All articles by Railway Gazette International – Page 920
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NewsAmsterdam orders 23 metro trains
NETHERLANDS: Alstom Transport is to supply Amsterdam with 23 metro trainsets under a €200m contract announced on February 19. There are options for further trainsets for the future North-South Line. The Metropolis trainsets will be produced at Alstom's Valenciennes and Katowice plants for delivery from early 2012 and entry into ...
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NewsRFF signs GSM-R concession
FRANCE: Réseau Ferré de France signed its first public-private partnership concession agreement on February 18, covering the installation and operation over 15 years of GSM-R communications systems, which are to be rolled out on 14 000 route-km of the core network by 2015. Winning bidder is the Synerail consortium, bringing ...
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NewsAmtrak plans fleet renewal programme
USA: As part of its annual budget submission to Congress, national passenger operator Amtrak published its long-term fleet renewal strategy on February 15, envisaging total expenditure of around US$23bn over the next 30 years. With the average vehicle age now exceeding 25 years, Amtrak President Joseph Boardman says ‘the need ...
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NewsHigh speed funding package agreed
MOROCCO: An allocation of 20bn dirhams for a high speed line between Tanger and Casablanca is included in the 2010-15 Contract Programme which ONCF Director General Mohammed Rabie Khlie signed with the government on February 1. During a ceremony presided over by King Mohammed VI, Lakhlie also signed an ...
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NewsWagonload alliance launched
EUROPE: Representatives from seven major rail freight operators signed an agreement in Zürich on February 18 to establish a new alliance for the operation of international wagonload traffic. The agreement was signed by the chief executives from CD Cargo, CFL Cargo, DB Schenker Rail, Green Cargo, Rail Cargo Austria, SBB ...
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NewsChinese firm's European bid unsuccessful
POLAND: Warszawa regional operator Koleje Mazowieckie announced that Bombardier Transportation had been selected to supply 11 electric locomotives on February 12, beating low bidder CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive. Bombardier's bid to supply Traxx locomotives for €41m undercut Siemens Mobility's offer of €44m. CSR Zhuzhou had been the lowest bidder at ...
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NewsLow-floor train to boost Lausanne suburban capacity
SWITZERLAND: Invited guests rode on the first of six RBe 4/8 electric multiple-units being built for the metre-gauge Lausanne-Echallens-Bercher railway on February 17, just 14 months after Stadler Rail was awarded the SFr41m contract to supply them. They will enter passenger service from May. Over the past 10 years traffic ...
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NewsRussia to announce high speed line plan
RUSSIA: Next month Russian Railways will unveil detailed proposals for a 'European standard' high speed line, RZD Vice-President Avtandil Gorgiladze told the EurasiaRail 2010 conference in Istanbul on February 10. The Siemens Velaro RUS trains which have been operating Sapsan services between Moscow and St Petersburg since December were designed ...
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NewsWheels on test
CHINA: German test equipment supplier NDT AG has delivered its first AURA ultrasonic wheelset testing rig to Chinese Railways. The first rig is being installed in Chengdu in the west of the country. The equipment, which is already used by Deutsche Bahn in Germany, can inspect both sides of a ...
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NewsMÁV Flirts all in service
HUNGARY: National passenger operator MÁV-Start Zrt put its final Stadler-built Flirt EMU into service on February 12, marking the completion of an order for 60 units. The final set was delivered more than two months ahead of the original contract schedule, according to the Swiss manufacturer. MÁV-Start’s Flirts have already ...
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NewsUIC signs co-operation accord with World Bank
INTERNATIONAL: A co-operation agreement to support railways in developing countries was signed in Washington DC on February 11 by the International Union of Railways and the World Bank Group. Signed by UIC Director-General Jean-Pierre Loubinoux and Jamal Saghir, Director of the Bank’s Energy, Transport & Water Department, in the presence ...
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NewsWorld infrastructure market February 2010
Argentina: Infrastructure authority ADIF has selected Grupo Roggio, Herso, Ferromel and a joint venture of Comsa, Iecsa and CPC to carry out US$200m of track renewals on 220 km of the Belgrano network. Comsa and Iecsa have begun on a three-year programme to renew track on the Sarmiento ...
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NewsNews in Brief
Getzner Werkstoffe is to supply 390 000 sleeper base pads to reduce vibration from passing trains in the Gotthard base tunnel. The polyurethane pads are being designed to withstand particularly heavy loads, as the tunnel will carry large volumes of north-south transit freight. The Geomet anti-corrosion coating developed by Dacral ...
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NewsCushioning the blow
VIBRATION: Huntsman Polyurethanes has introduced its Acoustiflex V MDI-based foam in combination with Trackelast pads produced by Edilon Sedra to provide better noise reduction for urban railways. Huntsman's Acoustiflex foam is widely used in a range of vibration-damping applications in the automotive and construction industries, and initial deployment on urban ...
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NewsCaptrain brand to consolidate international freight operations
EUROPE: French National Railways’ freight logistics business SNCF Geodis announced on February 11 that it was bringing all of its international rail haulage activities together under a single brand. SNCF Geodis says it now has 50 000 employees and a network covering 120 countries, with an annual turnover of €8bn. ...
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NewsEurostar accepts multiple failings
EUROPE: The findings of the independent review commissioned to look into the collapse of Eurostar cross-Channel services during the severe snowstorms on December 18-19 were announced in London on February 12. Following pressure from the French transport minister Dominique Bussereau, Eurostar had asked former GNER Chief Executive ...
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NewsSCT tries north-south van trains
AUSTRALIA: Open access freight operator SCT Logistics confirmed on February 12 that it had started an experimental rail van service on the primary north-south interstate corridor linking Melbourne and Brisbane. The first trains began running on February 2. SCT specialises in running block trains of general merchandise using conventional wagons ...
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NewsWorld rolling stock market February 2010
Argentina: Emfer has delivered three double-deck coaches to Buenos Aires commuter operator TBA. Each seating 110 passengers, the cars are equipped with wi-fi and a passenger entertainment system. Austria: ÖBB has awarded Alstom a €90m contract to provide Atlas ERTMS equipment for 332 Class 1016 and 1116 locomotives, 50 ...
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NewsDublin Interconnector project launched
IRELAND: The formal procurement process for the proposed cross-city rail tunnel in Dublin was launched on February 9 with the publication of an OJEU Period Information Notice. Iarnród Éireann is seeking responses from potential PPP partners ahead of lodging a formal application next month for the Railway Order giving powers ...
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NewsExceptional load on the move
GERMANY: DB Schenker Rail has organised 34 special trains to deliver 407 concrete bridge beams from Neumarkt to Frankfurt airport on behalf of construction firm Max Bögl. The beams are up to 38 m long and weigh 92 tonnes, significantly outside DB's usual weight and size parameters and thus necessitating ...