All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 1398

  • News

    Metros

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Colombia: The Ministry of Finance and Cali city authority are expected to call tenders this month for the construction of a metro network.Czech Republic: Local residents are pressing for a station at Bohnice on the proposed KC7bn extension of Praha metro Line C to L

  • News

    Market

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Australia: Westinghouse Brake & Signal Co (Australia) Ltd has won a A$4m contract for signalling equipment on Sydney’s Homebush Bay Olympic branch.Bangladesh: The Asian Development Bank has commissioned Rendel Palmer & Tritton to examine the potential for the Jamuna road bridge to accommodate track wider than the 1000mm gauge line ...

  • News

    M

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    THE SPANISH government has backed proposals from Andalucía’s regional authority for a 187 km high-speed branch to M

  • News

    Letters

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Setting a standard for autocouplersSir - It is good to see attempts being made again to introduce autocouplers into Europe on a large scale. The pattern described in your March issue (RG 3.97 p135) appears to be an unhappy compromise. It seems to have all the excessive weight and complexity ...

  • News

    Intelligence

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    CAPTION: German diesel engine manufacturer MTU has repowered this Russian-built Class TU7 loco for Vietnam Railways with a 12V 183 engine; further power units have been supplied for conversion of seven more TU7s and 15 Romanian-built D11HsCAPTION: China’s Dalian locomotive works has rolled out the first of 50 Class 2101 ...

  • News

    Intelligence

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    CAPTION: US Federal Railroad Administrator Jolene Molitoris boarded Japan’s experimental maglev train during a visit to the test site at Yamanashi prefecture on March 11CAPTION: German Railway and Foster Yeoman Ltd have set up a joint venture, DB Yeoman GmbH, to operate a General Motors Class 59 diesel to ...

  • News

    Intelligence

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Brazil: Ferrovia Sul Atlântico, private operator of Rffsa’s former SR5 and SR6 regions (RG 2.97 p72), has announced a two year rebuilding programme for 100 diesel-electric locos.Europe: Eurotunnel’s Le Shuttle services show continuing recovery after last year’s fire disruption, with 123915 private vehicles carried in February, 48% more than the ...

  • News

    Industry

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Czech Republic: CKD Praha Holding Co took over MSV Studénka on February 25, adding it to the CKD Transport Systems group.Europe: Following the merger of Cardo Group of Sweden with Thyssen Industrie of Germany to create the holding company Cardo BSI Rail, the SAB Wabco Group now comprises SAB Wabco, ...

  • News

    Open skies will hit high speed

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    APRIL 1 marks the long awaited liberalisation of civil aviation in the European Union. In theory, any EU airline will be able to fly between any cities charging any fare. When this happened in America a decade ago, the results were dramatic. As Jack Duchemin, a manager with SNCF, pointed ...

  • News

    Finance

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    Europe: Eurotunnel announced on February 24 that the syndicate of 225 banks had approved a nine-month extension of the suspension of interest payments until December 14 this year.Lithuania: The European Investment Bank is to lend Ecu22m to fund upgrading of the Sumskas - Klaipeda and Kaisiadorys - Kybartai lines.New Zealand: ...

  • News

    Fast food-cars lose weight

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    THIS MONTH sees the first catering cars enter service in German Railway’s ICE2 trainsets. The trains were commissioned last September, but catering was restricted to a trolley service. Changes to the specification of the catering cars had delayed construction, and only now are complete ICE2 formations being used.In contrast to ...

  • News

    KTT expresses to link Kowloon and Guangzhou

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    INTRO: Deliveries are due to begin this month of rolling stock for Kowloon - Canton Railway Corp’s 160 km/h KTT service, which will start running between Kowloon and Guangzhou later this year THIS MONTH is due to see the delivery of the first rolling stock to work 160 km/h inter-city ...

  • News

    Tilt no longer a novelty in Europe

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    INTRO: Roger Ford believes that body tilting has become a low risk bolt-on extra with provision for future retrofitting adding little to initial costsA CONFERENCE hosted by Britain’s Institution of Mechanical Engineers in January brought together presentations on all the European tilt technologies. While aimed at the renewed interest in ...

  • News

    Prism picks LTS EMU suppliers

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    BRITISH passenger train operator Prism Rail PLC announced on March 4 that it had selected Porterbrook Leasing and Adtranz to supply 44 four-car EMUs for its LTS Rail Ltd subsidiary operating the London - Tilbury - Southend route. The 160 km/h air-conditioned units are expected to cut journey times by ...

  • News

    Evaluating the economics of heavy haul railroading

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    INTRO: Global market pressures are continuing to push down heavy haul revenues, forcing operators to seek cost savings through technical innovationBYLINE: Thomas S GuinsManager, Engineering Economics,Association of American RailroadsOVER THE PAST 25 years, the world market for all bulk commodities has become less a function of geopolitics and more determined ...

  • News

    Subsidy deal could hit Tunnel freight

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    CONTRACTS covering the sale of Railfreight Distribution to English Welsh & Scottish Railway were exchanged on March 13, but British Rail cannot hand over its last train operating business until the European Commission has given the all clear. Among other things at issue is SNCF’s complaint that the British government ...

  • News

    Wisconsin suspends one-person crews

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    DESPITE well established and safe operation by sister companies of driver-only freight trains in New Zealand and Britain, Wisconsin Central has been ordered by the US Federal Railroad Administration to provide a second crew member except for light locomotives and trains on industrial tracks. Remote operation of unmanned locomotives by ...

  • News

    Talgo couchettes commissioned

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    FROM March 1 German Railway put into service the first of a small fleet of Talgo couchette cars on its InterCityNight services. Some of the initial vehicles were tested in the formation of the Berlin - Bonn service during February.The cars are laid out with a series of alcoves with ...

  • News

    SBB ends catering support

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    TRUSTING market forces to produce keen prices as rival companies compete for its business, Swiss Federal Railways is withdrawing financial support for train catering. A consortium of Swiss companies SSG Restaurant Car and Rail Gourmet will be vying with Mitropa of Germany for contracts, which SBB hopes will lead to ...

  • News

    Heavy haul responds to the business challenge

    1997-04-01T10:00:00Z

    BYLINE: John A ReochChairman, International Heavy Haul AssociationAS THE current Chairman of the International Heavy Haul Association, it is my pleasure and privilege to welcome railway professionals throughout the world to the Sixth International Conference of the IHHA, being held on April 6-10 in Cape Town, South Africa.This year’s event ...