Posted on 08 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
According to the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee in the British parliament, “poor and inadequate” management by the Department for Transport (DfT) of Metronet – the company contracted to do maintenance on large parts of London’s underground railway – cost taxpayers hundreds of millions. A warning in 2004 by the National Audit Office (NAO) [...] [...more]
Posted on 01 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Alstom has offered China the 360km/hr Automotrice Grande Vitesse (AGV), currently under development as what is claimed will be the world’s fastest train. Currently China is spending about $US732 billion on new railways and Alstom is keen to win train supply contracts. In these endeavours, the company is competing with Bombardier as well as domestic [...] [...more]
Posted on 01 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Bidding has opened for tenders relating to the Sofia-Burgas section of Bulgaria’s 290km, 160km/h rail project connecting the southern cities of Plovdiv and Burgas. According to transport minister Alexander Tsvetkov, eight companies will be competing. He hopes the tender process will be completed within a month and that construction will begin in the spring. Within [...] [...more]
Posted on 01 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Network Rail, the British railway infrastructure authority, has tested the new European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) for the first time on a “live railway” – that between Pwllheli and Harlech in Wales. The operator, Arriva Trains Wales, supplied ERTMS-fitted class 158 trainsets. Once the scheme is completed, the Cambrian line in mid-Wales will become the [...] [...more]
Posted on 01 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Network Rail, the British railway infrastructure authority, has announced a £530 million investment package to improve travel in the north of England through the provision of better stations and quicker, more frequent train services. The Northern Hub study identifies what needs to be done to respond to the significant growth seen in the region. The [...] [...more]
Posted on 01 March 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
In a major surveillance upgrade, Eurotunnel’s French passenger terminal has deployed a distributed IP video solution from IndigoVision, used for security, traffic management and immigration control. Eurotunnel manages the Channel Tunnel fixed link between the UK and France and operates the shuttle service for trucks and tourist vehicles. It also shares the track with rail freight [...] [...more]
Posted on 12 February 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Ansaldo STS has won a new contract to operate and maintain Copenhagen’s driverless metro system. The 5-year contract is worth approximately €180 million, with a three-year extension option. Ansaldo first worked with Metroselskabet, the company that owns the Copenhagen metro, in 1996, when it won the tender to provide engineering, systems integration, rail electrification equipment [...] [...more]
Posted on 12 February 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
Though Deutsche Bahn (DB – the German state railway) already offers a ticket from London to Cologne for €49 (£42.70), passengers must change trains at Paris or Brussels. The journey takes just over four hours. Direct, 300km/h expresses into Germany may start running by December 2012, if new tunnel safety rules come into force. There is [...] [...more]
Posted on 12 February 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
According to the Irish Independent, planning permission has been granted to Iarnrod Eireann (Ireland’s state railway) to build a 12-storey station and offices in Tara Street, Dublin. Planning authority An Bord Pleanala overruled its own inspector, who recommended that permission be refused. In terms of the planning permission, the €100 million building must be completed [...] [...more]
Posted on 12 February 2010 by Railways Africa Editor
The 30-year-old light rail system serving the Tyne and Wear district at Newcastle in north-east England has received a £580 million funding package. It is the only LRT outside London in the UK that has sections underground. Of the funding, £350 million is for capital investment over 11 years to modernise the system, with a [...] [...more]
