All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 856
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NewsStandard gauge to Niamey?
AFRICA: The long-held dream that the former Chemin de Fer Abidjan – Niger (RAN) might one day reach the second place in its name has resurfaced, amid suggestions that the metre-gauge line connecting Côte d’Ivoire and Burkina Faso could be converted to standard gauge. The Economic Community ...
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NewsNew Orleans streetcar project breaks ground
USA: Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood joined New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu and other officials at a ceremonial groundbreaking for the Loyola Avenue streetcar line on June 7.The 2·4 km tram route with four stops linking Union Passenger Terminal and Canal Street will receive $45m in federal funding. Six bids ...
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NewsJR East gets back on track
JAPAN: Little more than six weeks after the earthquake and tsunami struck northeast of Honshu on March 11, East Japan Railway was able to resume services on the whole of the Tohoku Shinkansen on April 29. Although a number of ground facilities had been damaged by the earthquake, these were ...
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NewsRail Industry Training & Recruitment in Brief
A team of researchers from the UK's Occupational Psychology Centre has examined the evidential benefits of using simulators for driver training. Assessing drivers trained on National Express East Anglia's Stratford simulator, OPC found 'clear links' to improved competence, concentration measures and safety performance. Extraction equipment supplier TEKA and hood manufacturer ...
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NewsNews in Brief
An integrated transport authority is to be formed to co-ordinate policy in New South Wales, leaving RailCorp, Sydney Buses and other transport agencies to focus on service delivery. On May 14 passenger services began stopping at the reopened station at Sösdala in southern Sweden after a gap ...
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NewsReturn of the Bicol Express
PHILIPPINES: Following three test runs in late May, Philippine National Railways announced on June 9 that long-distance passenger services between Manila and Bicol province would resume on June 29. The announcement marks the completion of a four-year, 18bn pesos programme to rebuild PNR’s 479 km Main Line South between the ...
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NewsBordeaux orders more Citadis trams
FRANCE: Greater Bordeaux authority Communauté Urbaine de Bordeaux has selected Alstom as preferred bidder to supply 26 Citadis trams for Phase III of the city’s network expansion programme. The new vehicles will be 43 m long with capacity for up to 400 passengers. The first unit is due to be ...
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NewsTalbot Avenue station groundbreaking in Boston
USA: Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick joined Mayor of Boston Thomas Menino and a score of elected officials on June 7 to break ground for the $15·9m Talbot Avenue station, which is being built under Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Fairmount commuter rail rehabilitation project. The $37m renovation of the 14·6 km ...
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NewsShaping the debate on high speed rail
UK: Reflecting our goal to encourage knowledge transfer across the global rail industry, and expanding our portfolio of business information media, Railway Gazette held its first interactive webinar on June 8. Moderated by Editor Chris Jackson, the debate 'High Speed Rail in the UK: Making the Case' was broadcast live ...
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NewsPartial privatisation planned for Spanish freight
SPAIN: The board of state operator RENFE has approved a restructuring programme for its Freight & Logistics business that would see the private sector offered up to 45% of four trading companies operating in distinct market sectors. The programme aims to strengthen RENFE's competitive position in the liberalised freight ...
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NewsChuo maglev station sites named
JAPAN: JR Central has identified potential sites for intermediate stations on the proposed Chuo maglev route between Tokyo and Osaka, although these are subject to further investigation and environmental assessment. Early proposals had envisaged that the line would have stations only at Shinagawa in Tokyo, Nagoya and Shin-Osaka. However, local ...
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NewsERA publishes EU Railway Safety Performance report 2011
EUROPE: Rail remains one of the safest modes of transport, according to 'Railway Safety Performance in the European Union', the European Railway Agency's fourth annual report on safety published on June 7. There has been an overall improvement since 2006, and most fatalities are unauthorised persons and level crossing users. ...
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NewsBeware of the road/rail interface
LEVEL CROSSINGS: The second International Level Crossing Awareness Day on June 9 is intended to raise public awareness, explains Isabelle Fonverne, Projects Officer, Safety & Interoperability at the International Union of Railways.
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NewsSeven-year tank wagon lease
RUSSIA: Petrochemical company Sibur has signed a seven-year agreement to lease 550 Type 15-1780 propane and butane gas tank wagons from Brunswick Rail. The first 20 wagons were delivered in April, with the rest to follow by October. ‘Long-term co-operation with such clients is a key element of Brunswick Rail’s ...
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NewsLake Oswego streetcar
USA: The Portland and Lake Oswego city councils have voted to move ahead with a $458m streetcar route linking the two communities, which includes a junction with Portland’s existing streetcar network on the South Waterfront. Once initial approvals are received from Multnomah County, Clackamas County, the regional Metro Council and ...
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NewsDual gauge to enable high speed to Madrid Airport
SPAIN: The cabinet has given its approval for the Ministry of Development to spend €15·86m on equipping the rail link to Barajas Airport in Madrid for dual-gauge operation, enabling high speed services to use the new €190m route from Chamartín. Following the completion of upgrading work on 4·1 km of ...
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NewsCarbon credits fund Tallinn tram fleet renewal
ESTONIA: The government intends to spend €45m raised through the sale of surplus carbon credits to purchase up to 16 trams for use in Tallinn. The sale of an undisclosed number of Assigned Amount Units to Spain was approved during a cabinet meeting on May 5. The new vehicles could ...
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NewsDenver commuter rail design
USA: The Federal Transit Administration has granted a Record of Decision to the largely-unfunded 29 km North Metro commuter line in Denver, clearing the way for final design to begin. The route would follow BNSF Railway and former Union Pacific rights-of-way from Denver Union Station to 162nd Avenue in Thornton. ...
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NewsMurcia tram line 1 inaugurated
SPAIN: Tranvía de Murcia launched services on its 17·5 km V-shaped light rail network on May 28.The main route has 24 stops and runs from Estadio Nueva Condomina in the northeast to the University of Murcia campus in the northwest, via the city centre. A branch with four stops connects ...
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NewsScomi wins Line 17 monorail project in São Paulo
BRAZIL: Metro São Paulo awarded the Monotrilho Integracao consortium of Scomi, Andrade Gutierrez, CR Almeida and Montagens e Projetos Especiais a R$1·4bn turnkey contract to build the Line 17 monorail on June 2.The 18 km elevated Gold Line with 18 stations will link São Paulo-Morumbi on Line 4 with Jabaquara, ...