US HSR
Latest Newsletter from USHSR.....
High Speed Rail Offers the Best Alternative to Rising Gas Prices
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CALIFORNIA HSR NEEDED MORE THAN EVER - $4 GAS
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As gas prices rise again, the importance of California's high speed rail system becomes ever more urgent to be built quickly before gas prices completely paralyze the state by making transportation unaffordable for citizens, businesses, and the government.
Other states are likely to cross the $4 mark in coming days. The average price in Connecticut and Illinois is now pennies away from $4, while Michigan, Washington, Oregon and the District of Columbia are close behind with prices above $3.80 a gallon.
The national average stands at $3.64 a gallon, up 16 cents in just the last week. "Motorists were understandably frustrated and squeezed by soaring prices and these dramatic price swings underscored the volatility that has become all too familiar in recent years," said Chris Plaushin, director of federal relations for AAA, in testimony before a Senate committee Tuesday. "All indicators point to the trends in gas prices continuing to rise forever. Global oil supplies are flattening out and getting more expensive and difficult to produce while demand continues to increase - leading to continuously rising prices," said Andy Kunz, USHSR President. "What will happen to the U.S. economy when gas hits $6 per gallon, or even $10? It will surely wreak havoc on our economy and way of life. The only solution that can scale up quickly enough to solve this ever worsening situation is a national high speed rail system powered by electricity... and we should be building it at the pace China is now." More info |
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"Everybody knows with more infrastructure, more competitiveness and productivity, economic growth will take off and social well-being go up," -Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto
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CHINA BUILDING YET ANOTHER 1,100 MILE HSR LINE!
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While America talks, China builds! The country is building yet another 1,100 mile long new high speed rail line, in addition to the many other new lines already in operation, all built in the last few years.
The 1,776-km-long railway, which on completion will link the capitals of Gansu province and Xinjiang, crosses the desolate and inhospitable Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the arid sands of the Gobi Desert and a number of high-wind areas. These features make construction of the rail link a difficult and risky task. With 30,000 construction workers on the job, the new line is progressing rapidly despite the extreme conditions. The project, dubbed the "high-speed Silk Road", is the longest high-speed railway under construction in the world and the first in China to be built partly across a plateau. |
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More than 65 percent of the Lanzhou-Urumqi high-speed railway in Xinjiang will cross dangerous wind zones. In addition to the wind tunnels, windbreaks are also being erected to further ensure the safety of the trains. The scale of windproofing is the largest of all the high-speed railways currently under construction in China.
After five years' work in Gansu, Xinjiang and Qinghai province, the line is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2014. The team in Xinjiang expects to finish laying the tracks by November. The new line follows hot on the heels of the 11,179-km Chongqing-Xinjiang-Europe International Railway, which officially came into service in 2012. "China's national high speed rail project has become the next Wonder of the World," said Andy Kunz, USHSR President. "They are leaving us far in the dust, and stuck in the past. We need to stop talking and start building our national high speed rail network if we ever hope to compete on the global scale." More info |
"We need passenger rail in this country."
-Congressman Bill Shuster
International Railway Journal IOWA Pacific Holdings, United States and British track and mining equipment supplier Holdtrade have formed a new company Holdtrade Atlantico, which will apply for licenses to operate freight railways in Colombia. THE Norwegian city of Bergen has awarded Stadler a contract worth more than €100m to supply and maintain eight additional Variobahn low-floor LRVs and maintain the existing fleet of 20 vehicles until 2026. IN an effort to fill the void left by the abandonment of Brussels – Amsterdam Fyra services, Thalys is planning to introduce two additional weekday services to Amsterdam from October 7. www.railway-technology.com Updates... Frazer-Nash to develop safety case for Network Rail's electrification projects UK-based engineering consultancy Frazer-Nash has secured a contract from Network Rail to develop a safety case for the trials and introduction of its integrated protection and control (IPC) project as part of the larger electrification project being carried out across the UK. Etihad Rail to build new freight terminal in Dubai Industrial City The UAE's national rail developer and operator Etihad Rail has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop a new freight terminal in Dubai Industrial City (DIC). Mott MacDonald selected as design consultant for Delhi Metro phase III Mott MacDonald has been selected by the Hindustan Construction Company-Samsung joint venture as the design consultant for phase III of the Delhi Metro in India. MARTA seeks partner for King Memorial Station area development The Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) in Georgia, US has released a request for qualifications (RFQ) to select a partner for developing a new transit-oriented development (TOD) at the King Memorial railway station in downtown Atlanta. Shedmaster Railway News Cost of building high-speed rail line from Columbus to Chicago, to cost $1.6 billion Mobile Delhi regional rail link plans move ahead - Railway Gazette Railway supply industry news in brief - Railway Gazette World Heritage & Railway News Diary of a canine Volunteer – Part 4 | North Yorkshire Moors Railway :: A steam train adventure through the stunning Yorkshire Moors Activity Book In pictures: Early arrivals steam in for Preston’s Riversway Festival Railway Engineering News UP: Union Pacific Reports Best-Ever Quarterly Results Delhi regional rail link plans move ahead - Railway Gazette GOV.UK Government gives green light for more state-of-the-art intercity trains. £1.2 billion deal to transform rail travel on East Coast Main Line. Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin has today (18 July 2013) confirmed a £1.2 billion order for more state-of-the-art trains to transform rail travel on one of Britain’s busiest intercity routes. The 270 carriages will be manufactured in Britain by Hitachi Rail Europe at its new purpose-built factory in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, as part of the government’s overall £5.8 billion Intercity Express Programme (IEP). The latest order for the trains, called the class 800 series, will be operational on the East Coast Main Line from 2019 and will deliver significant benefits to passengers, including boosting capacity by 18 per cent, improving train reliability by a factor of five and cutting journey times between London, Leeds, Newcastle and Edinburgh by up to 18 minutes. The order is a boost for Hitachi’s North East manufacturing facility and its 730 planned jobs. It will further enhance the factory’s ability to win lucrative rail contracts across Europe and give the UK another runner in the global race to build the world’s best trains. Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: By signing this deal we have provided further proof of our determination to transform Britain’s railways into a world-class operation through continued investment and state-of-the-art technology.Hitachi has recently completed a deal to build its Newton Aycliffe factory with a local development firm Merchant Place Developments and has said that it will be operational from 2015 with full production starting in 2016. Alistair Dormer, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Hitachi Rail Europe, said: Last year the Department for Transport agreed an initial order for 596 carriages with Agility Trains, a consortium of Hitachi and John Laing. As well as building the new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, Hitachi is also planning to construct maintenance depots in Bristol, Swansea, west London and Doncaster, and will upgrade existing maintenance depots throughout Britain to service the class 800 series trains. The first batch of class 800 series trains will enter revenue-earning service on the Great Western Main Line in 2017 and on the East Coast Main Line in 2018. |
(Courtesy: Hitachi Rail on YouTube)
High speed rail update on phase two
Phase two public consultation on the proposed high speed 2 route and exceptional hardship scheme decision released.
Today (17 July 2013) I am beginning a period of public consultation on the proposed route for phase two. This is the route the new high speed line will take from the West Midlands to Manchester and Leeds, with connections to the West and East Coast Main Lines to serve the rest of the North of England and Scotland.
HS2 will be a vital part of our infrastructure. This new high speed line will open up opportunities for this country that we have not seen in generations. Its scope to transform this country is enormous.
The delivery of a state-of-the-art, safe, reliable high speed network will not only better serve our great cities but will return Britain to the forefront of engineering and construction. We must seize the chance to deliver it. We can generate jobs, support regeneration and growth in cites and unite regions. This will enable them to better compete with the capital, building a stronger Britain.
Phase two will turn HS2 into a truly national asset that we can be proud of. It is vital that we get it right. We need the views of the people who will be affected by the HS2 line or who stand to benefit from it, including representatives of cities and businesses to ensure that the high speed lines from the West Midlands to Manchester, Leeds and beyond are the very best that they can be.
This is an opportunity to strive for the very best in every aspect – to boost our regions, to embrace new and sustainable technology and to ensure the very best passenger experience. The views we get during this consultation will play an important part in informing my decision on a final route, station and depot options by the end of 2014.
The phase two consultation will run for 6 months and will be accompanied by a series of public information events from mid-October 2013 to early January 2014 where people will be able to review local information and speak directly with HS2 Ltd staff about the proposals.
Although HS2 will benefit the whole country, the government understands the impact and anxiety that these proposals have on property owners affected by the route. That is why I am today (17 July 2013) launching an exceptional hardship scheme (EHS) to assist property owners during the early stages of phase two’s development. The scheme is designed to assist owner-occupiers of residential, agricultural, and small business property before the route itself is firmed up.
It is a temporary scheme to help people whose properties are affected by the plans for the line, and are experiencing (or are at risk of experiencing) exceptional hardship because they can not sell them. Successful applicants will have their properties purchased at 100% of their un-blighted open market value. That is, the value of the property were there no proposals for phase two of HS2.
It’s not the only opportunity for compensation. As plans for the phase two line are firmed up, we will consider options for further long-term discretionary compensation. We will shortly launch a fresh consultation on such options for phase one. All this is in addition to statutory compensation measures.
I am determined to find the solutions that benefit the greatest number of people, best support our cities and have the least impact on our environment. Our consultations with the public are a vital part of achieving these goals – we want people to join the debate on phase two of HS2 – and help us to shape a network we can all be proud of.
Copies of the consultation document, High Speed Rail: investing in Britain’s future consultation on the route from the West Midlands to Manchester, Leeds and beyond, the HS2 phase two exceptional hardship scheme decision document and other supporting documents will be placed in the libraries of the House.
(The Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP)
HS2 - Phase 2 Consultation
Welcome to the HS2 Phase Two proposed line of route consultation.
This consultation seeks your views on the proposed high speed rail route from the West Midlands to Manchester, Leeds and beyond, as well as on the sustainability impacts of the proposed line of route.
You are also invited to provide your views on how the potential released capacity generated by HS2 could be used and on the opportunities to introduce other utilities along the line of route.
Please click on the 'View documents' button below to access all documentation. This consultation closes on 31 January 2014.
RailStaff
Read about the Great Train Robbery (1963) memorial service at Crewe...
..the Lego map of London Underground..
..the Three Peaks Challenge for the Railway Children Charity..
..and more....HERE
....and...
Passenger Experience Insights from Christian Hess, CEO, Loyalty Partner Solutions..
..implementing effective customer retention measures......
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