China's expanding high speed rail network is unrivalled....and a couple of news items show why.
But the Spring Festival rush is something else.. the largest global annual migration .. and mainly by train, it would seem...if you could get a ticket...
High speed rail in Spain should be safer after the installation of new safety measures.
In the UK, Thameslink passengers should be more comfortable following the introduction of new 12 carriage sets... and Crossrail is praised for its being on time, on budget and on track for value for money accolades. Which is what the Glasgow to Edinburgh project managers might have wished.. but for the £90 million increase in costs...up from £650 million to £741.5 million.
HS2 continues to draw both supporters and detractors (Nottingham say yes..Yorkshire isn't so keen.)
Nostalgia gets a mention.. for the fastest iconic locomotive Flying Scotsman will have its restoration work completed... and will likely be under the custodial oversight of a new curator at the National Railway Museum. (get the application in...!!). And Tornado becomes a TV star.....
Headlines
Crossrail on track to deliver value for money | Buying Business Travel
What is it like on the 'secret' Tube?
Discover Thameslink - transforming north-south travel across the capital and beyond - YouTube
Darlington-built locomotive clocks up more achievements and milestones
Flying Scotsman: troubled restoration given the go-ahead to continue
China: One Rail to Rule Them All? - Total Rail : Total Rail
High speed rail in China: a phenomenal project - Maxxelli-Blog
China's New Year rail ticket rush
CNY travel rush: 140,000 passengers depart Xiamen on Sunday - What's On Xiamen
Improved Railway Safety Measures to be Installed in Spain
Freight Modeling and Logistics 2013 | Blurbs | Main
National Railway Museum in hunt for new curator
Transit 2013, Volume 1 | Blurbs | Main
Campaign group calls for HS2 ‘no’ vote
HS2: Calls to back high-speed rail in Nottinghamshire - or lose our station to Derby
Authorities win battle for devolution of northern rail services
Rail improvement costs 'up by £90m'
IOM's new diesel engine breaks down
Council outlines spending plans
Scottish Borders Council's administration outlines its five-year revenue and 10-year capital spending plans.
Number of rail journeys hits high (Northern Ireland)
Guest Post: HS2 – the alternative - Total Rail : Total Rail
URBAN Transport Solutions (UTS), a joint venture of CAF and Russia's Sinara Transport Machines unveiled a mock-up of its proposed new-generation metro car for Moscow Metro at the city's All-Russia Exhibition Centre earlier this month.
MUNICH Transport (MVG) and Munich City Authority (SWM) have announced they will invest €335m in the expansion and modernisation of the city's public transport network this year, more than double the amount invested in 2013.
DYNAMIC testing began on Dubai's first light rail line on January 26, when an Alstom Citadis 402 LRV ran over part of the initial 2.5km test section of the Al Sufouh Tramway.
TRANSMASHHOLDING (TMH), Russia, announced on January 23 that its Baltic regional subsidiary CJSC TMH B has signed a contract with Lithuanian Railways (LG) to supply 20 additional TEM TMH diesel locomotives.
AUSTRIAN local railway operator Stern & Hafferl (StH) has awarded Vossloh a €30m contract to supply 11 metre-gauge Tramlink V3 LRVs.
UP cut public safety incident rate last year
ICTF work to soon begin, end at Florida ports
CTA doubled military veteran hires in 2013
Tie purchases and production dipped in December, RTA says
The T appoints COO, grants administrator
Jonaitis, LeDune assume new posts at Indiana Rail Road
www.railway-technology.com Updates..
Ontario orders 65 new bi-level rail cars from Bombardier
The Ontario government has placed a $481m order with Bombardier to deliver 65 new bi-level rail cars, as part of its strategy to improve public transit and support jobs in Thunder Bay, Canada.
AB selects Stadler for new Tango light rail vehicles
Switzerland's Appenzell Bahnen (AB) has contracted Stadler Rail to deliver seven new Tango low-floor light rail vehicles (LRVs) for use on the Durchmesserlinie cross-town link to connect Trogen, St. Gallen and Appenzell.
New York MTA receives $886m Hurricane Sandy aid from DOT
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has received $886m funding from the US Department of Transportation (DOT) to rebuild and replace transportation equipment and facilities damaged or destroyed by Hurricane Sandy.
Blacktown Station to undergo major overhaul
Australian statutory government authority Transport for New South Wales has said that a major refurbishment of Blacktown Station will begin shortly
Other News
Smart Train enters service at FGC - Railway Gazette
DfT agrees Rail North devolution partnership - Railway Gazette
February half-term at the West Somerset Railway « West Somerset Railway
Steam Weekends | The East Lancashire Railway
GOV.UK
New state-of-the-art passenger train unveiled
A new electric Class 700 train is set to improve the travel experience for passengers and boost the economy.
The state-of-the-art train that will transform rail travel into and across London, boost the economy and generate thousands of jobs throughout the UK was unveiled by Rail Minister Stephen Hammond today (28 January 2014).
The government’s £6.5 billion Thameslink programme will create up to 8,000 jobs as part of the deal to build 1,140 carriages and to complete the wider infrastructure work required.
The new electric Class 700 train will offer a much improved travel experience for passengers and alongside the wider infrastructure work will boost capacity and reliability across one of Europe’s busiest stretches of railway. Benefits in the morning peak will include:
- over double the number of carriages, providing 80% more peak seats across central London (between Blackfriars and St Pancras)
- the number of carriages serving the capital to jump by 40%; longer, more frequent services with 30% more seats on all Thameslink north services that run fast from St Albans to London
- 15% more seats from stations along the line from Peterborough and Cambridge and more than 60% more carriages into London Bridge
We are transforming our railways through the biggest programme of rail investment ever. These exciting new trains, combined with the wider Thameslink programme are a real boost to UK Plc, creating thousands of jobs in construction and across the supply chain, which is driving forward our economy.The trains have been designed specifically to meet the demands of the ambitious Thameslink infrastructure programme delivering high frequency, high capacity services. They will be more reliable and more energy efficient than existing rolling stock and their lightweight design will mean less wear and tear on the tracks, saving money in maintaining the network over the long term.
Once operational they will provide a huge benefit to the hundreds of thousands of passengers who travel into London every day. It will vastly improve train travel providing fast, reliable and more frequent services.
Train manufacturer Siemens expects the contract to build the 1,140 carriages to create up to 2,000 jobs across the UK supply chain in component manufacturing, assembly, construction of new depots and subsequent train maintenance.
A further 3,000 people are expected to be directly employed as part of the wider Thameslink infrastructure works with as many again employed in related jobs in the wider community.
Steve Scrimshaw, Managing Director, Siemens Rail Systems UK, said:
First Capital Connect operates the current Thameslink franchise and has worked closely with the government to develop the new trains.Over £80 million pounds has been invested by Siemens in the design and development of the Class 700. The innovative design incorporates the feedback of UK train operators, train crew, cleaners and maintainers, as well as dedicated passenger research, helping us turn proven technology and expertise into a state-of-the-art train of the future.
Managing Director David Statham said:
This new fleet will give passengers more trains, more carriages and more capacity which our passengers desperately need.Cross London Trains, a consortium comprising of Siemens Project Ventures GMbH, Innisfree Limited and 3i infrastructure plc, is financing the new trains and will lease them to the operator of the Thameslink franchise.
The Thameslink programme will deliver more than double the number of carriages across the heart of London. At London Bridge alone the programme will deliver 60% more carriages in the morning rush hour. There’ll also be exciting new journey opportunities from places along the route from Cambridge and Peterborough across the Thames to Blackfriars and beyond.
Andy Pitt, Executive Chairman of Cross London Trains, said:
The first new train will begin operating in early 2016 with the remaining fleet following at an increasing rate until there is one new train entering passenger service every week.Cross London Trains is delighted to have provided the finance for these Class 700 trains which will provide significant benefits to passengers and a step change in capacity.
They will run on the current Thameslink network between Bedford and Brighton and the Wimbledon Loop and will be deployed across new routes from 2017 as infrastructure work is completed. These include the Great Northern routes to Cambridge and Peterborough, the route to Sevenoaks via Elephant and Castle and new destinations off the Brighton Main Line.
From 2018 the trains will operate at high frequencies across central London with one arriving every 2 to 3 minutes between St Pancras and Blackfriars during the peak. The new London Bridge main line station will also be completed by 2018, providing capacity for more cross-London services, including the extension of Great Northern services southward from King’s Cross. The new trains will be maintained at new depots being built in Hornsey (London Borough of Haringey) and Three Bridges (West Sussex).
In addition, the new generation of trains will release existing rolling stock for use elsewhere on the network, particularly as further routes are electrified, for example in the north west of England and the Thames Valley commuter lines.
Thameslink sits within a wider context of multi-billion pound investment in the country’s transport network. It will provide for improved north/south journeys across the capital, supporting access to London Bridge as well as Luton and Gatwick airports. A new interchange at Farringdon will also give Thameslink passengers access to Crossrail for east/west journeys, including Heathrow Airport, Canary Wharf and the West End.
The first stage of the Thameslink programme is now operationally complete. Final touches are being made to building work at Farringdon and Blackfriars stations, and platform extension work has been completed at a number of locations including Luton Airport Parkway and St Albans. This first stage has allowed some longer 12-carriage trains to operate on the Bedford to Brighton route. The platforms at Blackfriars station have also been extended across the Thames, making it the first station to span the width of the river.
The second stage is now under way and involves the reconstruction of London Bridge station and a new connection to the East Coast Main Line just to the north of St Pancras station.
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