All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 421
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News1 520 mm gauge Traxx locomotive to be certified this year
RUSSIA: The First Locomotive Co of Bombardier Transportation and local investors announced at Expo 1520 that is expects to obtain certification this autumn for its 1 520 mm gauge member of the Traxx locomotive family. The prototype 2EV120 Prince Vladimir twin-section locomotive built at the company’s Engels factory was exhibited ...
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NewsEurovia buys German contractor THG
GERMANY: Vinci subsidiary Eurovia announced on August 31 that it had become the majority shareholder in rail infrastructure contractor THG Baugesellschaft. Based in Nordrhein-Westfalen, THG has around 60 staff and generated revenue of €17m in 2016. It provides services including track and turnout renewals, subgrade construction and other civil engineering ...
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NewsBirmingham tram extension receives government funding
UK: The Department for Transport announced on September 1 that it is to provide £59·8m towards the construction of the Edgbaston extension of the Midland Metro tram route in Birmingham. The package means that the £149m project is now fully funded. Preliminary work started in the summer on the ...
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NewsTrams reach Tallinn airport
ESTONIA: Revenue service began on an extension of the Tallinn tram network to the airport on September 1, following an official inauguration ceremony two days earlier attended by Acting Mayor Taavi Aas and Estonia’s Rail Baltica project co-ordinator Kristjan Kaunissaare. The 700 m southern extension of Route 4 includes ...
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NewsLastochka Premium inter-regional EMU offers higher comfort
RUSSIA: The Ural Locomotives joint venture of Sinara Group and Siemens displayed a Lastochka Premium inter-regional version of their Desiro RUS electric multiple-unit family at the Expo 1520 trade fair at Shcherbinka. Russian Railways had previously used the Lastochka Premium brand to refer to some faster services operated using standard ...
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NewsBaghdad metro operator sought
IRAQ: The government is reported to be seeking an operator for two proposed underground metro lines in Baghdad. Both lines would be 23 km long. Line 1 would have 25 stations and Line 2 would have 22, with one interchange station serving both lines. The main maintenance ...
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NewsRailway supply industry news round-up
CASCO Signal (Chengdu) Ltd is to establish its southwest China regional headquarters on the China Railway Industrial Park in Chengdu. IVU Traffic Technologies has announced that revenues in the first half of 2017 were up 15% to €26m while gross profit rose by 10% to €19m. EBIT was slightly ...
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NewsTrafikverket unveils 12-year investment plan
SWEDEN: Transport infrastructure authority Trafikverket formally launched its 2018-29 national plan on August 31, submitting its spending proposals to the government and starting a three-month public consultation process. Formal adoption of the plan is expected in the spring of 2018. The national plan covers state-owned infrastructure for all modes, including ...
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NewsVR orders double-deck coaches
FINLAND: National operator VR has awarded Škoda Transportation subsidiary Transtech Oy a €50m order to supply a further 20 Type Ed double-deck coaches as an option on a contract signed in 2015. Production is scheduled to begin next year, for delivery in 2019. Maisa Romanainen, Senior Vice-President of Passenger Services ...
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NewsEntroncamento – Badajoz passenger service reinstated
PORTUGAL: National operator CP reinstated a daily return passenger service on the 141 km Eastern Line between Entroncamento and the Spanish city of Badajoz on August 29, using Allan diesel railcars built in the 1950s and refurbished by EMEF Contumil in the early 2000s. Passenger services on the route had ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
London Waterloo fully reopened on August 29 following what Network Rail described as ‘one of the largest and most complex upgrades in the station’s history'. However owing to ‘safety critical work to test the signalling taking slightly longer than planned’ following a collision on August 15, there was extensive disruption ...
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NewsEgyptian National Railways plans to form stand-alone freight business
EGYPT: The European Bank for Reconstruction & Development has invited expressions of interest in a contract to assist Egyptian National Railways with the planned conversion of its freight business into a stand-alone subsidiary company. The intention is that this would have managerial independence and operate through commercial relationships with the ...
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NewsTuran Express launches subsidised Almaty passenger services
KAZAKHSTAN: Private company Turan Express has begun operating local passenger services from Kapshagai and Uzynagash to Almaty on behalf of the city authority. Following the failure of two privately funded attempts to introduce services on Almaty – Kapshagai corridor, the local authority decided to call tenders for the operation of ...
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NewsWork begins on Limmattalbahn light rail project
SWITZERLAND: President Doris Leuthard attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the Limmattalbahn light rail project at Schlieren near Zürich on August 28. Preparatory work began on August 2 for the first phase of the route, which is due to open between Altstetten in Zürich and Geissweid in Schlieren to the ...
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NewsHigh speed to Extremadura in 2019
SPAIN: The Ministry of Development says that it remains on course to open in 2019 the first section of the high speed line between Madrid and Badajoz, in the Extremadura region close to the border with Portugal. With tracklaying now in progress, the first section to enter service with diesel ...
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NewsMumbai metro Line 4 receives AIIB funding
INDIA: The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank is to provide US$500m towards the estimated US$2·22bn cost of the metro Line 4 project in Mumbai. To be delivered by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, the project is due to be completed in 2021. Line 4 would run on a ...
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NewsBearings meet tough specification and tight deadlines
MOROCCO: National operator ONCF has awarded SKF a contract to supply 15 000 passenger and freight rolling stock wheelset bearings over three years. Announcing the win on August 28, SKF said it was the only supplier which could meet ONCF’s strict technical specifications and begin delivering ready-certified bearings with a ...
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NewsElectric locomotive arrives in Israel
ISRAEL: The first of 62 Traxx AC electric locomotives which Bombardier Transportation is building at Kassel in Germany for Israel Railways arrived at Kishon Port in Haifa on August 28, and was then transported by rail to ISR’s Kishon workshops. ISR currently has no electrified lines, but 25 kV 50 ...
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NewsHS2 Ltd begins procurement of London stations construction partners
UK: The process to appoint the Construction Partners for High Speed 2’s London Euston and Old Oak Common stations has been formally launched by project promoter HS2 Ltd. It expects to issue invitations to tender to shortlisted bidders by the end of the year and award the contracts in autumn ...
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NewsSMART commuter rail line opens
USA: Celebrations on August 25 marked the opening of the Sonoma-Marin Area Rail Transit District commuter line in the North Bay area of California. T-shirts and free travel were offered on the first day, followed by half-price travel until the introduction of normal fares on September 5. SMART runs for ...