DURING a visit to France by President Nursultan Nazarbeyev of Kazakhstan, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Samruk, Kazakhstan’s national holding company for state-owned enterprises, and Alstom regarding rail and power supply projects in Kazakhstan.
Under the agreement, Alstom is negotiating with Kamkor, a Kazakh railway maintenance company, to upgrade 145 class VL-80 electric locomotives including the supply of transformers and asynchronous traction motors. The two companies are also discussing the assembly of electric locomotives under licence in Kazakhstan.
Alstom is also discussing the supply of four Pendolino tilting trains to Kazakhstan State Railways (KTZ) for operation on the 1334km link between the capital Astana and Almaty. KTZ already operates Spanish Talgo tilting trains on an overnight service on this route.

June 11, 2008
Yakunin calls for international rail superhighways

THE president of Russian Railways (RZD), Mr Vladimir Yakunin, has called for the creation of what he calls rail superhighways on the 1520mm-gauge rail network serving the countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS). These would be international corridors having common standards in terms of capacity and technology to ensure a high level of service.
Speaking at the Twelfth St Petersburg International Forum, Yakunin said to achieve such superhighways it would be necessary to harmonise transport law in CIS countries, establish competitive through tariffs, coordinate efforts to attract investment, set up logistics operators, and build what he described as “rail ports” in the main industrial and transport centres.
Yakunin also called for a unified long-term strategy for balanced rail transport development within the CIS. He said organisations such as the CIS Railway Transport Council and the 1520 Strategic Partnership forum could be used to develop such a strategy.

June 10, 2008
Trenitalia considers Eurostar sale

Italy’s national passenger operator, Trenitalia, is deciding whether to issue shares in its high-speed passenger arm, Eurostar Italia. Trenitalia CEO, Mr Mauro Moretti, says discussions are underway, but adds that consolidation of the company’s other operations would have to take place before an IPO.

June 9, 2008
Electrification and tram-trains for Adelaide

THE only Australian state capital without an electrified rail network is to receive $A 2 billion (1.9 billion) investment over the next decade as part of plans unveiled by the government of South Australia. Most of Adelaide’s and 120km commuter rail network will be electrified all passenger lines will be converted from broad gauge to standard gauge. The Noarluga, Outer Harbor, Grange and Gawler lines will be electrified at 25kV ac, and a fleet of 50 emu cars will be ordered.
Fifty-eight of the existing class 3000/3100 demus will be converted to electric operation and refurbished. The remaining 12 demus in the TransAdelaide fleet will be refurbished for use on the Belair line, which will remain diesel-operated until an Australian government-funded study determines the future of the steeply-graded Adelaide Hills section of the Adelaide – Melbourne line.
Light rail services are also set for a makeover with the introduction of Australia’s first tram-trains. The 12.5km Glenelg – City light rail will be extended to Adelaide Entertainment Centre before joining the Grange Line and running to West Lakes. Another light rail line will be built from Port Adelaide on the Outer Harbor line to Semaphore. Four additional single voltage Flexity Classic LRVs will be ordered from Bombardier for the initial extension to the Entertainment Centre, and another 15 dual-voltage LRVs will be ordered for the West Lakes and Semaphore services. The tram-train project will be completed by 2012.

June 6, 2008
Moscow to open third airport rail link

THE Russian capital’s third airport rail link will be officially opened on June 10 by Mr Sergey Ivanov, deputy chairman of the Russian government, Mr Igor Levitin, minister of transport, Mr Boris Gromov, governor of the Moscow Region, and Mr Vladimir Yakunin, president of Russian Railways (RZD).
Rail services between Moscow Savyolovsky station and Sheremetyevo Airport will start on June 11. Trains will take about 35 minutes compared with between 55 and 65 minutes for current rail and bus service.

June 5, 2008
ORR tells Network Rail to cut costs

BRITAIN’S Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has told infrastructure manager Network Rail it must cut its operating, maintenance and renewals costs by 21% by 2014.
ORR has ruled that Network Rail will need £26.5 billion in income between 2009 and 2014 to deliver significant improvements in reliability, safety and capacity, £1.6 billion less than its revenue income in 2004-2009 and 10% lower than Network Rail’s forecast of £29 billion. £7.5 billion has been allocated for capacity enhancements, compared with the £9 billion Network rail says it needs.
Responding to the ORR’s statement, Network Rail warned the settlement would put a number of planned infrastructure improvements at risk. “Demand for more and better services continues to grow. It is vitally important that we get the right level of funding to meet passenger and freight needs,” said chief executive Mr Iain Coucher. “I am extremely concerned that the funding settlement outlined today will put our plans to meet rising demand at risk.”
Between 2009 and 2014, Network Rail will be required to increase punctuality to 92.6% in England and Wales, and 92% in Scotland. Delays to freight trains must also be cut by 25% compared with 2008-09 levels.

June 4, 2008
South Caucasus Railways takes over in Armenia

RUSSIAN Railways (RZD) subsidiary South Caucasus Railways (SCR) has taken over the former Armenian Railways (ARM), under the terms of its 30-year concession to operate and maintain the 845km network.
Under the agreement signed in January, RZD will invest $US 400 million in infrastructure and $US 170 million in rolling stock. SCR says its main priority is to bring Armenia’s railways into line with Russian regulatory standards for maintaining infrastructure and rolling stock. Upgrading will initially be focused on the country’s main lines which account for 80% of all freight traffic, although SCR is also planning to construct two new lines from Yerevan to Batumi and Poti.
SCR has a fleet of 85 locomotives, 30 emus, 58 coaches and 2000 wagons, with a workforce of 4,300 employees. The 30-year concession agreement includes a clause allowing a 20-year extension after the first 20 years of operation.
Freight traffic in Armenia declined sharply in the years following the break-up of the Soviet Union and fell to just 1.4 million tonnes per year by 2003, although SCR expects this to recover to 30 million tonnes per year. SCR expects to restart freight services to Turkey next year, and Azerbaijan in 2010.

June 3, 2008
Sydney seeks shadow operator for North West Metro

THE government of New South Wales has invited expressions of interest to find a shadow operator for Australasia’s first metro line. The shadow operator will provide consultancy services in the run up to the start of construction on Sydney’s 38km North West Metro in 2010, and will provide technical assistance on the $A 12 billion ($US 11.3 billion) project thereafter.
The New South Wales government said it is seeking a shadow operator in the planning and procurement stage of the project to maintain a central focus on delivering a safe, attractive and efficient end-product for passengers, prior to the appointment of the actual operator.
The proposed line will run underground from the city beneath Victoria Road towards Top Ryde, Epping, Castle Hill, and Rouse Hill in the city’s north-west. Thirty-two kilometres of the line would be underground.
The line will have 17 stations with the city centre terminus expected to utilise disused CityRail platforms at St James station. Journey times from Rouse Hill to St James will be around 44 minutes, compared with 87 minutes for the fastest public transport journey today. No detailed technical specifications for the metro have yet been released, although the line will use automatic operation with trains running at five-minute headways.
The state government says it will fund the metro but has left the door open for a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), or government funding with private operation. Construction will start simultaneously from both the city and the Hills Centre by 2010 with the first section opening between Epping and Rouse Hill by 2015. This section will operate as an isolated shuttle until the remainder of the metro is completed by 2017.

June 2, 2008
Portugal invites high-speed bids

THE Portuguese government has launched its Euros 9.5 billion 10-year high-speed construction programme by inviting public tenders to build the first section of the Lisbon – Madrid line.
The 206km Portuguese section of the line will be implemented in two portions, and will be built and operated as a 40-year public-private partnership (PPP) concession. Today’s announcement covers the Euros 1.7 billion Caia – Poceirão section, and bids for the for the Euros 1.6 billion Poceirão-Lisbon section, including a 13km bridge over the River Tagus, will be invited in December.
The line will open in 2013 and will be constructed for 350km/h operation to allow a Lisbon – Madrid journey time of 2 hours 45 minutes when the Spanish section is completed.
Further tenders will be published in the first half of 2009 covering the Lisbon – Pombal and Pombal – Oporto sections, which are estimated at Euros 2.1 billion and Euros 1.7 billion respectively. The 290km line will be built for 300km/h operation line and journey times will be cut to 1 hour 15 minutes when it opens 2015.
Both lines are Trans European Network – Transport priority projects and therefore qualify for European Union funding.

May 30, 2008
Iran – Iraq connection to open within a year?

IRANIAN Islamic Republic Railways (RAI) managing director Mr Hassan Ziari has said southern Iran’s rail link with Iraq will be completed by March 2009, according to reports from the Iranian Fars News Agency.
Ziari said the construction of the 35km line from the Iranian port of Khorramshahr to Basra in Iraq was progressing well on the Iranian side of the border, although work is proceeding more slowly on the 19km Iraqi section. The project includes construction of a 700m-long bridge over the Shatt-Al-Arab waterway.
The line will provide an important connection between Iran and the proposed 200km GCC Railway, which will eventually link southern Iraq and Kuwait with Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Muscat.

May 29, 2008
Bombardier and Balfour Beatty sign Swedish ETRMS deal

SWEDISH infrastructure manager Banverket and a consortium of Bombardier and Balfour Beatty have signed a framework agreement to roll out the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) in Sweden. The eight-year contract, which is expected to be worth around Krona 930 million ($US 156 million), covers the specification, development and delivery of Bombardier’s Interflo 450 system, which is already being installed on the 190km Botnia Line between Kramfors and Umeå.
Under the latest contract Balfour Beatty will install the system, initially on the Sundsvaal – Kramfors line.
In April Bombardier signed a framework agreement Banverket and its Norwegian equivalent, Jernbanverket, to supply its Ebi Cab 2000 European Train Control System (ETCS) onboard system, together with the delivery of products and services on all new and retrofitted vehicles in both countries.

May 28, 2008
Arup study backs London Heathrow rail hub

EUROPE’S most congested airport will need better rail connections if it is to become a world-class transport hub, according to a study by Arup, which suggests London’s Heathrow Airport requires £10 billion investment in new railway infrastructure by 2017.
The study advocates the construction of a 24km high-speed link, which would run mostly in tunnels from St Pancras International to a new 12-platform station on the Great Western Main Line between West Drayton and Iver. This would allow Eurostar high-speed services from Paris and Brussels to London to serve the airport, and would also be the first stage of a new high-speed line between London and Birmingham.
The new station would be situated 3.5km north of the airport adjacent to the intersection of the M4 and M25 highways, and would be served by services from south west and central England and Wales. A peoplemover would connect the station to the airport.
Arup says that despite substantial investment in an express link to central London in the mid-1990s, just 22% of passengers arrive at Heathrow’s five terminals by rail, compared with 65% by car. It also suggests better rail access could provide alternatives to short haul flights, releasing much-needed capacity at the airport.
The British government is currently carrying out public consultation on plans to add a third runway and sixth terminal at Heathrow by 2020.

May 27, 2008
Saudi Arabia cancels North-South Railway contract

SAUDI ARABIA has cancelled a $US 800 million contract it awarded to Russian Railways (RZD) in January to build a 520km section of the country’s planned North-South Railway. According to RZD CEO Mr Vladamir Yakunin, the deal to construct the line from Riyadh King Khalid International Airport to Az Zabira Junction was annulled because of “a problem in international relations.”
The $US 2 billion North-South Railway will eventually stretch 2400km from Haditha on the border with Jordan, to Riyadh, Jouf, Gassim, and Sudair, allowing the transport of phosphates and bauxite to Ras Azzur in the north-east of the country. The line had been due for completion in 2010-11.

May 27, 2008
Wabtec acquires Italian braking manufacturer

WABTEC, United States, has announced it is to acquire Italian brake manufacturer Poli for Euros 53 million. Poli has annual sales of around Euros 30 million, primarily in Europe.
Wabtec says it is trying to become a third force in the railway braking market in Europe, and the acquisition of Poli is part of its strategy to double the size of its business in five years. It expects the transaction to be completed in the third quarter of this year.

May 23, 2008
SJ orders 20 intercity emus

HAVING indicated earlier this year that it would buy new intercity emus, Sweden’s national passenger operator SJ has placed an order for 20 four-car Regina trains from Bombardier.
The delivery of the 200km/h emus in 2010 will allow SJ to replace X2000 trains on slower and less busy routes. The X2000 fleet will be concentrated on SJ’s key routes from Stockholm to Gothenburg, Malmö, and Sundsvaal, where additional capacity is urgently required.
The Euros 221 million contract includes options for a further 20 trains. Around 70 Regina emus are already in regional service with various operators in Sweden, and Bombardier is testing one of the trains at speeds of up to 275km/h as part of it’s Green Train programme.

May 21, 2008
Alstom unveils Prima II locomotive

Alstom unveiled its new Prima locomotive platform in France on May 20, and claims it is even more flexible than the previous model.
The locomotive is available in diesel and electric versions, and the latter can run under up to four voltages commonly used in Europe. Prima II will have power levels of between 4MW and 6MW, and top speeds of up to 200km/h.
The first customer for the new locomotives is Moroccan National Railways (ONCF), which ordered 20 electric locomotives in November 2007 for delivery next year.

May 20, 2008
Bilfinger Berger consortium is awarded Edinburgh tram contract

A consortium of Bilfinger Berger, Germany, and Siemens has been awarded a €350 million contract to build a 19km light rail system in Edinburgh, Britain.
The consortium was awarded preferred bidder status in October 2007, and since then detailed negotiations have been taking place to close the deal. The light rail system will connect the northern suburbs, city centre, and airport, and will include 22 stops.
Siemens will be responsible for system integration, communications and signalling equipment, electrification and parts of the tracks. The deal includes a 10-year maintenance contract

May 19, 2008
FreightLink seeks buyers

FreightLink, the owner and operator of the Adelaide to Darwin railway, is seeking expressions of interest from potential buyers.
FreightLink won the concession to build the Alice Springs – Darwin line in 2001, as well as a 50-year operating concession for the 2240km Tarcoola – Darwin railway. Since operations started in 2004, traffic has performed well, and 90% of freight on the corridor is claimed to be railborne.
FreightLink CEO, Mr John Fullerton, says the company has achieved “exceptional growth” in a very short period of time and claims the business is well positioned to further expand its activities in the emerging minerals sector along the Adelaide to Darwin rail corridor.
Fullerton adds: "Quality rail assets in Australia are highly regarded for their strategic value and this presents a rare opportunity for investors to acquire a rapidly growing business in the transport and logistics industry where rail will play an increasingly significant role."

May 15, 2008
Siemens scoops "biggest ever" train order

SIEMENS is celebrating what it claims is its largest ever rolling stock order after it was awarded a €1.43 billion contract by Belgian National Railways (SNCB) to supply 305 three-car Desiro Mainline emus for the Brussels RER network.
The 160km/h trains will have a power rating of 2MW and will be dual voltage to allow operation on 25kV systems as well as the conventional Belgian 3kV dc system. The trains will be manufactured at Siemens’ site in Krefeld, Germany, with production beginning next year and delivery running from 2011 to 2016.
The order is the second for Siemens’ new-generation Desiro Mainline, Angel Trains having ordered 16 three-car sets for Germany regional operator Mittelrheinbahn last year.

May 14, 2008
Thalys launches onboard broadband Wi-Fi

THALYS has become the first international train operator to launch wi-Fi broadband internet access across European borders with the inauguration of Wi-Fi services on its trains from Paris to Brussels, Amsterdam, and Cologne. A consortium of Nokia Siemens Networks, satellite communications operator 21Net, and Belgian broadband cable company Telenet designed the system, provided all equipment, and operates the service. The system combines satellite, GPRS and UTMS networks with Wi-Fi technologies to provide uninterrupted, cross-border internet access at speeds of up to 300km/h.
Thalys has already equipped a quarter of its fleet of 26 trains and the remainder of the fleet will carry the technology by the end of the year.

May 13, 2008
Testing starts on Dubai metro

DUBAI marked a milestone in the construction of its first metro line on Monday, when the first test train ran over a 1km section of the Red Line between Jebel Ali Industrial Area and Jebel Ali Free Zone. The testing zone for the driverless trains will be gradually extended over the coming months to include the section from Jebel Ali Free Zone to Dubal, a distance of 4km.
The 54.1km Red Line from Jebel Ali Port to Airport Free Zone will open in September 2009, while the 22.3km Green Line from Festival City to Rashidiya, will open in March 2010. Contracts for the construction of two more lines, the Purple and Blue lines, are expected to be awarded soon.

May 12, 2008
Bosnia close to rehabilitation deal

A DEAL to rebuild part of Bosnia-Herzegovina’s devastated rail network could be signed within a month, according to the country’s Serb Republic government, which says it is close to signing a contract with General Electric, United States. Under the Euros 170 million contract, General Electric will provide equipment for the rebuilding of the Doboj – Banja Luka – Prijedor line, which is operated by Serb Republic Railways (ŽRS).
Bosnia’s other autonomous region, the Muslim-Croat Federation, is also reportedly close to agreeing on a deal for the rehabilitation of railways under its jurisdiction. Bosnia’s railways were severely damaged in the 1991-1995 civil war, and many services have yet to be fully restored.

May 9, 2008
Brussels tunnel contract awarded

BELGIAN infrastructure manager Infrabel has awarded a consortium of Royal BAM Group, Netherlands and Belgian companies Jan De Nul and Franki Geotechnics, a Euros 210 million contract to build a 1.5km tunnel under Brussels. The double-track link from Brussels-Schuman to Josaphat is a key element of the Euros 1.8 billion Brussels RER project, and will connect the Brussels – Namur and Hal – Vilvoorde lines from 2015. The project also involves rebuilding the metro station at Schuman.

May 8, 2008
RZD to sell wagon repair depots

RUSSIAN Railways (RZD) has invited expressions of interest for the privatisation of 22 wagon repair and maintenance depots. Last year the depots repaired a total of 18,540 RZD wagons and more than 20,000 privately-owned wagons.
The privatisation of the workshops is part of Phase 3 of the reform of RZD, one of the aims of which is to develop competition in the rolling stock maintenance and repair sector.
RZD expects to raise at least Roubles 2.6 billion ($US 109.2 million) from the sale.

May 7, 2008
Alstom signs British tilting train agreement

BRITAIN’S Department for Transport (DfT) and Alstom have signed a long-awaited agreement to supply additional coaches for the fleet of 200km/h Pendolino trains used on the West Coast Main Line. The notice to proceed will be followed by a £1.5 billion contract in August to supply four complete 11-car trains, and lengthen 31 existing trains from nine to 11 cars by December 2012. The agreement includes an option to lengthen the remaining 21 trains, which must be exercised by August 2010.
The notice to proceed also includes a 10-year extension of Alstom’s existing contract to maintain the Pendolino fleet, beginning at the end of the current contract term in April 2012.
The Pendolinos are currently used by Virgin West Coast on services from London to Brimingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow. Virgin’s franchise ends in 2012.

May 6, 2008
NZ returns Toll to state ownership

AFTER months of negotiations, the government of New Zealand has announced it will return the country’s largest rail operator, Australian-owned Toll NZ, to state ownership. The government will pay Toll $NZ 665 million ($US 523.6 million) for Toll’s rail assets, including 180 passenger coaches, 4200 freight wagons, and one ferry.
Toll Holding’s managing director Mr Paul Little said on Monday that the company did not want to sell and from Toll’s point of view, the deal was a compromise.
New Zealand Rail Limited was sold by the government for $NZ 400 million in 1993 to the Tranz Rail consortium, which was headed by Wisconsin Central, United States. When Tranz Rail was sold to Toll a decade later the government bought back the rail infrastructure, which is now the responsibility of Ontrack. The government has been attempting to reach an agreement on track access charges with Toll ever since.
Ironically, Toll will now be the railway’s largest customer, spending around $NZ 60 million a year. It will also be a customer with a unique knowledge of its supplier’s operations and with trucking operations still bringing in $NZ 200 million in revenue, Toll could potentially be a very competitive rival for the new rail company.

May 2, 2008
Thailand approves budget for $US 11.6 billion rail plan

THE THAI government’s transport mega-project committee has approved a Baht 367.3 billion ($US 11.6 billion) budget for the construction of five double-track lines with a total length of 2644km.
The government plans to invite private companies to invest in the new lines under concession agreements, and it says rolling stock manufacturers will be given priority in the bidding process if they agree to set up manufacturing sites in Thailand.
The new lines are intended to increase rail’s share of the freight market from 2.8% to 10%.

April 30, 2008
Transtec consortium wins Gotthard tunnel contract

ALPTRANSIT Gotthard has awarded an SFr 1.69 billion (Euros 1.05 billion) contract to build the railway infrastructure of the Gotthard Base Tunnel to the Transtec consortium, which includes Balfour Beatty, Alcatel-Lucent, and Thales. The contract involves laying track in the two 57km single-bore tunnels and on their approaches, together with signalling and communications, electrification, cabling, lighting, and power supplies.
Once approved by the Swiss Federal Office of Transport, work will begin on the infrastructure installation base. Installation will begin at the southern portal in 2009, and the northern portal in 2012, and is expected to take seven years to complete. The tunnel will be the longest in the world when it opens in 2017.

April 29, 2008
Administrator called in to solve UIC conflict

FRANCE’s Court of First Instance in Paris has appointed Mrs Béatrice Dunogué-Gaffié as provisional administrator of the International Union of Railways (UIC) at the behest of the UIC’s CEO Mr Luc Aliadière. The appointment is for six months, but can be extended if necessary.
The provisional administrator will perform three functions: to manage the UIC in liaison with the CEO, to initiate a financial audit, and finally to convene a general assembly to approve the audited accounts and restore normal operation of the UIC.
The problems at the UIC stem from the adoption of new statutes in 2006 designed to turn the UIC into a truly global organisation. This quickly led to a power struggle between the older European, Japanese and Korean members and the newcomers from Southeast Asia and Africa, who believed too much power resided with the older members. The UIC executive board has 21 members representing all areas of the world, and with only four European members. By contrast, the UIC’s General Assembly is dominated by Europeans who represent 80% of the members.
The first concrete result of the dispute is the retirement of the UIC’s secretary general Mr André Michel.

April 29, 2008
Dubai light rail contract awarded

DUBAI Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has awarded a contract worth Euros500 million to build the city’s first light rail line. The ABS consortium comprising Alstom, Belgium’s largest construction company Besix and Serco, Britain, will build the first phase of the Al Safooh tramway, Parsons will carry out detailed design work on the project, while Systra will act as consultants to RTA.
The 10km line will open in 2011 and will run along Al Safooh Road from Madinat Jumeirah and Mall of the Emirates to Dubai Marina and Jumeirah Beach Residence. The line will be elevated around Dubai Marina, and interchanges will be built with the Metro Red Line in Shaikh Zayed Road.
Alstom will supply 11 Citadis 402 LRVs, which will be equipped to operate from an APS ground power supply system, obviating the need for catenary.
The 13 stations will be the first light rail stations in the world to be equipped with platform screen doors, which will allow platforms to be air-conditioned.
The contract includes an option to build phase 2 of the line, which will be a 4km extension with six stations. A further 14 LRVs would be required to operate the extended line.

April 28, 2008
Chinese collision kills 70

AT least 70 people have been killed and 400 injured in a collision between two trains in the eastern Chinese province of Shandong. The accident occurred near Zibo just after dawn when a Beijing – Qingdao train derailed, hitting a Yantai – Xuzhou service travelling in the opposite direction.
Within hours of the incident, two senior officials of the Jinan Railway Bureau had been sacked as the Ministry of Railways began its investigation into the derailment.
The accident is the worst on China’s railways since 1997.

April 24, 2008
Russia and North Korea to restore rail link

NORTH KOREAN railways minister Mr Kim Yong-Sam and Russian Railways CEO Mr Vladamir Yakunin have signed a deal to rebuild the rail connection between the two countries. Reconstruction of the 54km line from Hasan, Russia, to the North Korean port of Rajin was agreed at a meeting between the leaders of the two counties in 2001, but breaks in negotiations have meant progress towards a formal agreement has been slow.
“We have been moving towards this moment for seven years,” Yakunin said. “I am convinced the agreement signed today will serve to strengthen economic ties between Russia and North Korea, and between North Korea and South Korea.”
A Russian-North Korean joint venture will build a new container terminal at Rajin as part of the project. Russian Railways officials refused to be drawn on the cost of the project, or when it will be completed.

April 23, 2008
TfL to take over Metronet within weeks

METRONET, the public-private partnership (PPP) contractor responsible for maintaining and upgrading two thirds of London’s underground network, is set to be taken over by Transport for London (TfL) within weeks, after the Mayor of London gave his approval for the transfer to go ahead.
PPP administrators will now apply for a court hearing, which will set a date for the staff, assets and contracts to be transferred to TfL.
Metronet was one of two contractors awarded 30-year output-based contracts to upgrade eight underground lines. It went into administration last year after the PPP arbiter ruled London Underground would not be liable to pay Metronet an additional £551 million incurred in the upgrading of the Bakerloo, Central and Victoria lines. Metronet had argued London Underground had forced it to carry out work beyond the scope of its existing contract.
Heralding the transfer of Metronet to TfL as “good news for Tube passengers,” London Underground managing director Mr Tim O’Toole said: “following administration, we will seek to put in place a stable, economic and efficient structure that is better able to deliver TfL’s investment priorities.”
The other PPP consortium, Tube Lines, is still operating and will remain in the private sector.

April 21, 2008
Construction to begin soon on Chennai metro

CONSTRUCTION is to begin on the Chennai metro in July, when civil works start on the on the Rupees 110 billion ($US 2.75 billion) first phase of the project. Two standard-gauge lines will be built in Phase I. A 23km north-south line will run from Washermanpet to Central Station, Teynampet, and Chennai Airport which will be elevated for 14km of its length. This line will be the first section of the network to be completed, with opening slated for 2011.
A second line will run for 22km from Central Station to St Thomas Mount via Poonamallee and Koyambedu.
Chennai Metro Rail has been set up by the state and central government, each making a 20% contribution to the project cost. The remainder is being financed by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC).

April 18, 2008
Foreign investment invited for Beijing – Shanghai high-speed line

CHINA’S Ministry of Railways (MOR) has invited foreign companies to participate in the financing of the 1318km Beijing – Shanghai high-speed line as a groundbreaking ceremony was held to mark the start of construction of the Tianjin – Xuzhou – Shanghai section. The Beijing-Shanghai High-Speed Railway Company was set up last December with capital of Yuan 115 billion, although this will cover little over half of the total investment required for the line, which is described as the most expensive construction project in Chinese history.
MOR told China’s Xinhua news agency that public securities offerings would be used to raise finance for the project and reduce the proportion of government investment in the project.
The line is being built to allow operation at up to 350km/h and journey times will be slashed from 12 hours to 4h 37min when the line opens in 2013. Around 160 million passengers are expected to use the service.
The initial section of the line from Beijing to Tianjin is almost complete, and will open in August to coincide with the Olympic Games, which Beijing is hosting.

April 17, 2008
RZD to build Libyan line

RUSSIAN Railways (RZD) has reportedly secured a $US 3.16 billion deal to build a section of Libya’s coastal railway, which will eventually connect Tunisia and Egypt via Tripoli. According to Reuters, the contract to construct the 500km section from Surt to Benghazi was signed in Tripoli by Libyan officials and RZD CEO Mr Vladimir Yakunin. Yakunin said the line would take four years to build and would involve Libyan subcontractors.
In February, China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) won a $US 2 billion contract to build the adjoining 352km section of the coastal line from Al Khums to Misratah and Surt.

April 15, 2008
Political deal boosts DB privatisation plan

PLANS to sell up to 24.9% of shares in German Rail's (DB) operating subsidiary look set to receive the go-ahead after the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which is in coalition government with the Christian Democrat Party, agreed to go ahead with the slimmed-down public offering.
The SPD has backed a plan unveiled by DB last December, which will see the creation of a 100% state-owned holding company with two subsidiaries: infrastructure and operations. Infrastructure will be entirely owned by DB, and therefore the state, with shares being sold only in the operating company.
Mr Ronald Pofalla, general secretary of the Christian Democrat party, said the said the sale could begin within the current legislative period, echoing the views of DB CEO Mr Hartmut Mehdorn, who suggested last month that the IPO could take place as early as September.
The plan being endorsed by the SPD is considerably less ambitious than the proposal initially tabled by DB, which would have seen the sale of up to 49% of the total company. This was thwarted by politicians who feared DB would become a private monopoly while still receiving state funding to maintain infrastructure.

April 14, 2008
Oman plans first railway

FEASIBILITY studies are set to begin soon for the construction of the first railway in Oman, according to minister of national economy Mr Ahmad Bin Abdul Nabi Macki, who says a consultant has been appointed to carry out the study. The freight-only line will begin west of Muskat in Birka, where a new container terminal will be built, and will run northwest for 200km along the Gulf of Oman shore to Sohar, one of Oman’s principal ports.
In the longer term, a line south to the Gulf of Masirah is also proposed to provide a connection with a new port at Daqm.
The minister said he could not be drawn on how much the project would cost, or when it would be completed.

April 11, 2008
British passenger numbers reach record levels

THE number of passengers using Britain’s railways is now at the highest level ever recorded in peacetime, according to the latest figures from the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). ATOC says 1.2 billion passengers used the railway in 2007, an increase of 7.8% over the previous year and beat the previous record set in 1946, when the network was one third larger than it is today. Mr George Muir, Director General of ATOC said: “This growth shows that more capacity is urgently needed for the benefit of our passengers, the economy, and the environment.”

April 10, 2008
Contracts awarded for Algerian light rail lines

ALGERIA’S state-owned public transport company (EMA) has awarded two turnkey contracts worth around Euros 662 million to build the first light rail lines in the cities of Oran and Constantine.
The Tramnour consortium, which comprises Isolux Corsan, Spain, and Alstom, has been awarded a contract worth Euros 355 million to build Oran’s 18km line, which will have 32 stations. Alstom will supply 30 Citadis LRVs, signalling and telecommunications systems, depot equipment and substations, while Isolux Corsan will be responsible for civil engineering, track, and overhead catenary. The project will take 26 months to complete.
Alstom will play a similar role in the construction of the Euros 307 million light rail line in Constantine, supplying 27 Citadis LRVs and track, power supply, signalling and communications, and depot equipment. Consortium partner Pizzarotti, Italy, will carry out civil engineering. The 8km line will have 11 stations and will open in 2010.
The awarding of these contracts means Alstom is now working on three light rail projects in Algeria, having been selected in June 2006 by EMA as part of a consortium to build a 16.3km line in Algiers.

April 9, 2008
Britain starts Thameslink train procurement

BRITAIN’S Department for Transport has started procurement for 1100 dual-voltage emu vehicles as part of the £5.5 billion project to upgrade London’s north-south Thameslink commuter network. The £1.14 billion order will allow the replacement the existing fleet of 720 vehicles, and the introduction of 12-car trains by 2012.
The contract for the new trains will be awarded in mid 2009 and a train must be ready for mainline testing by late 2011. The first train will enter service in February 2012 and the remainder of the fleet will be delivered by December 2015.
The winning bidder will be responsible for financing the fleet, and will maintain the trains for up to 10 years.

April 9, 2008
SNCF buys German railfreight operator

FRENCH National Railways (SNCF) says it has signed an agreement to acquire a 75% stake in German open access railfreight operator Import Transport Logistik (ITL) for an undisclosed sum.
ITL had revenues of Euros 45 million last year with an operating profit of Euros 3.7 million. Subsidiary ITL-Cargo operates long-distance freight trains within Germany, as well as international freight services from Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic to Germany and the Netherlands.

April 8, 2008
SNCF poised for European acquisitions

FRENCH National Railways (SNCF) chairman Mr Guillaume Pepy says his company is planning to expand its portfolio with further acquisitions in Europe, after announcing its intention this week to buy the shares it does not already own in French logistics company Geodis for Euros 600 million. In an interview with French daily newspaper Le Figaro, Pepy said: “In a few days we will announce the acquisition of a European rail operator, which will open new doors to us in new countries, notably in Eastern Europe.”
Pepy added that the acquisition of Geodis will make SNCF’s freight division the largest in terms of sales, and will make it one of the world’s five largest logistics groups.

April 7, 2008
Finland and Estonia to study Baltic tunnel

FINLAND and Estonia are to launch feasibility studies into the construction of a railway tunnel about 50km long between the two countries. Helsinki Mayor Mr Jussi Pajunen and Tallinn Mayor Mr Edgar Savisaar have signed an agreement to apply for European Union funding for the studies, and if the application is successful, these could be completed by the end of 2009.
Pajunen said the tunnel is unlikely to open before 2024, although Savisaar added he was certain that the project would go ahead, and that it would be economically viable. The planned study will consider other options, including a new train ferry between Estonia and Finland.
The tunnel would form part of the Rail Baltica project, which aims to redevelop the Helsinki – Tallinn – Riga – Poznan – Berlin corridor and improve rail links between the Baltic states.

April 2, 2008
Scandinavia awards single-source ERTMS contract

The Swedish and Norwegian rail administrations have awarded Bombardier a framework contract for the specification and development of onboard European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) equipment worth around Euros 30 million.
The initial order is to equip 220 vehicles with ERTMS systems, based on Bombardier’s EBI Cab 2000 range. Further orders in both countries could top up the value of the contract to Euros 200 million as ERTMS is rolled out to new and refurbished vehicles in Sweden and Norway.

March 28, 2008
Delhi Metro orders more cars for Phase II expansion

DELHI Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has awarded Bombardier a Euros 87 million contract to supply an additional 84 Movia metro cars for the Phase II expansion programme, which will extend the network by 60km.
The order follows an initial deal signed in July 2007 for 340 cars, and DMRC has requested a change in the configuration that will take this to 424 cars, formed into 37 four-car and 46 six-car trains.
The trains will be built at Savli in the Indian state of Gujarat, where Bombardier is setting up a facility to manufacture and assemble coaches and bogies.

March 27, 2008
Soaring costs scupper Munich airport maglev

PLANS to build a 37km Transrapid high-speed maglev line from Munich Airport to the city centre look set to be abandoned after Germany’s Transport Minister revealed costs for the project have almost doubled. The Euros 1.85 billion project was given the go-ahead last September, when the Bavarian state government, the federal government and Transrapid’s promoters, Siemens and ThyssenKrupp reached an agreement on funding for construction.
Today Transport Minister Mr Wolfgang Tiefensee conceded the project cost had risen to as much as Euros 3.4 billion, adding that the federal government is unwilling to commit any more than the Euros 925 million it had previously agreed to contribute. “It is obvious that the champagne corks were popped too soon,” he said.
More than Euros 2 billion has been invested in the development of Transrapid technology over the last 30 years, but so far the only commercial application of the technology has been the Shanghai Airport Line. Plans to extend this line to Hangzhou were thrown into doubt in January because of the need to increase the margin between track and housing in densely-populated suburbs of Shanghai, which caused costs to almost double. Nonetheless, Siemens CEO Mr Peter Loescher said Transrapid remains “important export technology,” adding that talks were still underway with China, as well as potential buyers in Qatar and the United States.

March 27, 2008
Bids to be invited for Turkish high-speed line

THE TURKISH government is to invite bids on April 15 for construction of the 471km Ankara – Yozgat – Sivas high-speed line, according to a report in the Vatan daily newspaper. The double track line will be built for 250km/h operation and will allow journey times between Ankara and Sivas to be cut from 10h 29min to two hours. The $US 1.36 billion project is due for completion in 2011.

March 26, 2008
Jordan cancels light rail contract

PLANS to build a $US 240 million light rail line between the Jordanian capital Amman and the industrial city of Zarqa have suffered a setback after the government terminated an agreement signed with the consortium of Pakistani, Chinese and Jordanian companies which had been appointed to construct the line. The government says it has revoked the agreement with the Infrastructure Development Company, which had been signed last May, because the consortium had failed to comply with both the implementation agreement and a request for proposals.
The consortium had been given a deadline of February 22 to ensure the financial conditions had been met, and the government had extended this until March 22. Construction was due to begin on the 22.2km electrified line from central Amman to Al Mahatta and New Zarqa in June and the line was expected to open in 2010. The Public Transport Regulatory Commission completed land purchase for the project earlier this month.

March 26, 2008
Power profits boost Toll takeover plan

NEW ZEALAND’S Finance Minister Dr Martin Cullen says profits from government-owned electricity company Meridian Energy could be ploughed into plans to return the country’s largest railfreight operator, Australian-owned Toll NZ, to state ownership.
According to Cullen, a dividend of NZ$ 175 million ($US 141 million) from Meridian’s profits will be used to buy back Toll’s rail and ferry assets, which were sold off by the government in 1993. He added that negotiations in recent weeks have brought the two sides closer to agreeing a price, although Toll is said to want $NZ 200 million more than the government has put forward in its latest offer.

March 25, 2008
RailComm supplies remote control derailers to Belt Railway

RailComm, United States, is to supply a wireless remote control derailer for the Belt Railway of Chicago’s Illinois depot. The derailers will be remotely controlled from two panels inside the depot, which have LED indicators to show the derailers’ current position.

RailComm’s 2.4GHz Spread Spectrum Radiant data radios will be used to link the derailers with the control panels, which have extensive monitoring capabilities to record usage and user data. The recorder logs the name and job of anyone activating the derailer, complying with Federal Railroad Administration reporting requirements and eliminating the need for a manual logging process.

March 20, 2008
Angola and Zambia to build rail link

THE first railway to cross Zambia’s western border with Angola has moved a step closer to fruition according to Zambia’s state-owned news agency Zanis, which says the two countries have reached an agreement to build the link. Zambian President Mr Levy Mwanawasa said that by the end of his term in office in 2011, Zambia would build the 1067mm-gauge line from Chingola in the Copperbelt to Lumwana mine in the west of the country and a junction with the Benguela Railway in eastern Angola. The first phase of the project will be a 245km section from Chingola to the new mining town of Solwezi.
On March 16 Northwest Railways, a consortium of financiers from the United States, threatened to withdraw $US 400 million of funding from the project because mine owners had not committed to use the line.
The two countries were once connected by the Benguela Railway, which runs via the Democratic Republic of Congo, although much of the line fell into disuse during Angola’s 27-year-long civil war. The Angolan section is currently being rehabilitated.

March 19, 2008
São Paulo to invite bids for Airport Express

INVITATIONS to tender will be issued in May for a contract to finance, build and operate the Reais 1.44 billion ($US 844 million) São Paulo Airport Express line. The contract will be awarded by August and the line will open by the end of 2011.
The 28km electrified line will start from Luz station in the city centre, running through a new tunnel to Bras and paralleling the existing broad-gauge suburban line F before running into two stations at Guarulhos Airport. The line will be standard gauge to be compatible with the proposed Rio de Janeiro – São Paulo high-speed line and will be largely single track. The 15-minute interval service will be used by an estimated 19,800 passengers in its first year of operation.
The concessionaire will also be required to build a 20.2 km, six-station broad gauge suburban line called Line G, which will run parallel to the Airport Express line from a junction with Line F to Guarulhos. Line G will cost Reais 687 million (including rolling stock) and will open in September 2010. A 10-minute interval service will be run by São Paulo suburban operator CPTM.

March 18, 2008
TfL to take control of Croydon light rail

TRANSPORT for London (TfL) has announced that it is to take direct control of Croydon Tramlink light rail network after its £98 million offer to acquire Tramtrack Croydon, the Private Finance Initiative (PFI) concessionaire was accepted.
Under the existing contract, TfL must compensate Tramtrack Croydon for any changes to the fares and ticketing policy. This payment has been increasing on an annual basis and last year totaled £4 million. By acquiring Tramtrack Croydon, which still has 88 years remaining on its concession agreement to operate the 28km network, TfL will no longer be obliged to make these payments.
TfL says there will be no change to the existing fares structure, although it is planning a number of improvements to the network, including doubling the off-peak frequency on the Elmers End – Beckenham Junction line from two trams per hour to four. It is also planning to run additional services on the Wimbledon – New Addington line, and refresh tram interiors.

March 17, 2008
Euros 4.5 billion for Dutch upgrades

THE DUTCH government is to pour €4.5 billion of public funding into rail projects over the next four years in an effort to sustain the annual 5% growth in passenger numbers. Transport minister Mr Camiel Eurlings wants infrastructure manager ProRail and the country’s principal passenger operator Netherlands Railways (NS) to provide a 'turn up and go' frequency of six intercity and six regional trains per hour on the country’s most heavily-used lines by 2012.
Both NS and Prorail have been invited by the Transport Ministry to submit proposals by next month to be put before parliament. The ministry expects a detailed plan to be ready for implementation from early next year.
Much of the extra funding will be spent on tackling bottlenecks, such as the heavily-congested Schipol Airport – Amsterdam – Lelystad line, which is a priority for four-tracking. ProRail also plans to resignal the tunnels on the approaches to Schipol station to provide 2 minute headways and capacity of 48 trains per direction per hour.

March 14, 2008
Indian Railways expects to raise $US 345 million from IPOs

INITIAL Public Offerings (IPOs) for shares in three profitable Indian Railways (IR) subsidiaries are expected to raise about Rs 15 billion ($US 345 million), provided the government releases 10% of the equity in these companies. This is based on the response to the recent IPO for Rites, IR’s consultancy.
The sale of shares in Ircon International, IR’s engineering subsidiary, is expected to raise the most money: up to Rs 10 billion. The other two subsidiaries are Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation, and RailTel.

March 13, 2008
Contract awarded for Australian heavy-haul line

MINING giant Rio Tinto has awarded Macmahon Holdings, Australia, a $A 65 million ($US 61.3 million) contract to build an extension of its Robe River heavy-haul railway in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The project involves extending the Pilbara Iron-operated Cape Lambert – Pannawonica line by 47km to the new Mesa A iron ore mine. The line will be single track, with a 3km-long loop at Churdy Pool. Construction will begin in June and the line will open in 2009.

March 12, 2008
Russia to build another Trans-Siberian Railway

A SECOND East-West link across Siberia could be operational by 2015, according to Russian Railways (RZD) CEO Mr Vladamir Yakunin who has announced that development work on the SevSib project will begin this year. Construction is expected to begin in 2010 on the 2000km line from Nizhnevartovsk in Khanty-Mansiisky region to a junction with the the Baikal-Amur Mainline (BAM) at Irkutsk. The line will cost Roubles 230 – 500 billion ($US 9.6 – 20.8 billion) to build and RZD says it will carry 60 million tonnes of freight and seven million passengers per year by 2025.
According to Yakunin, the project will be financed by the state-owned Vneshekonombank (VEB), although he did not disclose the figure the bank would invest. RZD, VEB the Siberian administration and private investors approved a tentative draft agreement on SevSib in Tomsk last month, although it has been reported that potential partners are struggling to agree terms on the project.

March 11, 2008
SelTrac CBTC for Shanghai Line 7

SHANGHAI Shentong Metro has awarded a consortium including Thales two contracts worth Euros 42 million to supply and install SelTrac communications-based train control (CBTC) for the automatic operation of Metro Line 7. The contract covers the initial 28km section of Line 7 from Jinglu Road to Longyang Road, which is due to open in 2010, as well as a 10km extension north from Jinglu Road to Gucun and Luodian.
The consortium of Thales Rail Signalling Soultions, Alcatel Shanghai Bell, and Shanghai Automation Instrumentation is also deploying SelTrac on lines 6, 8 and phase 1 of Line 9. SelTrac is designed to allow functionality to be ramped up in stages and it will initially provide automatic train protection and manual operation, with full automatic train operation planned two stages later. It also allows bi-directional operation with minimum headways of 90 seconds.
Shanghai is planning to have 11 metro lines totalling 400km in operation in time for World Expo 2010, which the city is hosting. It plans to have the world’s largest network by 2012, with 13 lines totalling more than 500km.

March 10, 2008
“Huge strategic interest” in Toll NZ takeover

THE government of New Zealand says it has “huge strategic interest” in returning the country’s largest rail operator, Australian-owned Toll NZ, to state ownership. Finance Minister Dr Michael Cullen confirmed that the government is negotiating with Toll, although the two sides have yet to agree a price. The government has reportedly offered Toll more than $NZ 500 million ($US 395 million) although the operator is said to want up to $NZ 1 billion. “I’ve made it clear that Toll has to come back with a significantly better offer if we are to close the gap between us,” said Cullen.
New Zealand Rail Limited was sold by the government in 1993 to the Tranz Rail consortium, which was headed by Wisconsin Central, United States. A decade later when Tranz Rail was sold to Toll, the government bought back the rail infrastructure, which is now the responsibility of Ontrack. The government has been attempting to agree track access charges with Toll ever since, and returning operations to state ownership is considered by the government to be a potential solution. However, a buyout could be averted if the two sides reach an agreement on access fees in this latest round of negotiations.

March 6, 2008
More Electrostar emus for Southern

BRITISH commuter operator Southern is to receive an additional 11 dual-voltage class 377 Electrostar emus from Bombardier at a cost of Euros 70 million. The four-car trains are being purchased by leasing company Porterbrook and will be delivered in the first quarter of next year. Southern already operates a fleet of more than 180 Electrostar trains.

March 5, 2008
Dubai metro contracts to be awarded soon

DUBAI’S Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) says contracts for the construction of the emirate’s next two metro lines will be awarded in the second quarter of this year. The 49km Purple Line will run from Dubai International Airport to the massive new Al Maktoum International Airport via Al Khail Road, and will include four intermediate stations with airline check-in facilities. The $US 1 billion project will be completed by 2012. Studies are still being carried out on the 50km Blue Line, which will also serve the two airports, running via Emirates Road. It will cost Dirhams 10 billion ($US 2.7 billion) and will open in 2015. In the longer term, RTA expects this line to be extended beyond Dubai International Airport, to serve Palm Deira and other developments on the waterfront.
Dubai’s first metro line, the 54.1km Red Line from Jebel Ali Port to Airport Free Zone will open in September 2009, while the 22.3km Green Line from Festival City to Rashidiya, which is also under construction, will open in March 2010. RTA’s Rail Agency is currently planning an extension of the Green Line from Academic City to International City, which will serve new residential developments. RTA also says it is finalising plans for a 15km extension of the Red Line from Jebel Ali Port to Dubai’s border with Abu Dhabi.

March 4, 2008
Dunboyne line construction approved

IRELAND’S Planning Board has approved a railway order which will allow Irish Rail (IE) to start construction of the 7.5km line from Clonsilla (on the Dublin Connolly – Maynooth line) to Dunboyne and Pace. The Euros 156 million double-track line is the first phase of a project which will eventually see the reinstatement of the line from Dublin to Navan, easing congestion on the parallel M3 highway. When it opens in 2010, dmus will operate a 15-minute interval service between a park-and-ride station at Pace and Dublin Docklands, offering capacity of up to 4800 passengers per hour per direction at peak times. IE expects to reopen the line beyond Pace to Navan in by 2015 at a cost of around Euros 300 million. Passenger journeys of more than 2 million per year are projected by 2016.

March 3, 2008
Major Belgian rail project approved

SNCB Holding has approved the construction of a new station in Mechelen. The existing station, with 21,000 passengers a day, is the sixth largest in Belgium and is located on the Brussels – Antwerp main line. The new station will be linked to the new high-speed line to be built in the central reservation of the E19 highway to connect Mechelen with Brussels Airport and Brussels.
Work on the eight-year project will start in 2010 and is designed to increase capacity and improve accessibility. There will also be a new bus station, facilities to store bicycles, and a car park.

February 29, 2008
Switzerland to assist Allgäu line upgrade

THE governments of Germany and Switzerland have signed a declaration of intent to kick-start the long-proposed electrification of the Allgäu line from Munich to Lindau, which forms part of the Munich-Zurich route. Under the deal, the German government will contribute Euros 100 million, while the Swiss government will provide Euros 50 million and the state of Bavaria will fund the remaining Euros 55 million.
Inking the agreement, German Transport Minister Mr Wolfgang Tiefensee said work would begin on the project in 2010 with completion scheduled for 2015. Besides providing a new route for Italy-Germany freight traffic running via the Gotthard Base Tunnel, the electrification of the line will allow journey times for Munich-Zurich passenger trains to be cut from four hours to just three.
The Allgäu line currently carries little freight traffic, with most Italy – Germany freight trains running via Basle or Kufstein in Austria.

February 28, 2008
Network Rail fined £14 million for engineering overruns

BRITAIN’S Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has fined infrastructure manager Network Rail (NR) £14 million, and ordered it to address systematic weaknesses in its planning and management, after January’s overrunning engineering work in London, Rugby and Glasgow caused major disruption to services.
ORR’s report found that even though good planning and project management were in place, NR failed to ensure adequate site management at Rugby, where the track layout was being revised to allow higher speeds through the station. A shortage of skilled staff meant information provided to NR by contractors was inaccurate, meaning NR was unaware the project was in difficulty until late in the possession.
At Liverpool Street station in London a disused overbridge was being demolished as part of the East London Line project, and electrification equipment was being replaced. ORR found NR carried out inadequate risk assessment and again, failed to provide sufficient site management. In this case, only around half of the contractor’s electrification staff required in the final two days were available on-site and there were problems with the availability of materials.
Risk assessment was also found to be inadequate at Shields Road Junction in Glasgow, where NR was relaying the junction as part of the Glasgow Airport Rail Link project. Testing of signalling late in the possession found new equipment to be incompatible with the existing system – problems which ORR says should have been identified and resolved at the design stage.
ORR has also ordered NR to provide a clear plan of how it intends to complete the upgrade of the West Coast Main Line, which is due for completion in December. NR has told ORR that it does not have a robust enough plan to complete this project.
Responding to the fine, NR CEO Mr Iain Coucher said “We are clear that the ORR has said that what at New Year cannot happen again. We agree and accept the findings of this report.” NR now intends to increase its in-house electrification capability; establish military-style ‘command posts’ for major works; and require contractors to reduce their reliance on agency staff for major engineering projects.

February 27, 2008
Mechel to supply eight million tonnes of rail to RZD

RUSSIAN Railways (RZD) has awarded Mechel, Russia, a 20-year contract to supply 400,000 tonnes of rail per year, almost half of RZD’s annual requirement. As part of the deal, Mechel will invest around Euros 500 million to establish a rail-producing mill at its Chelyabinsk plant, which will be completed the start of the new contract in 2010. RZD purchases around 850,000 tonnes of rail annually, although new line construction and the increasing rate of renewals mean demand is expected to reach around 1.1 million tonnes.

February 26, 2008
Record profit enables Indian Railways to boost investment

INDIAN Railways (IR) has increased its annual profit by 43% from $US 4.4 billion in 2006-07 to a record $US 6.3 billion last year. As a result, railways minister, Mr Lalu Prasad, has announced the biggest-ever spending plan for IR. The Ministry of Railways plans to invest Rs 375 billion ($US 9.5 billion) in 2008-09, an increase of 21% over the previous financial year.
The minister says construction will start in 2008-09 of the first two dedicated freight corridors. He also said feasibility studies are underway for four more lines.
During 2008-09, IR plans to spend Rs 17.3 billion on the construction of new lines, Rs 25 billion on track doubling, Rs 24.9 billion on gauge conversion works, Rs 6.3 billion on electrification, and Rs 6.5 billion on urban projects.

February 26, 2008
DB to close Berlin – Hamburg line to replace faulty sleepers

GERMAN Rail (DB) has decided to close the 285km Berlin – Hamburg main line between March and June next year in order to replace many thousands of defective concrete sleepers. ICE trains will be diverted via Stendal and Salszwedel during the closure which will add 30 minutes to the journey which normally takes 95 minutes non-stop. DB says the temporary closure is preferable to months of disruption on what is one of its best-performing long-distance routes, with an average occupancy per train of 50% compared with the national average last year of 43%.
The sleepers were purchased in the early 1990s but have started to deteriorate prematurely due to faulty manufacture. These sleepers have also been used on other parts of the network where they are also being replaced. The cost of the work is believed to be less than Euros 5 million, and DB has reached an out-of-court settlement for damages with the manufacturer.

February 26, 2008
British operator in breach of its franchise

FIRST Great Western (FGW), which operates passenger services between London Paddington, western England and South Wales, has been told by Britain’s Department for Transport that it is in breach of its franchise for cancelling too many trains between August and December last year and for misreporting these cancellations. FGW has been instructed to produce a plan to remedy the situation.
In the meantime, FGW has agreed to invest £29 million (rather than face a fine) to extend the length of trains on one line, refurbish London commuter trains, provide better compensation to passengers, and sell more low-price tickets.

February 25, 2008
India to expand 25-tonne axleload operation

INDIAN Railways (IR) plans to quadruple the length of lines approved for operation by 25-tonne axleload freight trains next year from 1000 to 4000km. Currently, the whole network is able to accept trains with an axleload of 22.3 tonnes, and 22.9-tonne axleloads are permitted on more than 21,000km.
Although track wear has increased on lines with 25-tonne and 22.9-tonne axleloads, according to data collected by India’s Research Design & Standards Organisation, 25-tonne axleloads can increase payload per train by 12 to 32%, depending on the type of wagon used.

February 22, 2008
Construction starts on Ho Chi Minh metro

CONSTRUCTION of Vietnam’s first metro line began yesterday, when a groundbreaking ceremony was held to mark the official start of work on the Ho Chi Minh City metro. The 19.7km, 14-station line from Benh Thanh to Suoi Tien bus station will consist of a 2.6km underground central section with the remaining 17.1km on an elevated alignment. The $US 1.1 billion line is being built with the bulk of the funding from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, which is contributing $US 904.4 million to the project. The line will open in 2014 and will carry 630,000 passengers per day by 2030. The People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City envisages a five-line network serving the city by 2020.

February 21, 2008
Pepy to be next president of SNCF

THE French government has nominated Mr Guillaume Pepy as the next president of French National Railways (SNCF) to succeed Mrs Anne-Marie Idrac. Pepy is currently CEO of SNCF, a position he has held for more than 10 years. Idrac took over as president in 2006 when Mr Louis Gallois resigned prematurely to become head of EADS, the European aerospace and defence group which includes Airbus.
Idrac was appointed to complete Gallois’s term of office, but had hoped to be reappointed as president. She is now likely to be offered a political appointment.

February 21, 2008
Madrid – Barcelona high speed services begin

SPANISH Prime Minister Mr José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero officially inaugurated scheduled services on the 630km Madrid – Barcelona high-speed line yesterday. The opening of the Euros 7 billion line has allowed operator Renfe to slash journey times between the two cities from six hours to just 2h 38min.
A fleet of 350km/h Siemens Velaro E trains will operate 18 trains per direction per day with a half-hourly frequency at peak times. In the longer term Renfe expects to increase the frequency to 25 trains per day. Around 70,000 passengers booked tickets online in the week after they were made available on February 14, and five million passengers are expected to use the service in the first year.
The opening of the final section of the line into Barcelona Sants station was delayed by two months after subsidence disrupted construction work.
Renfe CEO Mr Aberlado Carrillo hailed the opening of the new line saying rail would again become the dominant mode of transport in Spain. He added the opening of new lines to Málaga and Valladolid in December had resulted in unprecedented growth, with the number of rail passengers to Málaga doubling and a 75% increase in passenger numbers between Madrid and Valladolid.

February 20, 2008
Hitachi goes for international growth

HITACHI has announced it is to pursue an ambitious expansion of its business outside Japan, and increase the percentage of its rail business outside its home market from 20% to 50% within 10 years.
Mr Alistair Dormer, general manager of Hitachi Europe Rail Systems, told IRJ that the company had been in discussion with European operators including German Rail (DB), French National Railways (SNCF) and Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) about their future rolling stock requirements, and that it expects to start bidding for contracts outside Britain within the next year. He added that Hitachi intends to focus primarily on the market for commuter emus.
Hitachi Rail Systems is already active in Britain, where it has delivered the first three out of a fleet of 25 Javelin 225km/h emus for testing. It is also competing in the Intercity Express Programme (IEP) to build the next generation of long-distance passenger trains, a contract that could involve more than 1500 vehicles. Bids for this will be submitted by May 6.

February 19, 2008
Prosperous new year for Chinese railways

CHINA’S railways carried 118.8 million passengers in January, a 23.6% year-on-year increase, according to the Ministry of Railways (MoR). The period from January 18 to March 2 is the peak season on China’s Railways as families visit friends and relatives for Chinese New Year, which accounts for much of the growth. MoR said it expects to see a record 1.42 billion passenger journeys this year, with freight volume expected to exceed 3.31 billion tonnes. Revenues are forecast at Yuan 361 billion ($US 50.4 billion).

February 18, 2008
China to build Libyan lines

CHINA Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) has reportedly been awarded two contracts worth a total of $US 2.9 billion to build two lines in Libya.
The first line will run for 352km along the Mediterranean coast from Surt to Misratah and Al Khums. The Dinars 2.2 billion ($US 2 billion) project involves the construction of 26 stations and 55 bridges, and will be completed in 2012. The second Dinars 1 billion project involves the construction of an 810km north-south line from Misratah to Sabha, which will be completed by 2011.
CRCC won $US 12.4 billion worth of overseas contracts in the first 11 months of 2007, making it China’s largest contractor of foreign projects. The company is due to be floated on the Shanghai stock exchange next month.

February 15, 2008
Chinese rail giant launches share issue

CHINA Railway Construction Company (CRCC) will open public subscriptions to its initial public offering on February 25, in anticipation of flotation on the Shanghai stock exchange in March.

The company will issue up to 2.8 billion A shares through the Shanghai exchange, which represents 25.93 of its capitalisation. A further issue of up to 2.07 billion shares is planned for Hong Kong, and the total amount raised is expected to be $US 4 billion.

CRCC will use the funds to expand its manufacturing capacity, invest in new construction facilities, and to invest in railways. It built the Qinghai-Tibet railway, the Shanghai maglev, and the Beijing-Kowloon Railway.

February 14, 2008
Norway to order large emu fleet

NORWEGIAN State Railways (NSB) has invited bids from five manufacturers for the supply of between 40 and 60 emus, with an option for another 100 trains. “This will be the biggest single investment in NSB’s history,” says project leader Mr Emil Eike.
The new trains are needed partly to replace NSB’s oldest trains and to cope with traffic growth. NSB currently operates its passenger services with 182 emus plus 32 locomotives and 170 coaches.

February 13, 2008
Funding boost for British station upgrade

PLANS to rebuild the busiest station in Britain outside London has received a boost after transport secretary Ms Ruth Kelly announced almost £400 million of government money would be allocated to the project. Birmingham New Street station currently handles around 17 million passengers per year, double the number it was designed to accommodate when it was last rebuilt in the 1960s. The £598 million project to rebuild the station will increase capacity to 52 million passengers per year, with a new concourse three-and-a-half times the size of the existing area, escalators to all platforms, and significant improvements to the passenger environment at platform level. The station will remain open during reconstruction, which will begin next year. The new concourse will be completed by 2011 and all remaining work will be finished by 2013.

February 11, 2008
DB sell off to start this year

THE German government has decided to proceed with a revised plan to sell up to 30% of German Rail (DB) by the end of this year following last year’s rejection of the initial privatisation proposal.
The latest proposal is based on a plan unveiled by DB last December, which will see the creation of a 100% state-owned holding company with two subsidiaries: infrastructure and operations. Infrastructure will be owned entirely by DB, and therefore the state, with up to 49% of the shares in the operating company being sold in stages. The structure of this plan means it does not require the approval of the lower house of the German parliament.
The initial public offering is due to take place in September or October and is expected to raise around Euros 5 billion, most of which will be taken by the government, although a proportion of the proceeds will be allocated to DB.
A previous plan to sell shares in DB, including infrastructure, was blocked by politicians who feared DB would become a private monopoly while still receiving state funding to maintain infrastructure.

February 8, 2008
Alstom and Ansaldo to upgrade Tunis-Borj Cedria line

A CONSORTIUM including Alstom and Ansaldo STS, Italy, has been awarded a Euros 54 million contract by Tunisian National Railways (SNCFT) to upgrade, electrify and resignal the 23km Tunis Ville – Borj Cedria line. Alstom has a Euros 36 million share of the deal and will be responsible for 105km of electrification, including the provision of a 25kV substation, as well as supervising construction of station platforms. Ansaldo’s Euros 18 million share covers the design, manufacture, testing and installation of signalling and command control systems. This will include computer-based interlocking at Tunis Ville, Tunisia’s busiest station, together with the extension the existing automatic command and control system along the entire length of the line.
The work is part of project to develop an 85km five-line RER-style commuter rail network in the Tunisian capital, which will be completed in 2010.

February 8, 2008
Moretti sees opportunity for Trenitalia privatisation

THE liberalisation of Italy’s passenger rail market in 2010 could provide an opportunity to privatise Trenitalia, according to the company’s CEO Mr Mauro Moretti. In an interview with the Corriere della Sera newpaper, Moretti said: “It will be an opportunity to privatise and open up high-margin activities, such as high-speed, to the market and raise funds for investment without creating debt.” He added that privatisation could transform the loss-making freight arm of Trenitalia into a profitable logistics company. Moretti also said that FS reduced its losses last year from Euros 2.1 billion to Euros 430 million.
At least one operator, Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV), is preparing to compete with Trenitalia on high-speed services, and has already ordered 25 11-coach AGV trains for Alstom for its services, which will start in early 2011.

February 7, 2008
More Siemens LRVs for Denver

DENVER Regional Transportation District (RTD) has awarded Siemens a $US 184 million contract to supply an additional 55 SD160 light rail vehicles (LRVs) for the 19.5km West Corridor line, which will link central Denver with Golden. The contract, which is Siemens’ biggest ever order for LRVs in the United States, follows two previous orders from Denver and 95 LRVs have so far been delivered to the city. Seven of the last order for 34 LRVs are already in service, and production of the latest order will follow completion of this batch in 2009. The LRVs will be assembled at Siemens site in Sacramento, California and all will be delivered by 2012.

February 5, 2008
Alstom launches next-generation TGV

Alstom today unveiled the prototype of its next-generation high-speed train at La Rochelle, France. The new train, called AGV, has already been ordered by Italian open-access operator NTV, which has ordered 25 trains with an option for 10 more.
The new train has a maximum operating speed of 360km/h compared with the 320km/h achieved by the latest Alstom TGV trains, and is said to consume 15% less energy than comparable products.
Unlike previous generations of TGV, AGV uses distributed power throughout the train, eliminating the need for separate power cars at each end. It has European Rail Traffic Management System signalling equipment, and a new aerodynamic design. It will be capable of seating between 250 and 650 passengers, in formations ranging from seven to 14 cars.
Full coverage of the AGV will appear in the March edition of IRJ.

February 4, 2008
Bautzen tram test ring opens

Bombardier opened a new 850m test track for trams and light rail vehicles at its Bautzen, Germany, site, on February 1 for testing and approval of new vehicles.
The facility is expected to help streamline vehicle acceptance, and will be used for type approval, endurance, and simulated line operation tests. It can also be used to provide staff training for the customer.
A low-floor Flexity Classic tram destined for Dortmund was the first vehicle to be used on the track, which was part-financed by the state of Saxony. It is suitable for vehicles of up to 45m long, and can cater for different gauges and power supply voltages. An authentic operating environment includes a section with typical LRV/tram gradient, and a level crossing.

February 1, 2008
Indian Railways plans to order 1000 electric locomotives

BIDS are to be invited soon by Indian Railways (IR) for an eight-year contract to manufacture 1000 electric locomotives, and then to maintain them for 20 years. The winner of the contract will be provided with a site to build a factory in Madhepura. IR will have a minority stake in the new business.
IR estimates it will need about 1800 new locomotives during the next five years, but Chittaranjan Locomotive Works can only produce 150 locomotives a year, although production is being stepped up to 200 units a year.

January 31, 2008
England finalises 4500-car rolling stock plan

England is set to gain 4500 new passenger vehicles by 2017 in a massive long-term rolling stock plan issued by the British Department for Transport (DfT) – the biggest programme of its type for several decades. The plan covers rolling stock for England only, as the devolved regions of Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland decide their own transport policy.
The plan is a mixture of replacements for life-expired stock, enhanced capacity on existing routes, and new trains for new routes. Key fleets include the long-awaited Intercity Express Programme, which will replace a number of high-speed and inter-urban fleets: at least 1500 cars could be ordered. Following this are 1300 emu cars for the cross-London Thameslink schemes. Of these, 200 were already announced in a departmental commitment to order new trains. The other big cross-London scheme is the east-west Crossrail service, which requires 600 cars.
Other fleets across the country will also benefit, with a further 1100 cars anticipated, and large-scale re-allocations of existing trains will follow, with the aim of eliminating the oldest and least suitable vehicles.
The DfT is also starting a programme to develop a replacement for dmus built in the 1980s, which will be due for replacement by the end of the next decade, as well as testing a tram-train unit for operation on lightly-used rural lines.

January 30, 2008
French operator joins European Bulls

THE European alliance of six private railfreight operators called European Bulls has added another member: VFLI, France. This will plug an important gap in its network of operators between Spain in the west and the rest of its members to the east of France.
The existing six members of European Bulls are Comsa Rail, Spain, Nordcargo, Italy, Rail4Chem, Germany, LTE, Austria, Viamont, Czech Republic, and Fer Polska, Poland.

January 29, 2008
Bergen buys Stadler LRVs

THE NORWEGIAN city of Bergen has awarded Stadler, Switzerland, a Euros 35 million contract to supply 12 Variobahn light rail vehicles (LRVs) for its first light rail line. The 32m double-ended low-floor LRVs will have capacity for up to 84 seated and 151 standing passengers and a maximum speed of 70km/h. The contract includes eight years maintenance and options for up to an additional 20 LRVs.
When it opens next year, around 26,000 passengers are expected to use the 10km line from the city centre to Nesttun each weekday. Future extensions could take the line to Fyllingsdalen and Loddefjord to the west, and Sandviken/Åsane in the north. The initial Krone 1.64 billion ($US 301 million) section is being funded through road tolls.

January 28, 2008
Political turmoil threatens Lyon – Turin project

PLANS to build a new line between Italy and France could be in jeopardy following the fall of Italy’s government, according to infrastructure minister Mr Antonio Di Pietro. Di Pietro said the Euros 20 billion Lyon – Turin project risks falling victim to “reckless and irresponsible politics”, following a vote of no confidence earlier this month in the Italian Senate which led to the resignation of Prime Minister Mr Romano Prodi and his government.
The project already has public utility status in France and the European Commission has allocated Euros 672 million towards the project as part of the Trans European Network – Transport (TEN-T) programme. Exploratory tunnels have already been excavated and construction was expected to begin in 2011 with opening scheduled for 2020.

January 25, 2008
Nanjing orders Metropolis trains from Alstom

THE Chinese city of Nanjing has awarded a consortium of Alstom, CSR Puzhen Rail Transit, and Shanghai Alstom Transport Electrical Equipment (SATEE), a Euros 85.5 million contract to supply 126 metro cars. Puzhen will be responsible for production and testing of the 21 six-car Metropolis trains, while SATEE will manufacture auxiliary inverter and traction equipment.
The fleet will be used on Line 1, which is currently being extended 18km from An de Men to Chengdong Road. The 12-station extension will open in March 2010 and the last of the trains will be delivered by 2011. Alstom has already supplied 120 Metropolis cars for Line 1 and 144 cars for Line 2.

January 24, 2008
Bids to be invited for Rio-São Paulo next year

BIDS for the construction of a 403km high-speed line from Rio de Janeiro to São Paulo could be invited next year after the Brazilian government decided to include the $US 11 billion project in the country’s Growth Acceleration Plan (CAP). A new feasibility study for the project is now underway and this is due for completion in October. This will be followed by a period of public consultation, and the government expects to invite bids for construction of the line in the first half of 2009.
Valec, the government authority charged with supervising construction, is proposing trains with capacity for 855 passengers operating at 15-minute headways with a journey time of 85 minutes.

January 23, 2008
Russians to build Saudi line

SAUDI Arabia’s Ministry of Finance has selected Russian Railways (RZD) to begin negotiations for a $US 800 million contract to build 520km of new railway between Riyadh King Khalid International Airport and Az Zabira Junction. The line will form the southern section of the $US 2 billion 2400km North-South Railway project.
"Following the opening of the envelopes with the financial proposals from the parties, the RZD proposal was declared the best,” says Mr Vladimir Yakunin, president of RZD. “Russian Railways’ staff have extensive experience in constructing track in desert conditions.”
The southern section will be primarily for general freight and passenger traffic, while the rest of the North South Railway will be predominantly for heavy-haul mineral freight. It is hoped to complete the railway by 2011.

January 21, 2008
DB buys British train operator

GERMAN Rail (DB) is buying British passenger train operator Laing Rail for an undisclosed sum. This is DB’s first passenger rail acquisition in Britain, although it recently acquired EWS, Britain’s biggest railfreight operator, from Canadian National.
Laing Rail owns Chiltern Railways, which operates services between London Marylebone, and Birmingham Snow Hill and Stratford-upon-Avon. Laing Rail is also a partner with Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway in the new London Overground franchise, and a partner with Renaissance Trains in Britain’s third open-access passenger operator, Wrexham & Shropshire, which plans to start services to London in the next few months.
Dr Karl-Friedrich Rausch, chairman of DB’s passenger division, said the acquisition “will allow us to substantially strengthen our position in the European market along with providing the basis for future growth.”

January 18, 2008
Alstom to build South America’s first high-speed line

SOUTH AMERICA’S first high-speed railway has come a step closer to fruition after Argentine President Mrs Cristina Kirchner announced the Alstom-led Veloxia consortium will build the 710km line from Buenos Aires to Rosario and Cordoba.
Alstom will be responsible for overall project management and engineering, rolling stock and train maintenance, installation and deployment of European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) Level 2, communications systems, electrification, and infrastructure maintenance. Consortium partner Iecsa, Argentina, will carry out civil works while Isolux Corsan, Spain, and Emepa, Argentina, will work with Alstom on track construction.
When the line opens in 2011, Buenos Aires – Cordoba journey times will be slashed from 14 hours to just three hours. Nine return services serving seven stations will be operated by a fleet of eight 320km/h TGV Duplex double-deck trains, which have a capacity of 500 passengers. Alstom will manufacture the trains in France before shipping them to Argentina for final assembly at its La Plata site near Buenos Aires.
French transport minister Mr Dominique Bussereau said the Argentine deal could inspire other South American countries, as well as the United States to invest in high-speed rail.

January 17, 2008
NTV confirms AGV order

THE world’s first open access high-speed operator has confirmed it will be the first customer to buy Alstom’s new generation high-speed train, the AGV. Italian operator Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV) has ordered 25 11-coach AGVs at a cost of Euros 650 million, together with a 30-year maintenance contract which is not included in this amount. The 300km/h trains will enter service in early 2011 on the Italian high-speed network in competition with Trenitalia. Alstom and NTV will reveal further details of the contract next month.

January 16, 2008
Argentina to buy Chinese trains?

ARGENTINE president Mrs Christina Kirchner has reportedly approved a $US 124 million plan to purchase Chinese-built passenger trains for Buenos Aires commuter services. China’s Xinhua news agency said the Argentine government will procure 24 multiple units and 160 locomotive-hauled coaches through Shanghai Golden Source International Economic and Trade Company, although the manufacturer of the vehicles has not been named. The first trains could be delivered as early as the end of this year.

January 14, 2008
India To Invest $US 1.5 Billion In Stations

INDIAN RAILWAYS (IR) is launching a massive four-year modernisation programme that it says will transform the country’s largest stations. IR will begin its $US1.5 billion investment in the middle of this year, focussing its resources initially on the main stations in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and the other 18 state capitals.
IR chairman Mr K C Jena said he wanted to follow the model adopted for the new stations in Shanghai and Beijing, where there are dedicated areas for boarding and disembarking.
The projects will be implemented as public private partnerships (PPPs), a model which has already been used to improve air and road infrastructure in India but until now has not found favour for rail projects.

January 11, 2008
Thales interlockings for Finnish line

FINNISH Rail Administration (RHK) has awarded Thales a Euros 12 million contract to supply, install and commission electronic interlockings on the Lahti-Luunmaki line in southern Finland. Thales will supply eight LockTrac 6151 ESTW L90 5 interlockings on the 98km line, which forms part of the Helsinki – St Petersburg route. Upon completion of the project next year, the line will be controlled from the centralised traffic control centre in Kouvola. Thales will also install axle counters and LED signals as part of the contract.

January 10, 2008
RZD to run Armenian Railways

THE government of Armenia will announce Russian Railways (RZD) as the winning bidder of a 30-year concession to run the country’s rail network, according to transport and communication minister Mr Andranik Manukyan. The winning bidder will be revealed next Thursday and Manukyan said RZD was the only foreign company to submit a bid for the concession. He added that RZD will invest $US 230 million over the first five years and $US 240 million thereafter. The minister also said that RZD expects to restart freight services to Turkey in 2009 and Azerbaijan in 2010. “I am convinced that RZD will restore our infrastructure, provide new trains, and repair depots and stations," he said.

January 9, 2008
China – Germany freight test launched

GERMAN RAIL (DB) and five other railways began test operation of intermodal freight services between China and Germany yesterday, when the train left Beijing on the first leg of its 10,000km journey to Hamburg. The service will take 20 days to reach the German port, running via Mongolia, the Trans-Siberian Railway, Belarus and Poland. The train is being run as part Eurasian Land Bridge project, a joint venture by the six railways to develop a viable alternative to sea and air freight between Asia and Europe.
DB CEO Mr Hartmut Mehdorn said: “We want to demonstrate that that we can get a train like this to its destination quickly, safely, reliably, and under real-life operating conditions. The train will provide experience for the intended launch of regular Eurasian railfreight services, the potential for which is extraordinarily high.”

January 7, 2008
Construction starts on Chinese line

CHINA has begun construction of a Yuan 41.7 billion ($US 5.6 billion) line in the southwest of the country from the port of Xiamen to Shenzhen, near the Hong Kong border. The 502km line will have capacity for up to 240 trains per day and an operating speed of up to 200km/h, which will allow journey times between the two cities to be slashed from 11 hours to 3 hours when it opens in 2011. It is expected to carry 12 million tonnes of freight per year. The project is being co-funded by the Ministry of Railways and the provinces of Fujian and Guangdong.

January 4, 2008
RCA and GySEV complete MÁV Cargo purchase

A CONSORTIUM of Austrian Federal Railways’ (ÖBB) freight arm, Rail Cargo Austria (RCA), and Gyõr-Sopron-Ebenfurt Railway (GySEV) has completed its acquisition of Hungarian State Railways former freight division.
RCA and GySEV signed a contract on Wednesday to buy MÁV Cargo in a deal expected to be worth around Forints 102.5 billion (Euros 404 million). The takeover, which is ÖBB’s first buyout of a non-Austrian company, follows a highly-competitive bidding process that saw bids far in excess of the Forints 60-80 billion the Hungarian government initially predicted.
RCA CEO Mr Ferdinand Schmid said the acquisition of MÁV Cargo was of great strategic importance for ÖBB and rebuffed claims by critics that the price being paid is too high.
MÁV Cargo is a potentially lucrative acquisition for its new owner, boasting a 20% share of the Hungarian freight transport market and a turnover of Forints 93 billion in 2006 (up from Forints 86.5 billion in 2005) with pre-tax profits of Forints 2.8 billion. It carried 46.8 million tonnes of freight in 2006, up 6% over the previous year, although its share of the Hungarian railfreight market fell from 94.1% in 2005 to 92.2% in 2006. MÁV Cargo expects 2007 to be another profitable year with an anticipated turnover of Forints 87.7 billion.

January 3, 2008
SJ to order 20 intercity trains

SWEDEN’S former national rail operator SJ says it will order 20 new intercity emus this year to allow it to strengthen trains on the country’s busiest long-distance routes. CEO Mr Jan Forsberg says he expects SJ to order 20 Regina emus this year to replace X2000 tilting trains on slower and less busy intercity routes. This will allow SJ to concentrate the X2000 fleet on its key routes from Stockholm to Gothenburg, Malmö, and Sundsvaal, where extra capacity is urgently needed.
The new trains will be equipped for 200km/h operation, although software upgrades will allow 250km/h running if required at a later date. Bombardier is currently testing a Regina emu at speeds of up to 275km/h as part of the Green Train research programme. Around 70 Regina emus are already in regional service in Sweden.

January 2, 2008
Siemens sets up new Mobility division

SIEMENS has merged its rail transport division (Siemens Transportation Systems) with divisions covering road tolling, road traffic management, airport logistics, and postal automation to form a new division called Mobility. The objective is to bring together everything concerned with passenger and freight transport.
The new division will be headed by Dr Hans-Jörg Grundmann as CEO. Grundmann was a board member of Siemens I&S, one of the divisions absorbed by Mobility. The Mobility division will have a turnover of Euros 7 billion compared with Euros 4.5 billion for Transportation Systems.
Mr Hans Schabert, who was chairman of the board of Transportation Systems, has left Siemens at his own request.
The formation of Mobility is part of a reorganisation of Siemens into three main sectors: Healthcare, Energy, and Industry. Mobility is one of seven divisions in the Industry sector, which has an annual turnover of Euros 40 billion.

December 31, 2007
Russian Railways exceeds traffic target

IN a report to President Vladimir Putin of Russia, the president of Russian Railways (RZD), Mr Vladimir Yakunin, said that traffic on the railway increased by 2.7% this year compared with a forecast of 1.8%. RZD reported particularly strong growth in the transport of cars (+30%), cereals (+25%), and metals (+17.7%).
Passenger traffic increased by 2.9% to an expected 1.3 billion journeys in 2007. “This means that at least one Russian citizen in 10 will make a return trip by train,” says Yakunin.
RZD increased its acquisitions of motive power and rolling stock in 2007 compared with 2006. RZD purchased 326 locomotives (compared with 277 in 2006), 16,500 freight wagons (8500 in 2006), 912 long-distance passenger coaches (755 in 2006), and 760 commuter cars (740 in 2006). RZD also rehabilitated 11,500km of track in 2007.

December 28, 2007
China completes its first 300km/h train

THE first 300km/h train to be built in China rolled off the production line at Sifang Locomotive & Rolling Stock Company on December 23. A fleet of 10 eight-car trains is under construction for delivery by March. The trains will be introduced on the Beijing-Tianjin high-speed line in August, in time for the start of the Olympic Games. Previous trains in the CRH series had a maximum speed of 250km/h.

December 24, 2007
Chinese cities order metro trains and control systems

THE CHINESE cities of Shanghai and Guangzhou have awarded a consortium of Siemens and CSR Zhouzhou Electric Locomotive (ZELC), China, contracts worth a total of Euros 431 million to supply metro trains and control systems. Shanghai Shentong Metro Group has placed a Euros 289 million order for control systems and 58 six-car trains for the northern section of Line 11, which will open in 2010. The trains will have a maximum speed of 100km/h and will be assembled by ZELC in Zhouzhou. Guangzhou Metro meanwhile has ordered 30 metro cars from the consortium as part of the extension of lines 2 and 8. With control equipment, the value of this order is Euros 142 million.

December 21, 2007
Bombardier wins Toronto maintenance contract

GREATER Toronto Transit Authority (Go Transit) has awarded Bombardier a five-year contract worth $C 124 million ($US 125 million) to provide maintenance services for the city’s commuter train fleet. The deal includes options for up to an additional 15 years of maintenance services which, if exercised, will take the contract value to around $C 496 million.
In November Go Transit awarded Bombardier a separate five-year deal to provide fleet management services. Both contracts will take effect next June.

December 20, 2007
DB orders double-deck coaches for Schleswig Holstein

GERMAN RAIL (DB) has awarded Bombardier a Euros 90 million contract to supply 64 double-deck coaches for regional services in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. The order is part of a framework agreement signed in 2003 for up to 298 double-deck coaches with options for a further 300. Including this latest batch, DB has now ordered 523 vehicles under this agreement. The 160km/h coaches will be delivered between next October and October 2009 for use on regional services from Hamburg to Kiel, Lübeck, Travemünde, and Lüneberg.
DB now has more than 1600 Bombardier double-deck coaches in operation or order across Germany.

December 19, 2007
Algeria awards signaling contract

ALGERIA’S national railway investment agency (Anesrif) has awarded a Thales-led consortium a Euros 268.5 million contract to modernise signalling and telecommunications equipment on three sections of the Oran – Algiers – Chlef line.
The consortium, which includes Vossloh-Cogifer and CSEE Alger, will design, supply, install and commission the equipment on 440km of double track encompassing the Annaba – Ramdane Djamel, Bordj Bou Arreidj – El Gourzi and Al Khémis – Oued Sly sections. Thales will provide the European Train Control System (ETCS) Levels 1 and 2 for these lines, together with electronic signalling at 30 stations, four control centres, telecommunications and security systems.
The modernisation is part of Algerian National Railways’ (SNTF) network development programme, which was launched in 2005.

December 18, 2007
AMT orders double-deck coaches for Montreal

THE government of Quebec has awarded Bombardier a $C 386 million ($US 381 million) contract to supply 160 double-deck coaches for Montreal commuter rail operator Metropolitan Transit Agency (AMT). The stainless steel vehicles will have capacity for up to 200 passengers, 30% more than AMTs existing single-deck coaches with GPS-based audio visual passenger information systems.
The coaches will be assembled at Bombardier’s La Pocatiere plant in Quebec and deliveries will begin in the third quarter of 2009.
The order includes vehicles for AMT’s $C 300 million East Train project, which will see the introduction of commuter rail services on the 51km line from Montreal to Repentigny and Mascouche in 2011.

December 14, 2007
Transmashholding and Alstom reach agreement to set up Russian JVs

RUSSIA’s leading rolling stock builder, Transmashholding, has signed an agreement with Alstom to form joint venture companies to produce railway equipment ranging from components to entire vehicles.
Transmashholding is the main domestic supplier of railway equipment to Russian Railways (RZD), which plans major investment in motive power and rolling stock up to 2030. Alstom already has a contract to supply four Pendolino 220km/h tilting trains to Karelian Railways, a joint venture of RZD and VR, Finland.
Bombardier, which already has an agreement with Transmashholding to create two joint ventures to develop propulsion technology and manufacture traction converters, is also discussing closer cooperation with Transmashholding.

December 13, 2007
Vienna buys 15 more type V metro trains

VIENNESE public transport operator Wiener Linien has exercised an option to buy an additional 15 type V metro trains from a Siemens-led consortium at a cost of Euros 135 million. The 112m-long trains will be delivered b