BRITAIN's Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) published its 2013 Periodic Review of Network Rail (NR) on June 12, which sets out how the regulator expects how the infrastructure manager to reduce costs by £2bn during Control Period 5 (CP5), the 2014-19 funding period.
THE High Commission for Riyadh Development (HCRD) says that "three major global consortia" have submitted technical and financial offers for the Riyadh Metro project, a six-line driverless network which will eventually encompass 177km and 96 stations in the Saudi capital.
A team of Japanese consultants has completed a feasibility study for the proposed $US 1.7bn reconstruction of the 640km metre-gauge line between Myanmar's largest city Yangon and the northern city of Mandalay
THE Peoples Committee of Ho Chi Minh City signed a contract with Hitachi on June 11 for Metro Line 1 Package 3..
ABELLIO Rail NRW signed a contract with Stadler Pankow on June 12 for a fleet of 20 five-car Flirt emus, which will be used on the Dutch-German Lower Rhine...
Other US News.....
BTS Releases Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI);
Freight Shipments Fell 1.2% in April from March
The amount of freight carried by the for-hire transportation industry fell 1.2 percent in April from March, declining after five consecutive monthly increases, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics’ (BTS) Freight Transportation Services Index (TSI) released today. The April 2013 index level (112.4) was 18.5 percent above the April 2009 low during the most recent recession (Tables 1, 2, 2A).
BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the level of freight shipments in April measured by the Freight TSI (112.4) was 2.4 percent below the all-time high level of 115.2 in December 2011 (Table 2A). BTS’ TSI records begin in 2000. See historical TSI data.
The Freight TSI measures the month-to-month changes in freight shipments by mode of transportation in tons and ton-miles, which are combined into one index. The index measures the output of the for-hire freight transportation industry and consists of data from for-hire trucking, rail, inland waterways, pipelines and air freight.
Beginning with the April release, BTS improved procedures and refined the TSI methodology. As a result there have been minor changes in monthly numbers released previously. Documentation will be made available in the near future.
Analysis: The 1.2% decline in freight transportation was driven by declines in shipments by water, pipeline shipments, and rail intermodal. Waterborne freight reductions in April were partially due to floods and barge accidents that interfered with river operations. Trucking was stable in April on a seasonally adjusted basis. The stability in trucking, the decline in rail intermodal, and the decline in the overall Freight TSI were consistent with a slight decline in manufacturing output, and a larger decline in housing that took place in April.
Trend: Even with the April decrease to 112.4, the index has remained above its 2012 range for four consecutive months. The April level is a return to the level of January 2013, prior to increases in February and March. The April index was still higher than the index had been during any month between April 2009 and the beginning of 2013 except for December 2011, when it reached the all-time high. After dipping to 94.8 in April 2009, the index rose 18.5 percent in the succeeding 48 months. For additional historical data, go to TSI data.
Index highs and lows: Freight shipments in April 2013 (112.4) were 18.5 percent higher than the all-time low in April 2009 during the recession (94.8). The April 2013 level is down 2.4 percent from the historic peak reached in December 2011 (115.2).
Year-to-date: Freight shipments measured by the index were up 0.2 percent in April compared to the end of 2012 (Table 3).
Long-term trend: Freight shipments are up 1.1 percent in the five years from the recession level of April 2008 and are up 8.5 percent in the 10 years from April 2003 (Table 5).
Same month of previous year: April 2013 freight shipments were up 1.2 percent from April 2012 (Tables 4, 5).
The TSI has three seasonally adjusted indexes that measures changes from the monthly average of the base year of 2000. The three indexes are freight shipments, passenger travel and a combined measure that merges the freight and passenger indexes. TSI includes data from 2000 to the present. Release of the May 2013 index is scheduled for July 2013.
For a webinar on the TSI, see Past Webinars. For a video explanation of the TSI, see Overview of the Transportation Services Index. A BTS report explaining the TSI, Transportation Services Index and the Economy, is available for download.
Passenger Index: The TSI for passengers rose 0.1 percent in April from its March level (Table 6). The Passenger TSI April 2013 level of 116.9 was 0.8 percent above the April 2012 level (Table 7). The index is up 0.4 percent in five years and up 25.6 percent in 10 years (Table 5). The passenger TSI measures the month-to-month changes in travel that involves the services of the for-hire passenger transportation sector. The seasonally adjusted index consists of data from air, local transit and intercity rail.
Combined Index: The combined freight and passenger TSI fell 0.8 percent in April from its March level (Table 8). The combined TSI April 2013 level of 113.7 was 1.1 percent above the April 2012 level (Table 9). The combined index is up 0.8 percent in five years and up 13.0 percent in 10 years (Table 5). The combined TSI merges the freight and passenger indexes into a single index.
Revisions: Monthly data has changed from previous releases due to the use of concurrent seasonal analysis, which results in seasonal analysis factors changing as each months data are added.
Table 1: Freight, Passenger and Combined Transportation Services Indexes since October 2012
Percent Change from Previous Month
(Seasonally Adjusted, Monthly Average of 2000 = 100)
Freight
|
Passenger
|
Combined
| ||||
Index
|
Pct. Change
|
Index
|
Pct. Change
|
Index
|
Pct. Change
| |
October
|
108.5
|
-2.4
|
114.1
|
-2.1
|
110.1
|
-2.3
|
November
|
110.8
|
2.1
|
114.8
|
0.6
|
112.0
|
1.7
|
December
|
112.2
|
1.2
|
116.0
|
1.0
|
113.3
|
1.2
|
January
|
112.4
|
0.2
|
116.1
|
0.1
|
113.5
|
0.2
|
February
|
113.2
|
0.6
|
116.0
|
-0.1
|
114.0
|
0.4
|
March
|
113.8
|
0.6
|
116.8
|
0.7
|
114.7
|
0.6
|
April
|
112.4
|
-1.2
|
116.9
|
0.1
|
113.7
|
-0.8
|
SOURCE: Bureau of Transportation Statistics
NOTE: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 2: Freight Transportation Services Index Monthly Changes, 2010-2013
Percent change from previous month
2010
|
2011
|
2012
|
2013
| |
% Change
|
% Change
|
% Change
|
% Change
| |
January
|
0.6
|
1.1
|
-3.5
|
0.2
|
February
|
1.6
|
-1.7
|
-0.1
|
0.6
|
March
|
0.0
|
1.5
|
-0.5
|
0.6
|
April
|
0.6
|
-0.6
|
0.6
|
-1.2
|
May
|
0.7
|
-2.0
|
0.5
| |
June
|
-0.4
|
2.0
|
0.1
| |
July
|
0.6
|
0.1
|
-0.2
| |
August
|
-0.3
|
0.7
|
-0.5
| |
September
|
1.1
|
0.9
|
0.2
| |
October
|
0.5
|
0.0
|
-2.4
| |
November
|
-0.6
|
0.1
|
2.1
| |
December
|
2.0
|
4.0
|
1.2
|
SOURCE: Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Table 2A: Freight Transportation Services Index by Month, 2010-2013
2010
|
2011
|
2012
|
2013
| |
January
|
102.4
|
109.6
|
111.1
|
112.4
|
February
|
104.0
|
107.7
|
111.0
|
113.2
|
March
|
104.0
|
109.3
|
110.5
|
113.8
|
April
|
104.7
|
108.7
|
111.1
|
112.4
|
May
|
105.4
|
106.6
|
111.6
| |
June
|
105.0
|
108.7
|
111.8
| |
July
|
105.7
|
108.9
|
111.5
| |
August
|
105.3
|
109.6
|
111.0
| |
September
|
106.5
|
110.6
|
111.2
| |
October
|
107.0
|
110.6
|
108.5
| |
November
|
106.3
|
110.8
|
110.8
| |
December
|
108.5
|
115.2
|
112.2
|
SOURCE: Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Table 3: Freight, Passenger and Combined Transportation Services Indexes Year-to-Date Change, 2004-2013
Percent change to April from December of the previous year
Year
|
Freight
|
Passenger
|
Combined
|
2004
|
2.5
|
3.3
|
2.8
|
2005
|
1.8
|
1.3
|
1.7
|
2006
|
-0.6
|
2.3
|
0.2
|
2007
|
0.0
|
2.3
|
0.6
|
2008
|
0.3
|
0.1
|
0.2
|
2009
|
-5.7
|
0.3
|
-4.0
|
2010
|
2.9
|
0.3
|
2.1
|
2011
|
0.2
|
1.4
|
0.6
|
2012
|
-3.5
|
-0.2
|
-2.6
|
2013
|
0.2
|
0.8
|
0.4
|
SOURCE: Bureau of Transportation Statistics
Table 4: Freight Transportation Services Index from Year-to-Year
Percent Change in the April Freight TSI
(Monthly average of 2000 = 100)
April Freight TSI
|
Percent change from same month previous year
| |
2004
|
110.7
|
6.8
|
2005
|
113.0
|
2.1
|
2006
|
111.4
|
-1.4
|
2007
|
110.4
|
-0.9
|
2008
|
111.1
|
0.7
|
2009
|
94.8
|
-14.7
|
2010
|
104.7
|
10.4
|
2011
|
108.7
|
3.9
|
2012
|
111.1
|
2.2
|
2013
|
112.4
|
1.2
|
SOURCE: Bureau of Transportation Statistics
NOTE: Percent changes based on numbers prior to rounding.
Table 5: Transportation Services Indexes from Previous Years
Percent Change to April 2013 from April
Since April . . .
|
Duration in years
|
Freight TSI Percent change to April 2013
|
Passenger TSI Percent change to April 2013
|
Combined TSI Percent change to April 2013
|
2012
|
1
|
1.2
|
0.8
|
1.1
|
2011
|
2
|
3.4
|
2.0
|
3.0
|
2010
|
...
[Message clipped] View entire message
Eurotunnel, ENPC and Fondation des Ponts to study rail science
Groupe Eurotunnel and the Ecole des Ponts ParisTech (ENPC), in association with the Fondation des Ponts, have formed a long-term partnership to develop the study of railway transport science.
Groupe Eurotunnel and the Ecole des Ponts ParisTech (ENPC), in association with the Fondation des Ponts, have formed a long-term partnership to develop the study of railway transport science.
A consortium comprising Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Japan's Sojitz has secured a Rs66.9bn ($1.15bn) contract from the Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India (DFCCIL) to build a 626km rail line as part of the proposed western dedicated freight corridor (Western DFC) project.
Atkins and Parsons Brinckerhoff win Great Western Main Line electrification deal
Atkins and Parsons Brinckerhoff have been selected by Network Rail as lead design organisation (LDO) and system integrator for the planned electrification of the Great Western Main Line in the UK.
Hitachi successfully operates onboard ETCS system with Network Rail existing track-side signalling
Hitachi Rail Europe has taken a step forward in its European Train Control System (ETCS) Level 2 operation by connecting its onboard ETCS solution to the Network Rail Cambrian Line signalling system in the UK.
Regulator identifies £2bn savings for Britain's railway from 2014 to 2019
12 June 2013
ORR/13/13
ORR/13/13
The Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) has announced today that over £2 billion savings have been identified in plans which will enable Britain’s railways to achieve continued growth and increase rail capacity over the next five years.
New tougher regulatory targets will also see levels of train punctuality increase with at least nine out of ten trains running on time on every route, higher standards of network infrastructure management and improved safety for passengers and railway workers.
ORR has undertaken an extensive analysis of Network Rail’s Strategic Plan for the railways between 2014 and 2019, published in January this year. The plan sets out proposals for funding and improving the rail network as required by the Westminster and Scottish governments. It builds on the growth and success of Britain’s railways over the past decade, which has seen safety, punctuality and services improve – and prompted record rises in the number of passengers and the amount of freight carried.
ORR’s assessment shows that over the next five years the day-to-day cost of running the rail network (between 2014-19) should be £21.4 billion – nearly £2bn less than proposed by Network Rail. Savings will be achieved through the implementation of new technologies, better management of the railways and more efficient ways of working. These savings will not come at the expense of safety. The regulator has largely protected Network Rail’s maintenance expenditure so that the delivery of a high-performing railway is not compromised. There is also additional funding to improve the condition of civil structures (bridges, tunnels) as well as to upgrade and close level crossings.
With rail passenger numbers expected to rise by a further 14% by 2019, ORR has approved a £12bn programme of enhancement projects to boost capacity on Britain’s railways. However, nearly £7bn of these projects are in very early stages of planning. To safeguard taxpayer interests, before releasing funds for these schemes, ORR is requiring Network Rail to provide well-developed plans to ensure they represent real value for money. The regulator also proposes that Network Rail seeks input from train operators, stakeholders, and passengers to demonstrate these plans address the needs of rail users.
ORR Chief Executive Richard Price said:
"Britain’s railway is a success story and it has made significant progress over the last decade. In order to sustain this progress and retain support and confidence, the industry must continue to improve its efficiency to reduce its dependence on public subsidy.
"We have set out what Network Rail and its industry partners will need to deliver between now and 2019 for passengers, freight customers, train operators, and taxpayers. Passengers will benefit from increases in capacity through a major programme of enhancements and improvements in punctuality, tackling in particular the worst-performing lines. Not only that, we are proposing that rail users should have more say in what enhancements to the railways are delivered and how.
"This determination is stretching but achievable and it gives Network Rail incentives to build on past successes, and do even better than the challenges we have set."
By the end of 2019, ORR will require Network Rail to achieve:
- Improved performance for passengers - An average of 92.5% of trains on all routes up and down the country must arrive on time, with the difference between the best and the worst performing routes narrowing. At least nine out of ten trains must run on time on all routes.
- Delivery of projects to increase capacity and levels of service on the network - Many of Network Rail’s proposed enhancements to the rail network are in very early stages of planning. ORR has allocated funding to see these projects develop as fast as possible. The regulator is proposing that rail users and train operators are given a bigger role to shape the specification and delivery of Network Rail’s projects. This will help put passengers at the heart of decisions on how the railway is improved.
- Better management of the network infrastructure (assets) - Network Rail will have better and more up-to-date data on the condition of its tracks, bridges and other assets so that problems can be identified and fixed before they occur, significantly reducing delays caused by asset failures. The regulator will specify how progress is measured, and ensure the company is working to stretching new regulatory targets. Network Rail will also improve the resilience of the network to climate change.
- Improved safety for rail passengers and workers - ORR has approved £67 million funding to upgrade and close level crossings in England and Wales. Network Rail must reduce the risk of train accidents and work towards eliminating fatalities and major injuries.
- Greater efficiencies and value for money - ORR’s analysis shows that Network Rail can deliver what the governments want by spending £2bn less than proposed. Through more effective incentives, ORR is encouraging train operators, Network Rail and the supply chain to work together to create further opportunities to save money.
Periodic review 2013: Draft determination of Network Rail's outputs and funding for 2014-19
Reference: ORR/009/2013Date published: 12 June 2013
Start date: 12 June 2013
Closing date: 4 September 2013
The 2013 Periodic Review (PR13) is the process through which we determine the outputs that Network Rail must deliver, the efficient cost of delivering those outputs, and the access charges the company can levy on train operators for using its network to recover those costs. It covers the period from 1 April 2014 to 31 March 2019, which is called control period 5 (CP5). PR13 also establishes the wider ‘regulatory framework’ including the incentives that will act on Network Rail, train operators and others in the industry to deliver and outperform our determination.
Our draft determination sets out our package of overall decisions on PR13 for consultation. It is the culmination of two years of work and substantial stakeholder engagement on particular topics. After the 12 week consultation, we will take into account stakeholders’ responses and confirm our decisions in our final determination to be published on 31 October 2013. We will then begin the process of implementing the determination for the start of CP5 on 1 April 2014.
Our draft determination sets out our package of overall decisions on PR13 for consultation. It is the culmination of two years of work and substantial stakeholder engagement on particular topics. After the 12 week consultation, we will take into account stakeholders’ responses and confirm our decisions in our final determination to be published on 31 October 2013. We will then begin the process of implementing the determination for the start of CP5 on 1 April 2014.
Consultation document
Download the full Draft determination (
7,561 Kb)Or you can download by section:
- Executive summary (
- Introduction and background (chapters 1-2) (
- Outputs, efficient expenditure, deliverability and health & safety (chapters 3-11) (
- Financial framework and revenue requirement (chapters 12-14) (
- Incentives framework, access charges and other income (chapters 15-20) (
- Affordability, implementation, monitoring and impacts (chapters 21-24) (
- Annexes A to J (
- Abbreviations and acronyms (
How to respond
Please send your responses in electronic (or if not possible, in hard-copy format) by Wednesday 4 September 2013 to:
Valentina Licata
Office of Rail Regulation
1 Kemble Street
London
WC2B 4AN
Please indicate clearly if you wish all or part of your response to remain confidential to ORR and explain why. Otherwise, we would expect to make it available on our website and potentially to quote from it.
EIM - European Rail Infrastructure Managers
CER/EIM press release: The European rail infrastructure CEOs discuss about the rail sector’s future
Today in Zurich, chief executives from rail infrastructure companies discussed issues of key strategic and political importance to the European railway sector. In particular, the CEOs recognised that the work of the rail infrastructure managers is at the heart of enhancing the rail network in Europe, striving for better services to the benefit of rail transport customers and tax payers. Therefore, they pledge to reinforce this cooperation in the future. Prior to the meeting, Doris Leuthard, Federal Councillor from the Swiss Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication, put the Swiss transport sector into the context of a wider Europe by providing insights into Switzerland’s sustainable transport system in terms of the environment as well as its financing.
Jointly organised by the Community of European Railways and Infrastructure Companies (CER) and the association of European Rail Infrastructure Managers (EIM), the annual meetings between the heads of rail infrastructure companies provide a platform for exchanging information and experiences between rail infrastructure companies, real opportunity for sharing good practice, benchmarking opportunities and lead to joint projects and initiatives
At today’s meeting, the CEOs agreed that a stronger dialogue and cooperation between European rail infrastructure companies is necessary in order to meet better the demands of the future. Therefore, they decided to set up a joint task force to identify opportunities for further enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of Europe’s rail infrastructure over time.
The main aim of this approach would be to help all rail infrastructure managers to achieve the necessary improvements in an accelerated way. Amongst the examples for concrete cooperation are cross corridor coordination, longer and heavier trains for making best possible use of the available track capacity, intermodality projects and benchmarking on key performance indicators, such as punctuality as well as also ERTMS deployment.
The meeting was concluded by a visit to the new SBB Operations Control Centre East (OCC East) organised by this year’s host, SBB. SBB aims to operate four such centres in Switzerland by 2014. Bruno Stehrenberger, Head of Operations at OCC East, explained that the aim is to centralise customer information and operational control centres and thereby improve efficiency.
Federal Councillor from the Swiss Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication Doris Leuthard said: “We need a highly efficient European transport system. We cannot afford to have bottlenecks in the European transport corridors. Congestion on the access lines to our large Alpine tunnels – the centerpiece of the European freight corridor 1 – will sooner or later lead to the collapse of the system. Switzerland is doing its part: in 2016 we will be putting the Gotthard Base Tunnel into operation.”
CER Executive Director Libor Lochman stated: “The annual meetings of rail infrastructure CEOs demonstrate that European topics are on the top of their agendas, and are gaining in importance. These meetings are essential for exchanging views of best practice and allow us to find common solutions for the benefit of the customers.“
EIM Executive Director Monika Heiming stated: “Today’s meeting was very fruitful for the railway sector: EU rail infrastructure leaders agreed to start working together on a broader range of issues which will be beneficial for corridor and network deployment in the interest of our customers.”
The 2014 meeting of the rail infrastructure CEOs will be hosted by Trafikverket in Sweden.
Getting to the Show - Visitors - EMO Hannover (September 2013)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Tell us your Railway News!