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Found 138 bulletins. The archive was last updated on 18 October 2005 and there are 2345 bulletins.
New Windsor-Detroit Tunnel
The Canadian Pacific Railway has announced a plan to construct a new, C$600m train tunnel under the Detroit River. The government would pay C$150m while the CPR and its partners would pay C$450m. The tunnel would accommodate larger, more modern train cargo cars. The existing twin-tube train tunnel would then be converted into dedicated, commercial truck routes. See also earlier bulletins 1 and 2. (August 29th 2002, thanks Alan Reekie)Railion Buys Swedish Freight Rail?
The Dagens Industri newspaper reported Saturday the 24th that Railion is interested in purchasing Green Cargo, the Swedish state railfreight operator. Green Cargo CEO Jan Sundling confirms that there may be changes to the company's ownership structure. He has earlier said that despite open access and Freight Freeways, his company must co-operate with the big continental operators in order to secure international services. The Swedish government has said that neither Green Cargo nor its passenger sibling SJ will be sold. Green Cargo recently purchased 45% of Norwegian CargoNet, which in turn owns Swedish bimodal operator RailCombi. (August 27th 2002)Heat on Amtrak
Acelas Break Down
Amtrak's fast new Acela Express and other Amtrak services have proved so popular that Amtrak now hauls more New York-Washington passengers daily than both the Delta and US Airways shuttles combined. But the Acela Express has also become increasingly unreliable. In July, there was an average of one cancellation or en-route breakdown for mechanical reasons every day. The train also has the worst on-time record of any Northeast Corridor train. New bosses at Bombardier and Amtrak have decided to focus on a recovery plan and not let the ongoing legal battle inflame the situation. (August 7th 2002)Survey Shows Strong Public Amtrak Support
A large majority of Americans favor continuing federal subsidies to Amtrak, and a substantial percentage would increase federal funding so the ailing passenger railroad can increase service, according to a Washington Post poll. (August 7th)Heat Likely Cause of Amtrak Derailment
Six people suffered life-threatening injuries when an Amtrak train en route from Chicago to Washington derailed on CSX tracks on Monday the 29th just north of Washington. The derailment threw six of the 15 passenger cars onto their sides. The train was traveling around 100 km/h (60 mph), below the posted speed limit of 70 mph (113 km/h). The train driver applied the brakes after seeing misaligned track, and an examination by NTSB investigators after the crash showed that the rail was 76 cm out of alignment and had reached a temperature of at least 48°C. CSX has announced hot-weather speed restrictions for 37 000 km of track after federal investigators raised the possibility that heat-warped track contributed to the accident. The accident also took a toll on Amtrak equipment, adding more cars to an already long list of those awaiting repairs. (August 2nd, thanks Bengt Mutén)New People at Amtrak
David L. Gunn, Amtrak's new President, appointed two people last month. John F. Tucker III, from the New York City Transit Authority, is in charge of schedules and crew assignments, and Jonathan H. Klein is new the Chief Mechanical Officer. Both are technicans in their fields and worked for Mr. Gunn at SEPTA, the Southeast Pennsylvania Transit Authority, which runs commuter trains. Mr. Gunn and Mr. Klein both believe that passenger rail cannot function without long-term public funding. See also a new Amtrak book review by Owen Hardy. (August 2nd)460 New London Commuter Trains
Bombardier Builds 460 Trains For GoVia London
Bombardier, thumped by allegations it is partly responsible for train delays in Germany and stung by investor nervousness over its purchase of Adtranz, has snagged a hefty C$1,49bn order to provide 460 Class 377 Electrostar commuter trains for London's SouthCentral franchise. The sum includes a 20-year material supply and technical support agreement for GoVia's Electrostar fleet, which totals 700 cars with this order. GoVia is a British holding firm jointly owned by the Go-Ahead Group plc and France's Keolis SA.
Fine Trains
The air-conditioned trains reach 160 km/h and have modern audio and visual passenger information systems linked to the Global Positioning System. Fifteen 4-car trainsets will be dual AC/DC voltage, the remaining 167 3- and 4-car sets (640 cars) being single DC voltage. Each car will also be fitted with a closed-circuit television surveillance system for enhanced internal security, allowing drivers to view car interiors whilst the train is stationary. (March 15th 2002)Tear Down the EuroWalls
EC Wants More Open Access, Faster
In a new white paper, the European Commission is proposing to speed the integration of the freight rail market, by introducing open access to domestic traffic, not just international. It also wants to bring forward the date for this to 2006 rather than 2008. The Commission also advocates creating a European Railway Agency, with around 100 staff, which will coordinate the groups of technical experts seeking common solutions on safety and interoperability. The package, presented January 23rd, also includes other more nebulous proposals. See also the full report, and coverage at X-Rail. (February 2nd 2002)Germany and France Coordinate Freight
French SNCF and German DB AG have agreed to try to double their cross-border freight traffic within five years, but the bilateral accord is seen in Brussels as a way of sidestepping broader plans to liberalise rail freight throughout the European Union. The rail chiefs said in Paris they would introduce a shuttle service of dozens of interoperable locomotives from this summer to link marshalling/classification yards on either side of the frontier. See also press releases from DB and SNCF, and a 7-page report in PDF format. (February 2nd)Fewer Passengers, More Destinations at Eurostar
Eurostar could add Amsterdam and Rotterdam to its network after the completion of HSL Zuid, the Amsterdam high speed link to the Belgian border, in 2007. It is also looking at services direct between London and Charles de Gaulle airport so travellers can connect directly to and from intercontinental flights. Both moves would be a response to falling passenger numbers. Ticket sales fell 3% last year, but market share increased to 64,6% of the London-Paris market and 46,3% of London-Brussels. (January 31st 2002)Britain Has a Plan
£70bn Over Ten Years
The British government has announced a plan to spend £70bn on the rail network over the next ten years. Half the money would come from private sources. See also full details of the plan at the Strategic Rail Authority's website on this page. (January 28th 2002)Corporatist Model for Railtrack Tested
British railways could be run by "virtual boards" bringing together train operators, Railtrack, and maintenance companies in an effort to overcome the problems of fragmentation and get services running on time. Richard Bowker, the Strategic Rail Authority's new chairman and previously of Virgin Rail, said a trial of the system in Railtrack's Great Western zone started this month and he wanted the idea "rolled out as a concept across the industry", but EU rules may stop this. Commenting on whether railways must be owned by the same company which operates the trains, Mr Bowker said: "I see nothing philosophically wrong with the contractual separation of infrastructure and operations. What I believe has gone wrong is the management of the interface." (January 28th)Commuter Rail Extension in Melbourne
Melbourne's newest regional rail service, the St Albans line extension, opens January 27. But local traders and shoppers fear that long delays at the Main Rd level crossing will cause traffic chaos and drive business away, and want the station to be put underground. But the State Government has said this is too expensive and instead plans to to divert traffic from the Main Rd shopping area by building vehicle underpasses at nearby rail crossings. See also pay-per-view articles at www.newstext.com.au dated January 7th and 9th. (January 22nd 2002, thanks Alan Reekie)Class 66 Saves Ikea
Ikea Rail's trains are ready to roll from the warehouse in Älmhult, Sweden, to Duisburg in Germany. Ikea was all set up to become their own rail operator last fall under the new EU rules, but stumbled on a local by-law relating to the Øresund bridge which limited the number of old, dirty and noisy T44 type diesels which could use the link. Ikea now has a deal with rail authority Banverket to use TGOJ's modern T66/Class 66 diesels, developed by GM-EMD for British freight operator EWS, for two years while they look for suitable dual-mode electrics. See also GM EMD's Class 66 page, Berlingske story and Banverket's press release. (January 11th 2002)
Bombardier Wins Orders, Closes Plants
Biggest-Ever Contract for Bombardier Bombardier Transportation has nailed its most lucrative contract ever, a C$2.3bn order for 500 regional 160 km/h trains for French SNCF. The articulated trains have a continuous low floor and come in diesel, electric or bi-modal versions. Designed and produced by Bombardier at its Crespin plant in France, the trains will be delivered starting in 2004 at a rate that will gradually reach eight trains per month. It's the biggest contract that SNCF has ever awarded to a foreign company. "Protected regional suppliers are no longer going to be favoured if they can't compete," a Banc of America analyst said. See also Bombardier's press release, Swedish story, and a great company backgrounder in French. (December 14th 2001)
Bombardier In Shenzen Metro Deal In China, Bombardier is partnering with Changchun Car to build 114 metro cars, forming 19 trains, for the city of Shenzen for a total of C$222m. The first train will be manufactured in Hennigsdorf, Germany, the others in China. A Bombardier plant in Västerås, Sweden, will provide propulsion equipment for the trains. And in France, Bombardier is building 18 more double-decker TGV trains with Alstom. The additional order means the French railway will have 82 of the double-decker TGV trains by 2006, SNCF said. See also press releases from Bombardier and Alstom. (December 3rd)
Bombardier Builds 29 Trains for Oz Bombardier will build 29 two-car diesel units for train operator National Express to expand Victoria's passenger rail services. The deal also covers maintenance of the trains for the next 15 years. The firm order is worth C$339 million, but the contract also carries options for 10 additional two-car units, which could make the deal worth up to C$455 million. The stainless steel trains will be built at Bombardier's Dandenong plant in Victoria, with deliveries scheduled between October 2004 and July 2006. See also the press release. (November 23rd)
Bombardier Closes 3 European Plants Bombardier is closing three plants as part of a widely expected move in the aftermath of Bombardier's agreement last year to buy Adtranz, DaimlerChrysler's rail equipment division. After the changes, Bombardier will end up with 24 rail plants in Europe, in 14 countries. Most of the 1100 workers at the three plants being closed - in Ammendorf and Vetschau in Germany and Doncaster in the UK - will be offered jobs elsewhere in the company. See also Bombardier's press release which explains which plants will do what. (November 15th)