World Railway News... 10th August 2012

Siemens

Siemens supplies signaling for new long-distance line in Algeria

The rail automation specialist ESTEL RA, a joint venture of the Algerian National Company for Rail Transport SNTF (Société Nationale des Transports Ferroviaires) and Siemens, will equip the line from Mecheria to El Bayadh with signaling and telecommunication systems. The customer is the Algerian railway agency ANESRIF (Agence nationale d'études et de suivi de la réalisation des investissements ferroviaires). "Siemens has in recent years played a significant role in expansion of rail transportation in Algeria. The order to build the new long-distance line in the southwest of the country testifies to the confidence in our high-performing and reliable technology", said Jochen Eickholt, CEO of the Rail Automation Business Unit. The order is worth about 69 million Euros for Siemens. Commissioning is scheduled for the Fall of 2015.

Comprising five stations and 129 kilometers long, the railroad will be equipped by Siemens Mobility and Logistics with Trainguard 100 for ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 1, the automatic operations control system Vicos and five electronic interlockings of type Simis W. In addition of the equipment of the control center, the contract includes training of personnel in use of the new technology. After successful commissioning, SNTF plans to run trains on the line at a maximum speed of 160 km/h.

There is considerable scope in Algeria for infrastructure modernization projects. In the context of a five-year economic plan, the Algerian government has announced its intention by the year 2014 to invest around 20 billion US Dollars in expansion of rail transportation. As part of this modernization plan, Siemens has already provided ETCS signaling systems for the rail links from Boughezoul to M'Sila and to Tissemsilt, as well as for the most important goods transportation line between Senia and the port of Arzew.

The automatic train protection system Trainguard for ETCS-Level 1 from Siemens displays the drive and control commands to the driver not by means of signals but by transmitting them electronically to the train computer via Eurobalises. The permissible speed and the status of the signals ahead of him are constantly indicated to the driver via a display panel. If the specified speed is exceeded, the train control system intervenes automatically; ETCS furthermore ensures (via standardized interfaces) interoperability between the train and the track, even when borders are crossed.


International Railway Journal

DB Schenker Rail is to expand its freight operations between Britain and mainland Europe with the launch of a second weekly train between London and Wroclaw, Poland, on October 9.

ALGERIA's National Railway Investment Agency (Anesrif) has awarded a contract to supply and install signalling systems on the new 129km standard-gauge line from Mecheria to El Bayadh to a joint venture of Algerian State Railways (SNTF) and Siemens.

Railway Gazette International

INNOTRANS: As the only official international media partner for InnoTrans 2012, Railway Gazette will be providing extensive coverage of the world's largest rail industry event.
InnoTrans 2012 will be held at the Messe Berlin exhibition centre on September 18-21. There will be more than 2 300 exhibitors from 47 countries, and more than 110 000 industry professionals visiting from around the world.
The latest InnoTrans news is now available on a dedicated section of www.railwaygazette.com, along with an illustrated guide to the locomotives and rolling stock which will be display on the exhibition centre's own tracks.

BELGIUM: A six-month expansion and modernisation project has been launched to enable the Euro Terminal Genk freight facility to accommodate increases in intermodal traffic, in particular between the North Sea ports and southern and southeast Europe.

GERMANY: A funding agreement has been signed to enable the construction of a 6·2 km railway bypass which will allow freight trains to reach the JadeWeserPort development without passing though the town of Sande.

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USHSR

The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) will host a series of nine public  Scoping Meetings from August 13-22 as part of the environmental review process  for the upgrade of the Northeast Corridor. 

 Meetings will be held in each state along the corridor and the District of  Columbia. These meetings will provide an opportunity for the public to learn  about the project, ask questions and provide oral and written comments. Each  meeting will include a brief presentation and an informal open house. 
Public meetings will be held at several points in the planning process. The  first public meetings will be Scoping Meetings in August 2012 to help define the  scope of study for the Tier 1 EIS, being conducted in accordance with FRA's  Procedures for Considering Environmental Impacts. These meetings will be held in  an open house format from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.; participants are welcome to  arrive at any time during the open house. Informational displays will be  available and project staff will be on hand to answer questions, listen to your  comments and discuss the project.  Meeting schedule and information


NEC FUTURE is a comprehensive planning effort to define, evaluate and  prioritize future investments in the Northeast Corridor (NEC), launched by the  Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) in February 2012. FRA's work will include  new ideas and approaches to grow the region's intercity, commuter and freight  rail services and an environmental evaluation of proposed transportation  alternatives.
The NEC, the rail transportation spine of the Northeast region, is a key  component of the region's transportation system and vital to its sustained  economic growth. Today, the 457-mile NEC-anchored by Boston's South Station in  the north, New York's Pennsylvania Station in the center, and Washington's Union  Station in the south-is one of the most heavily traveled rail corridors in the  world. The NEC is shared by intercity, commuter and freight operations and moves  more than 259 million passengers and 14 million car-miles of freight per  year.

While improvements continue to be made, the NEC faces serious challenges,  with century-old infrastructure, outdated technology, and inadequate capacity to  meet current or projected travel demand. With similar capacity issues on the  region's highways, and some of the most congested airports in the nation, the  Northeast's economic future could be hampered by transportation constraints.