Railway Gazette International articles from December 2004

Railway Gazette International archives from December 2004

Can rail save the planet?(COMMENT)(conference organised by Central Japan Railway Co. and West Japan Railway Co.)
December 1, 2004... ALL TOO RARELY are railways the starting point for a debate about the wider aspects of society and homo sapiens, but high speed rail travel was chosen as the catalyst for discussions about sustainability and global environmental issues at a...

Modal imbalance distorts infrastructure spending.(COMMENT)(economic study for rail in Australia)
December 1, 2004... THE AUSTRALASIAN Railway Association announced at AusRAIL 2004 (p827) that it would shortly publish a new economic study supporting the case for rail in Australia. The conference delegates got a preview of the analysis of the economic case for...

'Historic' deal not a magic baguette.(COMMENT)(Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Francais)
December 1, 2004... ON OCTOBER 28 French National Railways signed a protocol with the CGT trade union that favours negotiations rather than immediate industrial action. Specifically, it provides for 10 working days of negotiations after a written notice of...

RZD signs high speed accord.(NEWS)(Siemens AG)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... PLANS TO build a fleet of up to 150 high speed electric trains to operate inter-city services were announced by Russian Railways President Gennady Fadeyev on November 8. Visiting Munchen, he signed a co-operation accord with Siemens AG board...

Sharon boosts IR budget.(NEWS)(Israel Railways)(Ariel Sharon and Meir Sheetrit)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... ISRAELI Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Transport Minister Meir Sheetrit announced on November 10 that they had agreed a budget of US$910m for Israel Railways in 2005, compared to US$546m in 2004 and half that in 2003. Sharon has approved...

Cordoba--Malaga contracts.(NEWS)(Gestor de infraestructuras Ferroviarias(Railway infrastructure Authority))(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... SPANISH construction authority GIF has awarded a consortium of Alcatel Espana, Alcatel Integracion y Servicios and Dimetronic a [euro]210m contract to install and maintain signalling and telecommunications on the Cordoba--Malaga high speed...

SNCB changes confirmed.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... ON OCTOBER 28 the Belgian government announced the major appointments to the three companies which will emerge from the splitting of Belgian Railways on January 1 (RG 5.04 p265). As expected, many of the appointments are political....

German Railway.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... German Railway is to accelerate its Berlin-Hamburg services with the timetable change on December 12, using its latest build of ICE-T tilting trains to cut the journey time from 2 h 10 min to just 90 min. The 286 km route has been upgraded for...

Citytunnel awards.(NEWS)(Bilfinger Berger (Germany), E. Pihl og Son A/S and Per Aarsleff A/S has been awarded the contract)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... THE FIRST civil engineering contracts for construction of the 17 km cross-city rail link in Malmo were signed on November 11, even though the Swedish Environmental Court has still not issued the permits needed for work to start. According...

CD completes Corridor 1.(NEWS)(Ceske Drahy)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... A CEREMONY was held at Prelouc on October 12 to mark the completion of Czech Railways' 10-year programme to upgrade its Corridor 1 artery between Decin and Breclav via Praha, Pardubice, Ceska Trebova and Brno (RG 6.95 p 377). Work has been...

Kenya--Uganda shortlist.(NEWS)(rail networks)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... FIVE CONSORTIA have been shortlisted to bid for the joint concession to operate the Kenyan and Ugandan rail networks. Final tenders are to be submitted by April 15 2005, with the concession agreement to be signed two months later and the...

Spoornet freight under pressure.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... AS PART of its strategy to increase the capacity of its Sishen-Saldanha heavyhaul iron ore line from 29 to 41 million tonnes a year, Spoornet has been testing heavier trains. Last month the company confirmed that it had successfully run a 3.9...

Perpignan--Figueres underway.(NEWS)(tunnel between France and Spain)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... THE SPANISH MINISTRY of Development announced on November 14 that work was starting on the 44.4 km Perpignan--Figueres high speed link with France that the TP Ferro consortium is building under a 50-year concession (RG 3.04 p123). ...

Dutch infrastructure manager Prorail has launched a three-month trial of new safety rules for track inspections.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Dutch infrastructure manager Prorail has launched a three-month trial of new safety rules for track inspections, under which one track will be closed for daytime inspection of each main line on one day per week. This will require the suspension...

Eurostar to quit Waterloo in 2007.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... EUROSTAR confirmed on November 15 that it planned to vacate its Waterloo International terminal as soon as Section 2 of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link opens to St Pancras early in 2007. Eurostar had originally planned to keep Waterloo open as...

Rail Link Engineering.(NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... On October 26 Rail Link Engineering announced that major civil engineering work had been completed on the 35 km of tunnel needed to carry CTRL Section 2 under east London; the final section of concrete paving had been laid on October 22. The...

Olympic link plan.(CITY NEWS; between Beijing and Tianjin)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... PLANS to build a high speed inter-city rail link between Beijing and Tianjin were unveiled by officials from the two municipalities on November 16. Construction work on the 14.3bn yuan project is expected to begin next year, so that operations...

Investment drive.(CITY NEWS)(Indian Railways Commercial Organization Network)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... INDIAN RAILWAYS has put forward a long-term investment and modernisation plan totalling Rs460bn, according to Transport Minister Laloo Prasad. Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh asked the minister to draw up an integrated plan for...

Denver voters back FastTracks.(CITY NEWS)
December 1, 2004... IN A local ballot held as part of the US presidential elections on November 2, voters in Denver strongly endorsed a 12-year programme to develop the city's urban rail networks at an estimated cost of $4.7bn. Backed by 57% of voters in the...

Chongqing Monorail.(CITY NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Chongqing Monorail has started running trial passenger services on a section of its first line, which is due to open on June 28 2005. Hitachi has supplied two four-car trainsets under subcontract to Changchun Railway Vehicles, which is building...

Hanoi metro study.(CITY NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... CHINESE consultants have completed a feasibility study for construction of a 13.1 km elevated metro line in the Vietnamese capital Hanoi. The city authorities were due to submit the report to Prime Minister Phan Van Khai last month,...

Munchen launches 10 min S-Bahn.(CITY NEWS)(Schaltbau GmbH)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... THE START of the new German Railway timetable on December 12 will bring significant benefits for the residents of Munchen, with the inauguration of the S-Bahn's Takt 10 project. According to the head of S-Bahn Munchen GmbH Michael Wuth, it...

On October 14 Mulhouse tram promoter Sitram signed a 25-year accord with Societe Generale to lease the 27 Citadis 302 low-floor trams ordered from Alstom at a cost of [euro]62m.(CITY NEWS)(Societe Generale )(Sitram)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... On October 14 Mulhouse tram promoter Sitram signed a 25-year accord with Societe Generale to lease the 27 Citadis 302 low-floor trams ordered from Alstom at a cost of [euro]62m. Now taking shape at the Aytre plant, the 32.5 m long 2 650 mm wide...

Karachi tries again.(CITY NEWS; Pakistan Railways attempts reopening of Karachi Circular Railway )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... PLANS TO reopen Karachi's Circular Railway are being drawn up by Pakistan Railways, after Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz instructed the Railway Ministry on October 21 to reinstate services on the mothballed line as soon as possible. Minister...

Bursa.(CITY NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... The Mayor of Bursa, Hikmet Sahin, signed an accord with Siemens, Tefken and Tuvasas on October 25, paving the way for the second phase of the Bursaray light rail project. This covers construction of a 4 km extension to Yildirim to be funded by...

Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe.(CITY NEWS; plans to order replacement trams)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe's new Tramways Director Klaus-Dietrich Matschke announced on November 2 that BVG was planning to order up to 170 low-floor articulated trams to replace its 500 remaining Tatra cars. These are now around 25 years old,...

Light rail to serve Coquitlam.(CITY NEWS)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... VANCOUVER's TransLink board of directors voted unanimously on October 15 to select light rail technology for the proposed Northeast route linking Coquitlam to the SkyTrain Millennium Line. The cities of Port Coquitlam, Coquitlam and Port...

Brown line resignalling.(CITY NEWS)(Aldridge-Mass )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... ON OCTOBER 14 the Chicago Transit Board approved a $45.5m contract with the Aldridge-Mass joint venture to upgrade the signalling on CTA's Brown Line and rehabilitate Clark Junction as part of its $530m capacity expansion project. This includes...

Lisboa.(tunnel construction)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... On October 26 the ACE joint venture began boring the tunnel for a 1.5 km extension of Lisboa Metro's Red Line westwards from Alameda station. The extension will have two new stations at Saldanha II and Sao Sebastiao II, providing interchange...

Argentina.(INTELLIGENCE)(Trenes de Buenos Aires)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Argentina: Suburban concessionaire TBA is due to restore direct services between Buenos Aires and Mercedes on the Sarmiento network next year. The number of daily services between Moreno and Mercedes is to be increased from 30 to 41, and a new...

China.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... China: The mayors of eight cities in Guangdong and Fujian provinces have agreed to start acquiring land next year for the Shenzhen--Xiamen railway. Construction will begin in 2006.

Czech Republic.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Czech Republic: On October 4 Vitkovice Doprava began operating its own limestone trains over a 40 km route on the tracks of national infrastructure company SZDC between Stramberk and its parent company's steelworks at Ostrava-Vitkovice.

France.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... France: RFF and SNCF are to undertake initial studies for a second high speed line between Paris and the Channel Tunnel via Amiens. Elements of the study will focus on the best means of serving Amiens and a new station between Amiens and...

Germany.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Germany: On October 27 a ceremony was held to mark the start of work on a [euro]30m railfreight terminal at Ulm-Dornstadt, located on the outskirts of the city.

India.(INTELLIGENCE)(Andhra Pradesh)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... India: The Andhra Pradesh state government has approved plans for a public-private partnership to build a 114 km railway between Obulavaripalli and Krishnapatnam Port for the export of iron ore.

International.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... International: On November 16 the CBRail joint venture of Bank of Scotland Corporate and Babcock & Brown announced it had purchased Porterbrook Leasing Co (Euro) Ltd, which owns 28 locomotives and 67 coaches operating in mainland Europe.

Ireland.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Ireland: Minister for Transport Martin Cullen has allocated [euro]5m in his 2005 budget to fund the start of work on a new station in Dublin's docklands. It will relieve capacity at Connolly station, and allow an increase in western suburban...

Netherlands.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Netherlands: The transport ministry is considering allowing driver-only trains and a reduction in services on 19 loss-making routes where operations are to be franchised. NS Reizigers has decided not to bid to operate the Arnhem--Tiel line,...

Switzerland.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Switzerland: The Simplon corridor is now double track throughout, following SBB's opening on November 7 of a new 6.85 km alignment between Salgesch and Leuk in Valais which has cost SFr239m. The previous single track route will be used to widen...

United Kingdom.(INTELLIGENCE)(Level crossings)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... United Kingdom: The Railway Safety & Standards Board has commissioned Scott Wilson to carry out research into preventing motorists illegally zigzagging around half barriers at automatic level crossings. The effects on driver behaviour of the...

USA.(INTELLIGENCE)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... USA: Florida voters have supported by 64% to 36% the repeal of a constitutional amendment which required the construction of a high speed rail network in the state. On October 27 BNSF and UP inaugurated a 13.4 km third track between Walker...

Australia.(Market)(Queensland Railroads)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Australia: QR has placed an A$212m order with an EDI Rail/Bombardier joint venture for eight suburban EMUs for Brisbane and 16 EMUs for Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast interurban services. The three-car 25 kV units will be delivered in 2006-08....

China.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... China: The Ministry of Railways has ordered 78 diesel locomotives from GE Transportation, for delivery in 2005.

France.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... France: Wagon leasing firm Ermewa has ordered 80 tank wagons from Arbel Fauvet Rail for the transport of liquid chalk and 50 tanks for petroleum products. AFR is also building 35 gas tank wagons for Millet.

Germany.(Market)(Bodensee Oberschwaben Bahn)(Die Bahn)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Germany: On November 9 Bodensee Oberschwaben Bahn signed a [euro]5m contract for three Stadler Regio-Shuttle DMUs, to be delivered in September 2005. DB has ordered 40 Bombardier double-deck coaches worth [euro]50m for delivery from June...

Hungary.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Hungary: MAV has appointed a consortium led by Mott MacDonald and including Fomterv, DE-Consult, ISV and ILF as design engineers for the [euro]90m modernisation of infrastructure on TEN Corridor IV.

India.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... India: A steel arch bridge with a span of 480 m and a height above the Chenab River bed of 359 m is being built on the Katra--Laole section of the Udhampur--Srinagar--Baramulla project by a joint venture of Afcons India Ltd and Ultra...

Iran.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Iran: Rotem and Iran Khodro Rail Transport Industries Co have won an order to supply 120 suburban DMU cars worth [euro]110m to Raja Trains. 24 of the vehicles will be built in South Korea, the remainder in Iran.

Israel.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Israel: On October 26 the Ministry of Transport signed a contract for Parsons Brinckerhoff International to provide project management and inspection services for 15 railway upgrading and construction projects totalling US$4.4bn and the...

Italy.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Italy: Sistemi Territoriali SpA has ordered five GTW articulated DMUs from Stadler for use on Adria--Mestre and Udine--Cividale services from autumn 2006.

Kazakhstan.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Kazakhstan: On November 1 Export-Import Bank of the USA and KTZ signed a long-term loan guarantee to finance the purchase of 200 locomotive modernisation kits from GE. These will be used to extend the lives of 100 2TE 10 locos by up to 20...

Mexico.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Mexico: GFM is purchasing 25 AC4400CW diesel locos from GE for lease to its Ferromex subsidiary, using a US$39.5m loan guarantee from Ex-1m Bank of the USA.

Slovakia.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Slovakia: A consortium of five companies led by ZS Brno has won a [euro]150m contract to upgrade the 35 km Tmava to Piestany section of TEN Corridor V by 2007, funded through the EU Cohesion Fund. ZS Brno has been awarded a SKr1.bn contract...

Romania.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Romania: Alcatel officially inaugurated a LockTrac 6111 interlocking at Timisoara on November 10, the largest electronic interlocking in Romania. An interlocking at Brasov was commissioned on October 2, and one at Arad will be completed this...

Spain.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Spain: GIF has awarded Ploder a [euro]39.8m contract to undertake civil works on the 6 km Elda--Monovar section of the Madrid--Alacant high speed line. The 5 km Monovar--Novelda section has been awarded to Necso Entrecanales Cubiertas for...

Sweden.(Market)(Jernhusen AB)(The Cloud)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Sweden: On November 16 wireless internet service provider The Cloud announced a contract with Jernhusen to deploy a public access WLAN at 55 stations by the end of January, with a further 123 to follow later.

Taiwan.(Market)(Taiwan Railway Administration)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Taiwan: In mid-October Hitachi signed a contract to supply eight six-car EMUs to Taiwan Railway Administration. Equipped with tilting technology similar to that on Series 885 trains in Japan, the 25 kV 60 Hz units will be used on the east coast...

United Kingdom.(Market)(Brush Traction)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... United Kingdom: Leasing company Angel Trains and Brush Traction have signed a contract worth over [pounds sterling]1m for the installation of MTU 16V4000 engines on two HST powercars as a pilot for repowering the fleet. In a US$31m...

USA.(Market)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... USA: RailPower Technologies announced on November 9 that it had signed a letter of intent with an unnamed Class 1 railway for the purchase of 35 Green Goat hybrid locos.

Argentina.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Argentina: CAF of Spain has opened a new facility in the Barracas district to maintain cars operating on lines B and D of the Buenos Aires metro.

Australia.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Australia: Bombardier has been awarded a A$47.5m contract to supply nine 29 m Flexity Classic light rail vehicles to the Glenelg tramway in Adelaide. The vehicles will be built at Bautzen in Germany and delivered from December 2005.

China.(Metros)(Changchun Bombardier Railway Vehicles Co )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... China: Changchun Bombardier Railway Vehicles Co has received an order from Guangzhou Metro Corp for eight six-car Movia metro trainsets worth [euro]56m, to be delivered in 2006 for use on lines 1 and 2.

France.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... France: The Lyon public transport authority has awarded Keolis a six-year contract to operate the TCL network from January 1 2005. As incumbent, Keolis was bidding against a consortium of Transdev and RATP Developpement. Alstom Transport...

Germany.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Germany: Bochum-Gelsenkirchen Tramways has ordered 30 low-floor Variotrams and six high-floor Tango trams worth [euro]80m from Stadler Pankow, to enter service in 2007.

Philippines.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Philippines: A 2.5 km extension of Manila Line 2 from Legarda to Recto was opened on October 29. JBIC funding of 8bn pesos is now being sought for an extension east from Santolan Road to Masinag in Antipolo.

Spain.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Spain: FGV has ordered 10 four-car metro trains costing [euro]60m from Alstom, to be delivered to Valencia lines 3 and 5 from 2006.

Switzerland.(Metros)(Zurich Transport contract)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Switzerland: Zurich Transport has been awarded a concession to operate the planned 3.1 km Escher-Wyss-Platz to Altstetten tram route. Construction of the SFr 136m extension will begin in 2006 for opening in June 2008.

UAE.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... UAE: Mitsubishi Corp and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have received a [yen] 10bn order from the Department of Civil Aviation to construct a 1.3 km rubber-tyre automated peoplemover at Dubai International Airport. To open in 2008, it will have...

United Kingdom.(Metros)(Vapor-Stone UK)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... United Kingdom: Metronet Rail has awarded Vapor-Stone UK a US$22m contract to overhaul doors, heating and ventilation systems on London Underground Central Line trains. On the Bakerloo Line, Metronet staff are carrying out a [pounds...

USA.(Metros)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... USA: The $79m, 2 km spur of Dallas Area Rapid Transit's light rail network to Victory station at the American Airlines Center opened on November 13. The 4 km River Rail tram line linking Little Rock with North Little Rock was inaugurated...

Brazil.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Brazil: BNDES has approved a R89.7m loan for leasing firm MRC Servicos Ferroviarios to buy 550 grain wagons and 100 tank wagons from Randon and Amsted-Maxion.

France.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... France: Central government is to provide [euro]20m next year for the second phase of light rail construction in Bordeaux, which will see 25 km of extensions built by the end of 2007. Total cost is [euro]530m, with Caisse des Depots et...

Indonesia.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Indonesia: German bank KfW is to provide a soft loan of [euro]51m to improve commuter services in greater Jakarta and fund the assembly of 10 trainsets by PT Inka in East Java. A [euro]1m grant will fund staff training.

International.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... International: China's Ministry of Railways is to invest 100m yuan on modernisation work and buying 10 locomotives for the metre gauge Kunming--Hanoi cross-border link with Vietnam.

South Korea.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... South Korea: A group of 20 banks is to provide 2.5 trillion won to help finance construction of the 41 km rail link between Kimpo and Incheon airports by 2007 and a 20.5 km extension to central Seoul by 2010.

Spain.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Spain: The Ministry of Development and the Catalunya regional government signed an agreement on November 15 that will see [euro]50m spent on eliminating 24 level crossings on RENFE routes in Catalunya over the next six years.

USA.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... USA: The FRA has awarded Norfolk Southern a $544 000 grant to study the effectiveness of RailView, a locomotive-mounted forward-view camera and data recorder system used to identify the cause of level crossing accidents.

Uzbekistan.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Uzbekistan: JBIC has signed a [yen]16.4bn loan with the Uzbek government to finance construction work on the 223 km Tashguzar--Boysun--Qumqo'rgo'n railway and the upgrading of connecting routes.

Vietnam.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Vietnam: France has signed an agreement to provide [euro]40m of preferential credit for the modernisation of signalling on the Hanoi--Vinh Yen route.

Zimbabwe.(Finance)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Zimbabwe: Transport & Communications Minister Chris Mushohwe has announced that China is to provide a US$140m soft loan for NRZ to purchase 10 locos, eight commuter trains and three inter-city sets.

China's Ministry of Railways.(Pointers; plans to build three heavy-haul railways )(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... China's Ministry of Railways has announced plans to build three heavy-haul railways to serve coal mining districts in Shanxi province, where existing lines are unable to cope with growing traffic.

Moldova.(Pointers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... The government of Moldova has allocated US$22m to build a bypass around Bendery in the disputed territory of Transdnistria. To be completed by the end of next year, the line would restore rail services to the south of the country.

India and Nepal.(Pointers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... India and Nepal have started discussions over the construction of new rail links between the two countries. One would run from Raxaul in Bihar state to Kathmandu and the other from Nautanwa in Uttar Pradesh to Bhairawa and the Buddha's...

Vietnam's Ministry of Transport & Communications.(Pointers)(Brief Article)
December 1, 2004... Vietnam's Ministry of Transport & Communications announced on November 3 that work would start next year on construction of a double-track standard-gauge line from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City. Designed for operation at up to 350 km/h, the 1 630...