All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 136
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NewsDanish battery train supplier selected
DENMARK: Local railway operator Midtjyske Jernbaner has selected Siemens Mobility to supply seven battery multiple-units. The two-car Mireo Plus B units are to be deployed on the Holstebro – Skjern and Vemb – Lemvig – Thyborøn lines in northwest Jylland from the end of 2024. They ...
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NewsFinland’s VR buys Arriva’s Swedish rail and bus business
SWEDEN: Finland’s national railway VR Group is to acquire Deutsche Bahn’s Swedish train and bus operating business Arriva Sverige, with the aim of expanding in the urban transport sector and becoming a significant operator in the larger Swedish market. Arriva Sverige is Sweden’s third largest train ...
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NewsThree key issues for rail freight in EU state aid reform
EUROPE: The European Rail Freight Association says three key issues need to be addressed in the European Commission’s planned revision of state aid guidelines for railway undertakings. Modal shift: ERFA believes state aid has an important role to play in supporting a transition towards more sustainable ...
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NewsVossloh reports growth in sales and earnings in 2021
INTERNATIONAL: Vossloh has reported strong growth in its sales and earnings in 2021, despite the ongoing constraints imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Sales were up 8·4% year-on-year to €942·8m. Profitability continued to improve, despite rising materials, logistics and energy costs, with the operating EBIT reaching €72·3m. ...
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NewsCaptrain buys Takargo in Iberian expansion drive
PORTUGAL: Rail Logistics Europe has purchased private freight operator Takargo from the Mota-Engil construction group, subject to formal approval by the competition authorities. Founded in 2006 as part of Mota-Engil’s diversification strategy, Takargo was the first independent operator to apply for paths on the Portuguese network ...
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NewsWabtec to modernise 330 Norfolk Southern locomotives
USA: Norfolk Southern has awarded Wabtec Corp a multi-year contract to rebuild a further 330 Dash 9-44CW diesel locomotives to AC44C6M, improving their efficiency and reducing emissions. The modernised locomotives will feature the FDL Advantage engine upgrade, as well as Trip Optimizer, SmartHPT and Distributed Power ...
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NewsRegionerate Rail selected to build Gowrie – Kagaru section of Inland Rail corridor
AUSTRALIA: Australian Rail Track Corp has selected the Regionerate Rail consortium as preferred bidder for a PPP contract to build and maintain the 128 km Gowrie – Kagaru section of the 1 700 km Inland Rail corridor. Regionerate Rail comprises Clough, GS Engineering & Construction, Webuild, ...
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NewsRail freight operator introduces energy surcharge and expects others will follow
BELGIUM: Freight operator Lineas has announced the introduction of a dynamic energy surcharge from April 1, saying this will be a first for the rail sector and it anticipates that other operators will follow. Lineas said such surcharges are common for other modes. ‘We cannot continue ...
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NewsJR Central launches hybrid trainsets with remote monitoring
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway is to replace its ‘Wide View’ Series Kiha 85 diesel multiple-units dating from the late 1980s and early 1990s with a fleet of Series HC85 hybrid multiple-units comprising 64 vehicles in total. Following tests with a four-car prototype built by Nippon Sharyo ...
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NewsElectric locomotive incorporates domestic technology
RUSSIA: Ural Locomotives has unveiled its first 3ES8 Malakhit three-section 3 kV DC electric locomotive, which is intended as the basis for a new generation of electric locomotives incorporating domestic technology. Domestically designed and manufactured technology includes the asynchronous traction drive developed ...
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NewsUkraine to nationalise Russian-owned rolling stock
UKRAINE: National railway Ukrzaliznytsia has begun the process of nationalising Russian-owned rolling stock in the country. The announcement came after the President of Ukraine signed a law setting out principles for the seizure of Russian property following the invasion. Ukrzaliznytsia is drawing up a list of ...
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NewsCFR studies electrification of secondary route to Bulgaria
ROMANIA: CFR Infrastructură has awarded a nine-month contract worth €586 000 to Consis Proiect to conduct a feasibility study into the electrification of the Videle – Giurgiu railway line. It is estimated that it will cost €46m to electrify the line from Rădulești to Giurgiu Nord ...
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NewsInternational rail organisations say ‘sovereignty, self-determination, independence and territorial integrity’ must be respected
UKRAINE: ‘We are firmly against the use of railways in armed conflicts’, the Intergovernmental Organisation for International Carriage by Rail and the Organisation for Co‑Operation Between Railways said in a joint statement issued on March 21; it did not specifically mention Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The ...
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NewsBeograd – Novi Sad line reopens following 200 km/h upgrade
SERBIA: Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attended a ceremony on March 19 to mark the completion of the modernisation of the 77·6 km Beograd – Novi Sad route, and the launch of 200 km/h inter-city services on this section of the ...
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NewsHitachi picks Maryland site to build US rolling stock production hub
USA: Hitachi Rail has announced that it is to build a $70m rolling stock assembly factory on a 16·5 ha site near the Hopewell Valley industrial park west of Hagerstown, Maryland.
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NewsNuclear transport rolling stock on test
USA: Specialist rail vehicles are being developed for the transport of military and civilian nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste to disposal and storage facilities. The US Navy has initiated a project to replace its ageing fleet of Rail Escort Vehicles, which are designed to provide ...
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NewsMore French inter-city services in prospect as tendering relaunched
FRANCE: A 20% increase in ridership on conventional inter-city services or Trains d’Equilibre du Territoire over the next decade is envisaged in a new operating contract between the government and SNCF Voyageurs which was signed in Paris on March 17.
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NewsPrasa restores Cape Town Northern line to Bellville
SOUTH AFRICA: Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa has restored services on its Cape Town – Goodwood – Bellville suburban route after they had been suspended for two years.
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NewsStadler reports ‘best year’ since IPO
SWITZERLAND: Stadler has reported record orders and earnings before tax for the 2021 financial year.
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NewsUK export financing to support completion of Ankara – Izmir high speed corridor
TURKEY: UK Export Finance has agreed to guarantee £1·8bn through its Buyer Credit Scheme to support construction of the Polatlı – Izmir high speed line, which will create a more direct route between the capital and Turkey’s third largest city.