All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 449
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NewsB Logistics renamed Lineas as it aims for modal shift
BELGIUM: The part-privatised former SNCB freight business has been rebranded from B Logistics to Lineas, reflecting what the company sees as a change in focus from survival and business transformation to growth. The new name was chosen to be 'completely different', international and to reflect an ambition to create 'lines' ...
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NewsKonya metro route confirmed
TURKEY: Konya Metropolitan Municipality has finalised plans for a two-line metro network in the city. To be built in three stages, the network would connect the city’s main universities and hospitals. Plans for a metro were originally published in 2015, and a feasibility study started in November 2016. Geological ...
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NewsMRCE sells diesel locomotives
EUROPE: Irish-registered RIVE Rail Leasing Ltd has acquired 32 Vossloh diesel shunting locomotives from Mitsui Rail Capital Europe, in a transaction co-arranged by Paribus Capital and Paris-based RIVE Private Investment. Senior debt was structured and provided by KfW IPEX-Bank. RIVE Rail Leasing is a joint venture between investors advised by ...
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NewsPolRegio receives first Pesa Link DMU
POLAND: Pesa officially handed over the first of a batch of Link diesel multiple-units to national local passenger operator PolRegio in Warszawa on April 27. PolRegio placed an order in February for three two-car DMUs for 37·6m zloty, with options for two more at 25·1m złoty. Pesa was the ...
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NewsRegioJet partners with GKB to enter the Austrian market
AUSTRIA: Czech open access operator RegioJet is to enter the Austrian passenger market with the launch of four daily Wien – Břeclav – Brno – Praha return services from the December 2017 timetable change. The inter-city services would have ‘the best prices on the market’, RegioJet said, with its onboard ...
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NewsUK railway news round-up
RSSB has published its Standardisation of Coupling Arrangements report which recommends that trains travelling at speeds under 250 km/h should use couplers compatible with the Scharfenberg Type 12 and Voith 136 design. RSSB said there is currently only a 50% chance that the nearest locomotive to a broken-down train has ...
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NewsDB Cargo UK confirms job cuts and reform
UK: Freight operator DB Cargo UK has confirmed that it is to launch its ‘future business model’ on July 2, having reached an agreement on the changes with the unions which represent the majority of its workforce. Discussions with ASLEF, RMT, TSSA and Unite began in October 2016 when DB ...
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NewsADB loan for Ferghana Valley electrification
UZBEKISTAN: The Asian Development Bank has approved a US$80m loan towards a US$177m project to electrify 145·1 km of single track line linking Pap, Namangan and Andijon in the Ferghana Valley. Completion is planned for the second quarter of 2020. The ADB loan will finance supervision services and the procurement ...
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NewsRoslagsbanan narrow gauge EMU contract signed
SWEDEN: A SFr232m contract for Stadler to supply Stockholm transport authority SL with 22 custom-designed three-car electric multiple-units for the 891 mm gauge Roslagbanan suburban line has been signed. Deliveries are scheduled for 2020, with entry into service in 2022. There is an option for a further 45 units. Stadler ...
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NewsAubin Grove station opens
AUSTRALIA: Aubin Grove station on Perth’s suburban Mandurah Line opened on April 23. The station was built at a cost of A$72m as part of the A$125m Aubin Grove road and rail project. It has 2 000 parking bays, along with bicycle facilities, six bus feeder services, a kiosk, toilets, ...
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NewsLeeds transport funding package confirmed
UK: A £173·5m four-year funding package for public transport improvements in Leeds was confirmed by Transport Minister Andrew Jones on April 21. In addition, FirstGroup has agreed in principle to commit £71m to providing 284 new low-emission buses by 2020. West Yorkshire Combined Authority is to use the funding to ...
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NewsBombardier places ‘breakthrough’ order for ABB transformers
AUSTRIA: Bombardier Transportation has placed the first contract for ABB’s Effilight roof-mounted traction transformer design, ordering 42 transformers for installation on 21 Talent 3 electric multiple-units which it is to supply to Austrian Federal Railways for use in the Vorarlberg region. The Effilight has a patented cell design which ABB ...
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NewsCRC orders more CRH1A-A high speed trainsets
CHINA: China Railway Corp’s Nanning Railway Bureau has placed an order for 40 CRH1A-A high speed train cars with Bombardier Sifang (Qingdao) Transportation Ltd.Bombardier says that the order is intended to support the ongoing integration of Guangxi's regional high speed routes into the national network of Passenger-Dedicated Lines. The contract ...
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NewsWork starts on Boyolali airport rail link
INDONESIA: Construction has started on a 13·5 km rail link to serve Adi Soemarmo International Airport in the central Java state of Boyolali, following a groundbreaking ceremony on April 8 attended by President Joko Widodo. Due to be completed within two years, the line will connect the airport with Solo ...
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NewsDouble track to Chittagong
BANGLADESH: The government has signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese contractors to regauge and double-track the Dhaka – Chittagong main line via Akhaura and Comilla.According to Railways Minister M Mazibul Hoque, the work is to be undertaken by China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group, which last year was awarded the ...
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NewsStagecoach and SNCF lead Virgin-branded bid for HS2 operations
UK: On April 24 a consortium led by Stagecoach Group with SNCF and Virgin Holdings as minority partners submitted a formal expression of interest in bidding for the Department for Transport’s upcoming West Coast Partnership franchise.The WCP franchise is scheduled to begin in May 2019. The winner will take over ...
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NewsTram components 3D printed on demand
GERMANY: Siemens is using 3D printing to reduce its lead times for the supply of customised tram components from weeks to days while eliminating the cost of specialised tooling and the need to keep parts in stock. Siemens has seen an increase in demand for customised parts, but the ...
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NewsFlat wagons certified
RUSSIA: RM Rail has obtained certification for two designs of flat wagon designed for heavy loads and a service life of 32 years. The Type 13-1258 wagon is designed for transporting wheeled and heavy crawler vehicles, steel structures, heavy containers, tank containers for dangerous goods of up to 36 tonnes ...
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NewsKaiserstuhlbahn electrification contract awarded
GERMANY: Local rail infrastructure manager SWEG Schienenwege has awarded Powerlines Group a contract to electrify the 37·6 km Kaiserstuhlbahn linking Riegel-Malterdingen with Gottenheim and Breisach to the northwest of Freiburg. Forming part of the Breisgau-S-Bahn 2020 project, this will enable Kaiserstuhlbahn services to be integrated with the Freiburg – Breisach ...
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NewsBergen airport tram extension opens
NORWAY: The extension of Bergen’s Bybanen light rail line from Birkelandsskiftet to Kokstadflaten and the airport at Flesland was officially opened with a ceremony on April 21. Passenger services started the following day. The opening of the latest section of the line completes the 7 km Lagunen – Flesland third ...