THE Swiss Federal Transport Office (BAV) has awarded Rheinland Cargo Schweiz (RCCH), the Swiss subsidiary of RheinCargo, Germany, a license to operate on the Swiss railway network.
A CEREMONY was held at Maschen yard near Hamburg on November 27 to mark the introduction of 835m-long freight trains between Germany and Scandinavia.
THE NORWEGIAN ministry of transport and communications announced on November 28 that it has asked infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket to prepare a draft development strategy for the rollout of ERTMS across the national network.
INVENSYS has announced it is to sell its rail division to Siemens for $US 2.8bn following a strategic review which concluded that consolidation in the signalling industry would limit the scope for expanding the company's rail activities.
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Rail sector outlines tough environmental targets
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Long-term targets to further improve the environmental performance of the rail sector are outlined in a new brochure published today by the International Union of Railways (UIC) and the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER).
Adopted by the rail sector, the targets represent the improvements the sector feels it can achieve through its own voluntary endeavours, separate to any requirements laid down by EU and member state legislation. They build on the agreement already made in 2008 by rail companies to commit to a sector-wide cut of 30% of specific CO2 emissions from rail traction over the 1990-2020 period.
The brochure coincides with the publication of the European Environment Agency’s 2012 annual TERM (Transport and Environment Reporting Mechanism) report. Transport is still responsible for nearly one-quarter of EU greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and the 2011 EU Transport White Paper laid down a reduction target of at least 60% of transport GHG emissions between 1990 and 2050. However, the TERM report points out that transport GHG emissions fell by only 0.4% between 2009 and 2010, and energy consumption in transport actually rose slightly by 0.1% in 2011 compared to 2010.
The brochure ‘Moving towards Sustainable Mobility – A strategy for 2030 and beyond for the European railway sector’ was jointly agreed by members of both UIC and CER to provide a unified approach to sustainability challenges in the rail sector. The strategy is built around four key topics: climate protection, energy efficiency, exhaust emissions, and noise emissions. It sets out objectives for the rail sector to meet by 2030, and more general aims for the longer target of 2050.
· On climate protection: by 2030, the railways will reduce their specific average CO2 emissions (i.e. emissions per passenger-km or tonne-km) from train operations by 50% compared to 1990. They will also not exceed the total amount of CO2 emissions compared to 1990, even taking into account projected growth in rail traffic. By 2050, the railways will aim for completely carbon-free train operation.
· On energy efficiency: by 2030, the railways will reduce their specific energy consumption from train operations by 30% compared to 1990, while by 2050 they aim for this to have reached 50%.
· On exhaust emissions: by 2030, the railways will reduce their total emissions of NOx and PM10 by 40% in absolute terms compared to 2005, while by 2050 they will aim to have zero emissions of NOx and PM10 from trains.
· On noise: by its nature this is a harder area to set targets for, so the railways aim that by 2050, noise and vibrations will no longer be considered a problem for the railways, with noise levels that are socially and economically acceptable and allow for 24-hour passenger and goods operations.
In order to monitor the progress towards the targets, UIC and CER have established an Environmental Target Monitoring System to measure improvements, and a report monitoring progress towards the targets will be produced annually.
CER Executive Director Libor Lochman said: “By establishing its own voluntary strategy, the rail sector is showing that it is a responsible and forward thinking low-carbon mode of transport, whose role should be enhanced as part of the wider move towards cleaner transport. Modal shift to rail from higher-emitting modes could further increase these advantages, and produce the biggest benefit for society and the environment.”
Moving towards sustainable mobility - A strategy for 2030 and beyond for the European railway sector
The European rail sector already has an environmental record to be proud of. For example, total CO2 emissions from the railway sector in 2007 were 38% less than in 1990. However, the railways recognise that they have to continue to improve in order to continue playing a significant role in meeting future transport needs. Moving towards Sustainable Mobility concentrates on what the rail sector itself can do to improve its environmental strengths. It was developed by CER and UIC to provide a medium and long-term plan for the rail sector that fits in with wider environmental and political policy objectives. By establishing its own voluntary strategy, the rail sector is showing that it is a responsible and forward thinking low-carbon mode of transport, whose role should be enhanced as part of the wider move to decarbonise transport. Through the creation of this strategy, the railways are showing the path towards an even cleaner, greener rail sector for 2030 and beyond.
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Read in railwaygazette.com - UK: IT consultancy Smart421 has been awarded a contract to develop a Live Sales Management system to handle Ticket on Departure services for Rail Settlement Plan Ltd
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