International & UK Railway News Saturday 31st August 2013

First up today:

The much-awaited Mont Blanc Express!!!!

http://www.chamonix.net/english/transport/train/valley_trains.htm

https://www.facebook.com/MySwitzerland

Railway Herald - Railtours

(Week commencing Monday 2nd September 2013)

Listing offered in good faith. No guarantees offered or implied.
Please confirm timings with operators.
Please observe Network Rail photographic guidelines. Thank you.

Monday 2nd September 2013

The Devonian (Compass Tours)

• WCRC Class 47 (Pair) Liverpool South Parkway (pu) - Runcorn (pu) - Crewe (pu) - Whitchurch (pu) - Wem (pu) - Shrewsbury (pu) - Craven Arms (pu) - Ludlow (pu) - Leominster (pu) - Hereford - Exeter St. Davids (sd) - Torquay (sd) - Paignton (break/rev) & return

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Tuesday 3rd September 2013

The Welsh Mountaineer (Railway Touring Company)

• 45305 or 61994 Preston (pu) - Warrington (pu) - Frodsham (pu) - Chester (pu) - Rhyl - Llandudno Junction (sd) (rev) - Blaenau Ffestiniog (break/rev) & return

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Wednesday 4th September 2013

The Dorset Coast Express (Railway Touring Company)

• 34046 London Victoria (pu) - Barnes - Staines (pu) - Woking (pu) - Basingstoke (pu) - Eastleigh - Southamptonb Central - Bournemouth (sd) - Poole - Wareham - Dorchester South - Weymouth
• To be confirmed Weymouth - Dorchester South - (steam banker from Weymouth to Dorchester South)
• 34046 Dorchester South - Wareham - Poole Bournemouth (pu) - Southampton Central - Eastleigh - Basingstoke (sd) - Woking (sd) - Staines (sd) - Barnes - London Waterloo

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Thursday 5th September 2013

The Cathedrals Express (Steam Dreams)

• DBS Class 67 Shalford (pu) - Guildford (pu) - Effingham Junction (pu) - Leatherhead (pu) - Epsom (pu) - Wimbledon (pu) - Kensington Olympia (pu) - Willesden
• tbc Willesden - Hertford North (pu) - Lincoln (break/rev) - Hertford North (sd) - Willesden
• DBS Class 67 Willesden - Kensington Olympia (sd) - Epsom (sd) - Leatherhead (sd) - Effingham Junction (sd) - Guildford (sd) - Shalford

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Friday 6th September 2013

The High Peak Moorlander (Compass Tours)

• WCRC Class 47 (Pair) Helensburgh Upper (pu) - Dumbarton Central (pu) - Westerton (pu) - Coatbridge Central (pu) - Motherwell (pu) - Carstairs (pu) - Lockerbie (pu) - Carlisle (pu) - S&C - Hellifield - Blackburn - Buxton Spa (break/rev) & return

The 75th Anniversary Special: Day 1 (PMR Tours)

• WCRC Class 47 (Pair) Sheffield (pu) - Chesterfield (pu) - Belper (pu) - Derby (pu) - Uttoxeter (pu) - Stoke on Trent (pu) - Crewe (pu) -
• 46233 Crewe - Warrington Bank Quay - Preston - Shap - Carlisle - Beattock - Carstairs - Mossend - Cumbernauld - Larbert - Stirling - Perth

The Scarborough Flyer (Railway Touring Company)

• 60009 Crewe (pu) - Wilmslow (pu) - Stockport (pu) - Denton - Rochdale (pu) - Hebden Bridge - Brighouse (pu) - Wakefield Kirkgate (pu) - York (sd) - Scarborough (break/rev) & return

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Saturday 7th September 2013

The Western Wessex (Pathfinder Tours)

• DBS Class 67 Leicester (pu) - Nuneaton (pu) - Coleshill Parkway (pu) - Birmingham New Street (pu) -
• D1015 Birmingham New Street - Stourbridge Junction (pu) - Kidderminster (pu) - Worcester Shrub Hill (pu) - Cheltenham Spa (pu) - Bristol Parkway (pu) - Bath Spa - Westbury - Yeovil Pen Mill - Dorchester West - Weymouth
• D1015 Weymouth (pu) - Dorchester South - Wareham - Poole - Bournemouth - Southampton - Eastleigh - Basingstoke - Mortimer - Reading West - Didcot - Oxford - Moreton in Marsh - Evesham - Worcester Shrub Hill (sd) (passengers for Cheltenham Spa & Bristol Parkway return by road coach) - Kidderminster (sd) - Stourbridge Junction (sd) - Birmingham New Street
• DBS Class 67 Birmingham New Street - Coleshill Parkway (sd) - Nuneaton (sd) - Leicester

The 75th Anniversary Special: Day 2 (PMR Tours)

• 46233 Perth - Stirling - Larbert - Cumbernauld - Mossend - Carstairs - Beattock - Carlisle - Shap - Preston - Warrington Bank Quay - Crewe (sd) -
• WCRC Class 47 (Pair) Crewe - Stoke on Trent (sd) - Uttoxeter (sd) - Derby (sd) - Belper (sd) - Chesterfield (sd) - Sheffield

The Cumbrian Mountain Express (Railway Touring Company)

• 60009 Crewe (pu) - Wilmslow (pu) - Stockport (pu) - Manchester Victoria (pu) - Bolton (pu) - Blackburn (pu) - Hel;lifield - S&C - Carllisle (break/rev) - Carlisle - Penrith - Shap - Preston (sd) - Bolton (sd) - Manchester Victoria (sd) - Stockport (sd) - Wilmslow (sd) - Crewe

The Cathedrals Express (Steam Dreams)

• 60163 London Waterloo (pu) - Wimbledon - Surbiton - Woking (pu) - Andover (pu) - Salisbury (pu) - Westbury (pu) - Bath Spa (sd) - Cardiff Central (break/rev) & return

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

Sunday 8th September 2013

The Royal Duchy (Railway Touring Company)

• To be confirmed Bristol Temple Meads (pu) - Yatton (pu) - Taunton (pu) - Exeter St. Davids (pu) - Plymouth (pu) - Liskeard (sd) - Bodmin Parkway - Par (break/rev) & return

The Torbay Express (Torbay Express Ltd)

• 34046 Bristol Temple Meads (pu) - Weston-Super-Mare (pu) - Taunton (pu) - Exeter St. Davids - Newton Abbot - Paignton (sd) - Kingswear (break/rev) & return

The Shakespeare Express (Morning Train) (Vintage Trains)

• 4965 or 5043 Birmingham Snow Hill (pu) - Birminngham Moor Street (pu) - Tyseley (pu) - Shirley - Henley in Arden (pu) - Stratford upon Avon (break/rev) - Stratford upon Avon - Claverdon - Hatton North Junction - Dorridge - Solihull - Tyseley (sd) - Birmingham Moor Street (sd) Birmingham Snow Hill

The Shakespeare Express (Afternoon Train) (Vintage Trains)

• 4965 or 5043 Birmingham Snow Hill (pu) - Birminngham Moor Street (pu) - Tyseley (pu) - Shirley - Henley in Arden (sd) - Stratford upon Avon (break/rev) - Stratford upon Avon - Claverdon - Hatton North Junction - Dorridge - Solihull - Tyseley (sd) - Birmingham Moor Street (sd) Birmingham Snow Hill

The Jacobite (West Coast Railway Company)

• To be confirmed Fort William - Glenfinnan (break) - Arisaig - Mallaig (break/rev) & return

   
Shedmaster Railway News

Tenders called for DLR operating concession - Railway Gazette

On-tram wi-fi on test in Manchester - Railway Gazette

Electric freight locomotives unveiled in Uzbekistan - Railway Gazette


World Heritage & Railway News

The Great Central Vision | National Railway Museum blog

Late Summer Weekend « West Somerset Railway

Great For Groups North Event - The Future of Group Travel Exhibitions - Inspiration, Innovation, Interaction


Railway Engineering News

Weihenstephaner - Machine building - Siemens

Appoint HS2 minister to get grip on costs, urges Lord Adonis | UK news

High Speed Rail UK: HS2 and the north-south divide



MENA Rail News

Satisfaction Increases with Jerusalem Light Rail

Six Groups Bid for Omani Railway Management Programme


Mecca to Medina High Speed Railway
Work on the 450 km Mecca to Medina high speed railway is going to plan, announced Mohammed Al-Suwaiket, president of the Saudi Railway Organisation. It is set to open in late 2014 or early 2015.

Prioritizing Rail in the African Region

Tanzania transport system is expected undergo up-gradation with approximately $330 million to be pumped into of its railway network. TAZARA, ZRL and SNCC, the three railways companies operating in Tanzania, Zambia and Democratic Republic Congo (DRC) respectively, jointly signed a tripartite agreement to harmonize operations in the East African Railway Sector. The contract is expected to provide better connectivity in transportation of goods and passengers in the three states. According to Dr. Damas Daniel Ndumbaro, Deputy Managing Director at TAZARA, the acquisition of new locomotives and other measures by management are expected to increase the tonnage of cargo that it hauls.

Dr. Damas will present on what the future entails for the Tanzania Zambia Railways at the 2nd Annual African Railway Summit. He will elaborate on the challenges and advantages into the working of railways between three countries and expanding social and economic opportunities. The summit will be held on 5 & 6 November at Radisson Blu Gautrain Hotel, Sandton, Johannesburg.


Bombardier

Deutsche Bahn and Bombardier Sign Vehicle Contract Worth 216 Million Euro.

Call-off under framework agreement

New trains will operate on the regional network in Bavaria, Germany, from 2016

Deutsche Bahn AG has ordered 18 electric double-deck multiple units from Bombardier Transportation for regional transport in Germany. The order is valued at approximately 216 million euro ($289 million US). The new trains will operate from December 2016 on the lines Augsburg – Treuchtlingen – Nuremberg and Treuchtlingen – Ingolstadt – Munich.

Dr. Rüdiger Grube, Chairman of Deutsche Bahn, said: “Our consistent investments in new rail vehicles clearly show that we are strengthening our company for the future requirements of the transport markets.”

Dr. Lutz Bertling, President, Bombardier Transportation, added: “Our modern and environmentally friendly BOMBARDIER TWINDEXX Vario trains can be flexibly adapted to passenger volumes. This is how our trains create value for our customer Deutsche Bahn and contribute significantly to effective regional transportation.”



TWINDEXX Vario DB (Courtesy: Bombardier)

The three new four-car and 15 new six-car TWINDEXX Vario double-deck multiple units of the generation Do2010 each comprise two power cars with two or four intermediate cars. They can reach speeds of up to 160 km/h. Particular attention has been paid to attractive facilities for passengers, such as comfortable legroom between seats, wide doors and lots of storage space.
The contract with Bombardier is a call-off under a framework agreement from 2008. The total number of variable double-deck cars ordered under the agreement now stands at 392.