All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 532
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NewsDanish investment plans to be chopped back
DENMARK: The new government is expected to stop work on many of the railway upgrading projects approved by the former coalition government in 2014, according to local news reports. National broadcaster DR has obtained a briefing note from the finance ministry which casts doubt over the government’s ability to fund ...
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NewsTalgo cars prepared for Indian Railways testing
INDIA: Nine Talgo cars have been delivered to North Eastern Railway's Izzatnagar workshop in Uttar Pradesh ahead of planned testing on the Indian Railways network. Transport of the cars from Spain was managed by Gefco, with the vehicles shipped from Barcelona on March 27. Once customs formalities had been completed, ...
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NewsCarolyn Flowers
Carolyn Flowers, who joined the US Federal Transit Administration as a Senior Advisor last year, has replaced Therese McMillan as Acting Administrator.
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NewsRail accident liability and compensation regime strengthened
CANADA: A new liability and compensation regime under the Safe & Accountable Rail Act comes into force on June 18, designed to ensure that in the event of a rail accident sufficient resources will be available to adequately compensate potential victims and pay for clean-up costs. Federally-regulated railways will be ...
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NewsOmniTRAX acquires Heart of Texas Railroad
USA: OmniTRAX has purchased the 110 km Heart of Texas Railroad from local private investors, and is to rename it Central Texas & Colorado River Railway. The transaction is subject to Surface Transportation Board approval, and terms were not disclosed. The short line group said potential new customers for the ...
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NewsLDC backs TXM Plant management buy-out
UK: Road-rail equipment provider TXM Plant has completed a management buy-out, backed by mid-market private equity firm LDC for an undisclosed sum. TXM Plant said it has more than doubled its turnover to £45m in the last three years, and it plans to accelerate its growth by investing in its ...
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NewsNational ERTMS roll-out funded
NORWAY: Infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket expects to issue a formal request for proposals for its planned national roll-out of ERTMS within the next few weeks, following government approval of the financing required. Prequalification has already started for the project, which envisages the introduction of ETCS Level 2 across the entire network ...
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NewsFour bids for high speed fleet
SPAIN: National operator RENFE announced on May 18 that it had received four bids to supply up to 30 high speed trainsets. Following prequalification, bids have been submitted by Alstom Transporte, CAF, Siemens and Patentes Talgo. The contract covers the supply of 15 trainsets, with an option to acquire a ...
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NewsCanberra light rail contract signed
AUSTRALIA: The Australian Capital Territory government and Canberra Metro consortium signed the PPP contract for the first phase of the Canberra light rail project on May 17. Financial close is expected in the coming weeks, with the value of around A$710m still to be finalised. Canberra Metro ...
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NewsAndroid Pay for pay-as-you-go travel in London
UK: Transport for London announced it had become ‘the first transport organisation in the world to accept Android Pay as a method of ticketing’ with the UK launch of Android Pay on May 18. Passengers can use the Android Pay app on mobile devices to travel on London Underground, bus, ...
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NewsZürich orders 70 Flexity 2 trams
SWITZERLAND: The Transport Council of Canton Zürich and the Zürich City Council have approved the order of 70 trams from Bombardier, operator VBZ announced on May 17. The contract is worth SFr358m including spare parts, depot equipment and driver training. The first Flexity Zürich is due to arrive in ...
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NewsShanghai Metro chooses Alstom
CHINA: The Shanghai Alstom Transport Co joint venture of Shanghai Rail Traffic Equipment Development Co (60%) and Alstom (40%) is to supply 198 metro cars to operate on Shanghai metro Line 5 when an extension opens next year. Traction equipment is to be supplied by the Shanghai Alstom Transport Electrical ...
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NewsChina considers lowering metro threshold
CHINA: The government is considering lowering the threshold at which cities become eligible to develop urban rail projects from 3 million inhabitants to 1·5 million. This could result in additional investment of 1tr yuan, according to China Academy of Urban Planning & Design Vice-President Li Xun. The government is ...
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NewsIranian cities seek 4 000 metro cars
IRAN: To cope with rising road congestion, air pollution and the need for urban mobility, Iranian cities are expected to call tenders for at least 4 000 metro cars by 2025, Industry Minister Mohammadreza Nematzadeh told the inaugural Oil Rail Ports conference held in Tehran on May 15-16. With ...
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NewsMontréal commuter fleet depot inaugurated
CANADA: The Lachine Maintenance Centre which will maintain the locomotives and rolling stock used on the Candiac, Saint-Jérôme and Vaudreuil-Hudson commuter routes was formally inaugurated by Montréal transport agency AMT on May 13. The 14 ha facility on the site of the former Sortin yard has stabling ...
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NewsMontréal commuter fleet depot inaugurated
CANADA: The Lachine Maintenance Centre which will maintain the locomotives and rolling stock used on the Candiac, Saint-Jérôme and Vaudreuil-Hudson commuter routes was formally inaugurated by Montréal transport agency AMT on May 13. The 14 ha facility on the site of the former Sortin yard has stabling for 13 trainsets, ...
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NewsMobility Directorate to raise Indian Railways speeds
INDIA: Following Minster of Railways Suresh Prabhu’s budget speech in February which set out plans for the creation of ‘cross-functional’ directorates, the Ministry of Railways has announced plans to form a Mobility Directorate at the Rail Bhawan headquarters in New Delhi. The new directorate’s focus would be on identifying and ...
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NewsAlstom to build £25m UK services facility and transport academy
UK: Alstom announced on May 17 that Halton Borough Council had granted planning permission for a £25m Technology Centre planned for a 12 ha site at Widnes in northwest England. This will enable construction to begin this year. The site would support Alstom’s activities in the services market, carrying ...
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NewsProgress Rail Services acquires Inspired Systems
AUSTRALIA: Progress Rail Services has acquired Inspired Systems, a Perth-based company with a facility in Port Hedland which supplies railway asset protection and condition-based monitoring systems. These compile data to identify problems in real time, and also monitor general utilisation and maintenance needs. ‘We’ve collaborated with Inspired since 2010, and ...
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NewsLea Bridge station reopens
UK: Lea Bridge station on the Lea Valley line in northeast London was ceremonially reopened on May 16, following 31 years of closure. The first public services had called at the station on the evening of May 15. The reopening was led by Waltham Forest Council which provided £5m, with ...