generating Economic Recovery programme, supporting 46 capital construction projects in 33 states. TIGER III is being funded from the 2011 federal transport budget, and was heavily ...
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NewsChannel Tunnel barriers must go
EUROPE: The UK's House of Lords EU Committee released a report on December 8 making key recommendations on the steps to be taken if the Channel Tunnel is to deliver its potential to carry more passengers and freight by rail. The main thrust of the 'Tunnel vision? Completing the European ...
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NewsTfL expects £250m saving from buying Docklands Light Railway PFI concessionaires
UK: Transport for London is to take over two companies which hold private finance initiative contracts to finance, build and maintain extensions to the Docklands Light Railway network. Announcing the deals on November 25, TfL said current market conditions and the 'unique circumstances of TfL's ability to raise finance' mean ...
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NewsReferendum backs Stuttgart 21
GERMANY: Controversial plans to rebuild Stuttgart’s main station look set to go ahead after 59% of voters approved the project in a referendum held by the Land of Baden-Württemberg on November 27. ‘The people have spoken’, said Baden-Württemberg Minister-President Winfried Kretschmann. ‘I accept the results, even if it does not ...
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NewsMoscow commuter privatisation planned
RUSSIA: The government has decided to auction a 25% minus three shares stake in Moscow commuter operator Central Suburban Passenger Co, Russian Railways announced on November 15. The minimum sale price will be set by an independent review. The RZD subsidiary was established on January 1 2006, with RZD owning ...
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NewsTrackSAFE Foundation to address rail safety challenges
AUSTRALIA: A new campaigning organisation to raise public awareness of rail safety issues was officially launched at the AusRail Plus conference in Brisbane on November 22. The TrackSAFE Foundation is the brainchild of UGL Chief Executive Andy Summers, and is being taken forward as a joint initiative by UGL and ...
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NewsAustralia celebrates National Rail Day
AUSTRALIA: To mark the start of the AusRail Plus conference and exhibition in Brisbane, the Australasian Railway Association officially announced its first National Rail Day on November 22. ARA Chief Executive Bryan Nye launched the event at Brisbane Central station with representatives from Queensland Rail. Railway staff around the country ...
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NewsCongress axes inter-city project funding for 2012
USA: The Appropriations Bill setting 2012 funding levels for several government agencies including the Department of Transportation was ratified by both houses of Congress on November 17. The budget sets out the expected level of federal support for existing inter-city rail services run by Amtrak, and outlines funds available for ...
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NewsAfghan railway ambitions awarded funding
AFGHANISTAN: Plans for east–west and north–south railways are making progress, with Asian Development Bank approving a US$754m multi-tranche package of transport assistance in September. As well as road rehabilitation this includes around US$300m for the extension of the recently-completed 75 km Hayratan – Mazar-i-Sharif railway 225 km west to Andkhvoy. ...
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NewsGrowth & the Capacity Challenge: now available to watch on demand
RAILWAY GAZETTE TV: With demand for passenger and freight movement by rail projected to rise significantly over the coming 20 years, infrastructure managers and train operators across Europe are facing the challenge of squeezing extra capacity from busy networks and building new lines despite financial constraints. Railway Gazette International held ...
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NewsCalifornian high speed plans revised
USA: The California High Speed Rail Authority launched a revised ‘draft business plan’ for its proposed 832 km Phase I of a 400 km/h network connecting San Francisco with Anaheim and Los Angeles. In announcing what it described as a ‘foundation for an economically-viable high speed rail system’, CHSRA has ...
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NewsBorders bidder drops out
UK: Transport Scotland was forced to abandon plans to award a 30-year concession to design, build, finance and maintain a reinstated 56 km line from Edinburgh to Tweedbank, after the second of three prequalified bidders dropped out in the face of uncertain construction risks. This meant the hoped-for element of ...
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NewsSlaskie goes it alone
POLAND: A new passenger operator was launched on October 1 when Koleje Slaskie began Czestochowa - Katowice - Gliwice local services, plus a weekend train to Wisla. KS is owned by Slaskie voivodship, which was unhappy at its share of the subsidy for Polish regional train operator PR increasing from ...
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NewsGrowth & the Capacity Challenge: join the debate
EUROPE: With demand for passenger and freight movement by rail projected to rise significantly over the coming 20 years, infrastructure managers and train operators across Europe are facing the challenge of squeezing extra capacity from busy networks and building new lines despite financial constraints. Railway Gazette International will be holding ...
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NewsEU funding plan builds on TEN-T revisions
EUROPE: Rail and port expansion projects lie at the heart of a €50bn spending plan to improve Europe's transport, energy and digital networks unveiled by the European Commission on October 19. This will form a key element in the EU budget for 2014-20. The Commission said the Connecting Europe Facility ...
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NewsSaudi Landbridge to go ahead as state project
SAUDI ARABIA: On October 10 the Council of Ministers decided to proceed with the Saudi Landbridge east-west freight line as a state-funded project. The line linking Dammam on the Gulf with Jeddah Islamic Port on the Red Sea will be state owned and financed by the ...