Daegu-Busan KTX Route Completed

 

 

The second phase of the Seoul-Busan high-speed railway connecting the southeastern city of Daegu with the southern port city of Busan was completed on Thursday, reducing the travel time from Seoul to Busan by 22 minutes to two hours and 18 minutes.
Service on the new route will officially begin on Monday at 5 a.m. A ceremony Thursday to mark the opening of the new route was attended by Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, Minister of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs Chung Jong-hwan and Busan Mayor Hur Nam-sik.

Construction of the new route began eight years ago and a total of W7.95 trillion (US$1=W1,117) was spent on the project. Now the entire 417.5 km high-speed railway has been completed 19 years since construction started at a total cost of W20.73 trillion.
"The government plans to boost the role of the railways and reduce dependence on roads and expand the bullet train network so that it is possible to reach any part of the country within an hour and a half," the prime minister said.
With the opening of the new route, the transport ministry expects the number of daily KTX users to rise about 27 percent from 106,000 to 135,000.

source: Chosun

Amtrak to buy 70 locomotives for $466 million

Amtrak is spending $466 million to replace 70 electric locomotives with new ones from German manufacturer Siemens, the president of the nation's intercity passenger railroad said Thursday.

The new locomotives will replace those in use on Amtrak's Northeast Regional route between Boston and Washington and Keystone route in Pennsylvania that are between 20 and 30 years old and have an average of 3.5 million miles each, Joseph Boardman told The Associated Press in an interview.

Siemens will build the locomotives at its plant in Sacramento, Calif., creating about 250 jobs, Amtrak officials said. Some work will also take place a Siemens plants in Norwood, Ohio, and Alpharetta, Ga.

The first delivery of new trains is scheduled for February 2013, Boardman said. The purchase will replace Amtrak's entire fleet of electric trains with the exception of Acela service locomotives. Acela is Amtrak - and the nation's - only high-speed passenger train service.

The new locomotives will be capable of operating at speeds up to 135 mph, but Amtrak doesn't plan to operate them at more than 125 mph, said Steve Kulm, a spokesman for the railroad.

The purchase is part of an Amtrak plan unveiled last February to replace and expand its entire fleet over the next 30 years. The company's first step in the plan, announced in July, was to spend $298 million to purchase 130 passenger cars.

"We need to upgrade the northeast corridor for the benefit of the businesses in the Northeast," Boardman said. "We have the financial capital of the world, we have one of the major medical corridors, educational institutions, and even fashion industry that are depending upon a reliable system of intercity transportation."

Amtrak carried 28.7 million passengers - a new ridership record - in the 12 months ending on Sept. 30. That was up 5.7 percent over the previous year.

The growth was largely due to services demanded in the Northeast, Boardman said.

"These locomotives will be built in America using renewable energy and provide cleaner, more efficient movement of people on the most heavily traveled rail route in the country," said Daryl Dulaney, president and CEO, Siemens Industry, Inc.

Six of the older locomotives will be retained for possible service expansions.

 

source: Seattle Times

RENFE Spanish Railways admits the Madrid Málaga AVE has not met expectations

 

 

The line is not attracting as many leisure travellers as forecast
RENFE Spanish railways have admitted that the AVE high speed service between Madrid and Málaga has not reached the previous expectations of the travellers.
President of Renfe, Teófilo Serrano, suggested that could be it does not connect to the Western Costa del Sol and admitted that perhaps they had not promoted the service enough.
Since opening in December 2007 the line has carried 5.5 million travellers and last year reached 1.5 million users, still below the initial forecasts of 2 million. Most of the users of the line currently are on business, not tourist or leisure travellers.

 

source: typicallyspanish

High-speed trains get new U.S. funds

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The Department of Transportation awarded $2.4 billion Thursday for high-speed rail projects, though a lot more money is needed to make the project a reality.

The lion's share of the grants went to California and Florida, according to the department. California is receiving more than $900 million, including $715 million to build a rail through the Central Valley, the nation's agricultural powerhouse. Florida will receive $800 million to build a high-speed rail from Tampa to Orlando.

Chicago is also being established as a major connector for the high-speed rail project. Iowa received $230 million to build a rail connecting Chicago to Iowa City and the Quad Cities along the Illinois-Iowa border. Michigan received $161 million to connect Chicago with Detroit.

In all, 23 states will receive part of the $2.4 billion .The money will go toward constructing the track and the stations, as well as new passenger equipment and the studies for developing high-speed service.

Demand for the federal funding is high. The Federal Railroad Administration, a division of the department, said it received 132 applications from 32 states totaling $8.8 billion.

However, the grants are a drop in the bucket compared to the estimated total cost. For example, Amtrak has estimated that a high-speed revamp of the Northeast Corridor, the most highly developed rail stretch, would cost $117 billion.

The Obama administration considers high-speed rail to be a necessary component in improving the nation's infrastructure to stimulate economic growth.

The Recovery Act passed last year has provided a down payment of $8 billion for high-speed rail funding, and the Department of Transportation provided more than $2.1 billion as part of its fiscal year 2009 budget.

In comparison, China's Ministry of Railways is investing $300 billion in its nationwide high-speed rail project, according to a World Bank report from July.

source: CNN

Syrian, Italian Railway Cooperation

Damascus, - Syrian General Establishment for Railways on Wednesday signed a memo of understanding with Italian Railway to establish a joint company for railway studies with the aim of keeping up with the main and future developments of railway transport in Syria and the region.
The memo, singed by Director-General of General Establishment for Railways George Maqabri and Director- General of Italian State Railways Mario Moreti, includes establishing a joint company of railway studies, the task of which is to implement the planning studies including the expected movement of passengers and goods in the framework of the regional and international transport network.
It also works on developing all the technical and economic studies related to railways, infrastructure and technical systems in accordance with the actual needs in addition to supervising the executive works of the projects.
The two sides also agreed on preparing the studies of the book of technical specifications for railway projects and the specialized studies depending on planning transport through metro and tram networks inside cities and connecting them with outskirts trains.
In a statement to SANA, Transport Minister Yarub Badr considered the importance of signing the memo lies in paving the way to conduct joint studies for the railway projects and railway management in the region, as it also contributes to giving the partnership a chance to enter competitive conditions to implement railway projects in it.
He added that the study of connecting Damascus with Jordan is underway and the Ministry is waiting for the loan to be granted by the European Investment Bank to start implementation works.

source: Daypress

Chicago-to-Q-C rail link to operate by 2013

Illinois officials said Wednesday that Amtrak’s passenger rail link between the Quad-Cities and Chicago will be operational in 2013.

Scores of people gathered at Centre Station in Moline to celebrate the Obama administration’s announcement Monday that it would spend $230 million for an Amtrak link between Chicago and Iowa City.

The 2013 date is two years earlier than the target U.S. Sens. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., had announced earlier this week.

The Iowa City-to-Quad-Cities connection won’t be operational until 2015, officials say. But Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn told people Wednesday that it will be only three years before the Illinois trains begin to run.

Ray Lang, the senior director of government affairs for Amtrak, said track needs to be upgraded between the Quad-Cities and Wyanet, Ill., and a connection needs to be established there. But “if all goes well,” the service will begin in 2013, Lange said.

The newer start date was a surprise to many, including Paul Rumler, who is the executive director of the Quad-Cities Passenger Rail Coalition and has spearheaded local efforts to get passenger rail funding

 “That’s exciting news,” he said. “We were thinking initially the track construction would take two years.”

Quinn and Rep. Phil Hare, D-Ill., were the centerpiece of Wednesday’s event, which drew political and civic leaders from both sides of the river.

Both are in the middle of tough re-election battles, and the event comes less than a week before the election.

Neither made overt political pitches, but Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba, a veteran Democratic activist, drew a response when he bluntly said voters should keep in mind how the money got approved.

Much of the praise was directed at President Barack Obama.

“We owe a great deal of gratitude to our president,” Quinn said.

The money for the rail project was part of $2.5 billion the president requested to upgrade high-speed and intercity passenger rail connections in the country.

Already, Hare and U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley, who did not attend the Moline gathering, both have said top infrastructure priorities in the area are at risk if their opponents win on Tuesday.

Republicans Bobby Schilling, in Illinois’ 17th District, and Ben Lange, in Iowa’s 1st, have criticized the incumbents for overspending but have said they support infrastructure projects.

Schilling’s campaign said he was not available for an interview on the rail project Wednesday.

Cody Brown, the campaign manager for Lange, declined to comment on the project but said he would “work closely” with local leaders on infrastructure and transportation issues.

Today, Iowa Gov. Chet Culver and U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, who also are facing re-election challenges, will appear at a similar event in Iowa City with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.

source: QC Times

Railway Revitalization to Unranvel Gridlock in Jakarta

Aiming to unravel traffic congestion in the capital, Jakarta capital city government plans to revitalize all tracks of electric train (KRL) of Greater Jakarta. Based on a study by Jakarta Transportation Council (DTKJ), the revitalization will be prioritized on the train line of Serpong as long as 24 kilometers. The study results will be submitted to the state railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) for further action.
"We choose train as a mass transit revitalization program in Jakarta, as it is one of public transportation modes able to transport many passengers," said Jakarta Capital City Governor Fauzi Bowo at City Hall, Wednesday (10/27).
Based on the DTKJ study, added Fauzi Bowo, the users of KRL plying the route Bintaro-Tanahabang-Manggarai were very high in number. In fact, due to the limited number of train fleet, some of passengers even have to occupy the train roof.
Although the project has not undergone a feasibility study, but in principle, Fauzi Bowo is in favor of it. This must be done, and coordination with various stakeholders (including PT KAI) should run well. With good coordination, I hope the project can run as soon as possible," he stated.
In the meantime, DTKJ Secretary AR Indra Tjahjani disclosed, the Serpong Line revitalization project was estimated to cost up to Rp 1.5 trillion. The budget will be used, among others, to improve the existing 14 stations along the line, build four new stations, build fences along the line, construct underpass/flyover, install signals, apply new ticketing systems, and make final preparations.
Ani stated that the first project of the 24 km long Serpong line connecting Manggarai station to Serpong station was targeted to complete within a year. "We have planned to set the headway (the distance between one train and another) at five minutes. It must be done in order to provide comfort to passengers. The fleet will be added with used train carriages of Japanese production," she explained.
The revitalization is expected to triple the train capacity, from the current of 10 thousand passengers per day to 30 thousand passengers per day.

source: Berita Jakarta

Korea's HEMU-400X high speed train to roll in 2011

SOUTH KOREA: Hyundai Rotem plans to complete a prototype of the HEMU-400X high speed train during 2011. Launched as the Hanvit 400 project in 2007, the HEMU-400X is a distributed power trainset with a design speed of 400 km/h.

With four axles powered by synchronous induction motors on each car, the prototype is due to undergo two years of 'stabilisation tests', according to Kim Ha Min, Research Engineer in Hyundai Rotem’s R&D Centre. Only after extensive trials would a decision be taken on whether to progress to a production build.

Featuring 3100 mm wide aluminium bodies, the HEMU-400X prototype will have a low static axleload of just 13 tonnes, comparable to some of the Shinkansen trainsets in Japan. The end cars will be 255 m long and the intermediate cars 2 m shorter; a 200 m long train would offer seats for 334 passengers.

The HEMU-400X is being designed for possible use on an ultra-high speed line that is proposed for construction parallel to the existing Seoul – Busan high speed route used by KTX services. Although the train’s design speed is 400 km/h, it would normally be limited to 370 km/h in commercial service.

source: railwaygazette

Boost for Mumbai-Ahmedabad train corridor

In  what could be a big leap for the city, the pre-feasibility study of a high-speed train corridor connecting Mumbai-Ahmedabad has been completed by a private firm and submitted to the railway board for further inspection. Hindustan Times had reported on October 20 about the railways reviving interest in this project.

The railways had a two-day international conference, in the city, on high-speed corridors on October 20-21.

It was a joint conference with countries like Spain, France, Japan and Korea as part of the International Union of Railways (UIC) where high-speed trains exists.

“The pre-feasibility study on high-speed corridors has been completed and has been submitted to the railway board," said S Chandrayan, chief PRO, Western Railway. The railways are looking at ways that will help them implement high-speed train corridors, which will enable trains to run at more than 250 kmph.

"The high-speed corridors should be tailor-made for each Indian city," said chairman of railway board, Vivek Sahai at the conference. The railways are planning to bifurcate these corridors into three phases of 500 km, 500-1,500 km and above 1,500 km.

There are 13,000 km of high-speed corridors across the world, while an additional 17,000-km will be added in the next two years.

source: Hindustan Times

JR Tokai unveils plans for maglev train cars

Central Japan Railway Co. (JR Tokai) has unveiled preliminary plans for its maglev train cars, scheduled to go into service in 2027 on the maglev bullet train line to be built between Tokyo and Osaka.

The first generation of maglev trains on the planned Linear Chuo Shinkansen has been dubbed the "L0," with "L" for "linear." The leading car will have a 15-meter-long nose, while the entire train will be painted in the white and blue livery of Tokaido Shinkansen Line trains in a pattern designed to enhance the impression of speed, the rail company said.

The car designs will retain the same basic specifications as the test cars at the maglev test track in Yamanashi Prefecture. However, the frame will be switched to a boxier design similar to the current N700 bullet train model, allowing more space for seats and overhead luggage racks. Each car will have seats for 68 passengers, except for the lead and rear cars, which will each seat 24.

JR Tokai has said that it will commission 14 of the new maglev cars, five of which will run on the extended test track at the end of fiscal 2013. The rail company will test a 12-car version sometime after fiscal 2015 in preparation for putting the train into regular service.

source: Mainichi

Greek Parliament Passes Railway Privatization Law

 

ATHENS -(Dow Jones)- The Greek parliament Tuesday passed a law to restructure and privatize the heavily indebted Hellenic Railways, OSE, amid continuing strikes from workers at the organization.

OSE has debts to the tune of EUR10.7 billion and costs the Greek taxpayers about EUR1 billion a year to keep afloat. Its speedy privatization is an important promise given to the International Monetary Fund and European Union in exchange for the EUR110 billion bailout in May to stave off bankruptcy.

The law envisages that OSE's workforce will be slashed from the current 6,000 to 3,700 employees. Some will take early retirement, many will be transferred to other public service jobs, but no one will be fired.

The Minister of Transport, Dimitris Reppas, argued that: "We cannot accept that the revenues of the OSE are EUR106 million but wage costs are EUR116 million for 2009."

The railways will have to cut loss-making activities and routes. But there will be at least EUR180 million state subsidies for lines considered strategically important, even if they are not economically viable.

The law will also put in place a framework for exploiting OSE's very considerable real estate assets, worth several billions, to offset part of the cost of the state assuming all of the debts of the organization.

OSE has been plagued for decades by political intervention and patronage jobs.

The ruling PASOK socialist government intends to deliver a revamped railway operator TrainOSE next year, which will be marginally profitable and then hopes to attract serious interest because it also plans to sell a 49% stake with potential management rights.

But unions are determined to resist such efforts and have called an ongoing week-long strike and also held a protest Tuesday in downtown Athens. The unions are resisting the transfer of personnel to other public sector roles, and they are against any wage reductions or possible cuts to pension entitlement.

The Panhellenic Federation of Railway Workers said it will challenge this new law in European courts.

source: Capital

Bulgaria Restructures State Railway Co into Holding

Bulgarian state railways company BDZ will be restructured into a holding company, informed the Transport Ministry.

According to a decision signed by Bulgarian Transport Minister Alexander Tsvetkov on October 22, 2010. the Bulgarian state railway company is going to "give birth" to a holding company, which is going to have two major divisions – one in charge of passengers, and another one in charge of freight transport.

In the new situation, the parent company BDZ is still going to be responsible for the strategic management. The new holding company, however, is going to take over the management of the valuable railroad assets, such as locomotives and carriages.

The restructuring aims mainly at the establishment of a new and more effective system, which should be able to transform BDZ into a profitable company.

Currently, the Bulgarian state railways company is in turmoil as a week ago five employees were fired over the derailment of three cars of an express train between the capital Sofia and the Black Sea city of Burgas.

Furthermore, at the beginning of October about 80% of passenger trains in Bulgaria were declared as operating "illegally" and with expired safety certificates, according to a ruling of the Sofia Administrative Court. Since a train fire in 2008, the Bulgarian trains have come under much criticism not only with respect to safety standards, but also for their considerable lack of comfort.

Meanwhile, as BDZ is facing restructuring, a Bulgarian delegation, led by Transport Minister Alexander Tsvetkov is on a visit to China discussing opportunities for including Bulgaria in the China's' project to launch a railway connection to Central and Western Europe through Central Asia, Turkey, and Bulgaria, the so called China-Europe high-speed rail link.

source: Novinite

California High-Speed Rail Program Gets Additional $902 Million

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said the most populous U.S. state will receive $902 million in additional federal funds to help build high- speed passenger-train service.

The funds from the Federal Railroad Administration are on top of a $2.3 billion grant to the state in January as part of federal stimulus efforts, said Andrea McCarthy, a spokeswoman for Schwarzenegger. Details of the funds will be announced by the U.S. Transportation Department later this week, she said, without elaborating.

“As the nation’s largest infrastructure project, California’s high-speed rail system will create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, reduce pollution, boost economic growth and link Californians from one end of this great state to the other,” Schwarzenegger said today in a statement.

California’s push for a bullet-train network, which the state forecasts to cost more than $40 billion, comes as the state tries to reduce a 12.4 percent jobless rate and curb greenhouse gas emissions from cars and airplanes.

State voters approved a $10 billion bond sale in 2008 to help fund construction of the 800-mile rail network that is to operate trains between San Francisco and Sacramento in the northern part of the state to Los Angeles and San Diego in the south.

Rachel Wall, a spokeswoman for the California High-Speed Rail Authority, wasn’t immediately available to comment.

source: businessweek

India Plans 960 Billion Rupees of Urban Rail Investment in Next 7 Years

India, the world’s second-most populous nation, estimates 960 billion rupees ($22 billion) will be spent on urban railways by March 2017, as expanding cities stoke demand for public transportation.

To raise part of that, the Indian government will form a fund that invests in city rail systems, Navin Kumar, a secretary in the Ministry of Urban Development, said at a New Delhi conference today. He didn’t provide further details.

Mumbai and the southern cities of Bangalore and Chennai have begun building rail networks to ease congestion and support rising populations. India’s economic growth may help boost the nation’s urban populations to 590 million in the next two decades from 340 million in 2008, McKinsey & Co. said in a report in April.

India is “a big opportunity” for trainmakers, said Rajeev Jyoti, who heads Bombardier Inc.’s transportation business in India. “The demand for mass-transit systems is significantly higher” than previously.

Montreal-based Bombardier opened a factory in India in 2008 after winning a contract to supply New Delhi’s subway operator. The factory builds 32 subway cars a month, Pierre D. St-Onge, the plant’s general manager, said last week.

New Delhi has a 180-kilometer-long urban rail network in operation. Part of the system runs underground.

India will need 35 rail-based transit systems in cities over the next two decades, according to McKinsey.

source: bloomberg

China unveils Shanghai-Hangzhou high-speed railway; eyes network extension

SHANGHAI/HANGZHOU, Oct. 26 (Xinhua) -- High-speed trains began traveling between the eastern Chinese cities of Shanghai and Hangzhou Tuesday morning, the latest milestone in China's effort to build the world's fastest rail network.
Two bullet trains equipped with China's CRH380A system simultaneously took off at 9:00 a.m. Tuesday from Shanghai's Hongqiao Station and from Hangzhou Station.
Trains on the line will travel at an average speed of 350 kilometers per hour, shortening the trip between to 45 minutes from 78 minutes.
After 20 months of construction, the 202-km high-speed railway linking Shanghai, China's economic hub, and Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province, extends the nation's in-service high-speed rail network to 7,431 kilometers.
Earlier last month, the Shanghai-Hangzhou high-speed line stunned the world when in a trial run, a train hit a speed of 416.6 kilometers per hour, a world train speed record.
"The operation of the Shanghai-Hangzhou high-speed rail line will help alleviate traffic pressure in the Yangtze River Delta region," Liu Zhijun, Minister of Railways, said at the line's inauguration ceremony.
"It will not only promote economic and personnel exchange but facilitate the integration of the Yangtze River Delta region as well," Liu said.
According to Ministry of Railways (MOR) forecasts, passengers are expected to make 3.05 billion trips in and out of the Yangtze River Delta in 2010, with the figure jumping to 5.5 billion in 2020.
A ticket price for the nine-stop trip between Shanghai and Hangzhou costs 156 yuan (23.4 U.S. dollars) for a first-class seat and 98 yuan (14.7 U.S. dollars) for a second-class seat.
China launched its first high-speed line - a service linking the capital and the port city of Tianjin - during the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Since then, more fast-train lines have been put into service: the Wuhan-Guangzhou line linking central and south China; the Zhengzhou-Xi'an line connecting central and western China; and the Shanghai-Nanjing line in the country's east.
China has an ambition to make its high speed rail network the world's longest.
According to the MOC, China will have a rail network of 110,000 km by 2012, with 13,000 km of it high-speed rail.The highlight of China's high-speed rail network will be the 1,318-km Beijing-Shanghai line. Currently under construction, the 220.9 billion yuan (33.1 billion U.S. dollars) line is scheduled to open in 2012.
Once complete, train travel time between the country's two most important cities will be cut in half to less than five hours.

source: xinhuanet

High Speed Rail Project Set to Roll

TALLAHASSEE | Florida officials are still waiting for about half the money for a bullet train linking Tampa Bay to Orlando, but are about to begin advertising for bids for the first parts of the project.

The state Department of Transportation said it will begin advertising the first project, preparing the median of Interstate 4 for trains to run in it, in November.

Advertising for other contracts, including rebuilding two I-4 exits that will have to be rebuilt after the median is widened and moving a part of the highway near Orlando slightly west, will follow in December and January. In June, the department will solicit contracts for building a maintenance facility for the rail.

“The Early Works Projects will allow the FDOT to start preliminary construction on a fast-track basis, putting Floridians to work, while also creating an unobstructed corridor in which (Florida High Speed Rail Authority) construction by the Design, Build, Operate, Maintain and Finance Contractor can occur,” Adrian Share, senior vice president and program director of passenger rail for the newly formed Florida Rail Enterprise, and engineer Brad Flom said in a memo outlining the projects.

Share and Flom said the I-4 median would be widened in 12 places. A short list of possible firms to complete the work will be selected Dec. 14, and those companies will have to submit proposals by Jan. 25. The bids will be announced Feb. 21.

Florida was one of the biggest winners in the sweepstakes early this year for high speed rail money that was included in the federal economic stimulus, winning the second largest portion of $8 billion that had been set aside by Washington.

source: The Ledger

Portugal - Railway renewal on track for 2011 completion

Renovation work on the Algarve’s railway track is due to be completed in April 2011, according to the national rail company REFER.

Work on the third and final phase of the improvements, which started in September and will cost around €7.9 million includes the replacement of wooden railway sleepers for concrete ones, as well as the installation of new longer length track sections to reduce the number of rail joints and the reinforcement of the ballast along a 90 kilometre stretch. 

The entire three phase project, of which the first two phases have been completed, began in 2008 and represents a total investment of €25 million.

In a statement, REFER said the investment will increase “the reliability and use, increase passenger comfort and make maintenance easier.”

The company added that the entire renovation project is based on “regular and systematic inspections” carried out by the company, which showed that parts of the track needed renewing.

A section between Tunes and Faro has not been included in the renovation works because according to REFER it was modernised in 2004.

 

source: The Portugal News

Opening of Cambodia Railroad Puts Pan-Asian Railway Firmly on Track

PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA, Oct 22, 2010 (Washington Bangla Radio / ADB) - The first segment of a new international standard railroad officially opened in Cambodia today, a major step towards the creation of a long-awaited Pan-Asian railroad.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing $84 million in support of the reconstruction and repair of 650 kilometers (404 miles) of rail stretching from Cambodia's border with Thailand, through the capital city of Phnom Penh, and southward to Sihanoukville, the country's main seaport.
The Government of Australia is providing an additional $21.5 million in support of the $141 million project.
Freight rail service has commenced along a 120 kilometer (75 mile) stretch of rail between Phnom Penh and Touk Meas, near the Vietnamese border. The entire rail line is scheduled to be operational by 2013.
"We are on the cusp of a contiguous Iron Silk Road stretching from Singapore to Scotland," said Kunio Senga, Director General of ADB's Southeast Asia Department. "This possibility has been talked about for decades, but today the dream has finally taken a big step toward becoming reality."
Decades of conflict have left Cambodia's railroad in serious disrepair, with rail traffic slowly declining to a trickle.

source: Washingtonbanglaradio

China, Thailand foster high-speed link

BANGKOK - Thailand and China have agreed to proceed with rail connections that will connect the two countries through neighboring Laos. The planned links aim to enhance rising trade flows sparked by the new China-Association of Southeast Nations (ASEAN) free-trade agreement and facilitate with modern infrastructure the region’s move towards a common ASEAN market.
Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva emphasized his government's plans for new logistical and infrastructure projects, with rail expenditures prominent among them, during a roadshow in New York in late September. He said in a speech that his government had approved a framework for Thailand-China cooperation in building a high-speed train route connecting Thailand's poor northeastern region through the Thai border town of Nong Khai to China.
The plan also calls for high-speed routes connecting Nong Khai to Bangkok and then eastwards to the industrially driven Thai Eastern Seaboard, with a third line linking the capital to the country's southern region near the Malaysian border at Padang Basar.
"These high-speed trains will not only facilitate the rapid movement of goods and people, but will provide even more benefits to Thailand once ASEAN becomes a single market and Thailand becomes a stronger production base for the Economic Community," Abhisit said.
The three confirmed routes will connect to a conventional railway China is building to its southern border and across Laos. Beijing has provided concessional loans for that link, although no sums or timetables have been mentioned for the project, which will go from Vientiane, the Laotian capital, to Boten near the Chinese border in Luang Namtha province in northern Laos. Lao Minister for Planning and Investment Sinlavong Khouthphaythoune is pushing for the link to be built within five years, according to official media.
Once these missing links are in place, China's existing rail network will become connected to Thailand and eventually onward south to Malaysia and Singapore. Beijing believes its all doable within three years; Thai politicians are more cautious. "If there is any delay, I suspect it will be at our end, not theirs," said Thai Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij over the summer.
His guarded timetable speaks to the projects' still many unanswered questions, including the role of Chinese finance and labor in building the new lines. "The main issue is the missing links. The other is money," said Pierre Chartier, economics affairs officer at the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific's transport and tourism division.
Chartier also looked beyond the China-Thailand connection.
"There is no physical rail connection between China and Laos, China and Myanmar, Myanmar and Thailand, Thailand and Cambodia, Cambodia and Vietnam, Vietnam and Laos. There's a lot of work to do" said Chartier. "The good news is that all feasibility studies have been completed."
It's still unclear whether Bangkok will accept Chinese export credits or government soft loans to help fund the estimated US$10 billion railway projects. Such financing is usually conditional on accepting Chinese labor - a condition that makes sense in technically challenged countries like Laos, but less so for Thailand's more developed work force.
Noting that some 64,000 Chinese workers are working on the railroad in Laos, one State Railway of Thailand official chafed at the suggestion that even 100 Chinese engineers be dispatched to Thailand for the project.
"We're actually working to try and create jobs for Thai people and Thai engineers, to develop our own expertise," said the official. "I don't believe that [bringing Chinese workers in Thailand] will be done easily."
There are also inter-operability concerns. "Most Southeast Asian countries are developing meter gauge. Whether they are going to move to a standard gauge like they have in China is difficult to say," said Chartier.
Some of the feasibility studies, he said, include plans for the track to have an envelope large enough to accommodate later changes if necessary. That embeds higher logistical costs to trade, as China is incurs with Mongolia where inconsistent gauges mean ore exports must be loaded into new train cars at the border.

Interlinking uncertainties

The bigger question surrounding Thailand's plans are of commercial viability. Thailand's Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning, which foresees four rather than three high-speed rail lines, projects daily passenger numbers of 128,000 by 2017, rising to 192,000 in 2032. Those projections fail to indicate with specifics the projects' target market and whether passengers in poor regions will be able to afford the ticket prices that will need to be charged to re-coup the sizable running costs and capital investments.
The project's cargo-moving potential makes more economic sense. However, analysts note that most cargo does not require high-speed lines unless it is of exceptionally high value, including components used in just-in-time manufacturing processes. They say cargo volumes generally require a decent but not breakneck speed and reliability. Identifying exactly what cargo will be moved in relation to the current and future needs of Thai industries is key to justifying the investment in high-speed lines, they say.
The Thai side is beset with political problems that could eventually derail Abhisit's plans. His coalition government is unstable, and pushing major infrastructure spending into the geographical territory of the political opposition raises political risks before a general election due by the end of 2011. Already one of the opposition parties, Pheua Thai, has questioned the lack of transparency surrounding the plans.
The crucial implementing decisions will likely be made by the next elected government. Either way, it will face a tough internal test from the Thai bureaucracy, which has become reluctant to sign off on big-ticket infrastructure projects on the fears of officials that with a change in government they could be prosecuted for corruption - as happened to certain officials after the 2006 military coup that ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.
Part of the problem is Thailand's mixed track record with so-called public private partnership (PPP) investment schemes. Some have made money while others have incurred losses, including expressway projects in Bangkok. Deputy finance minister Pradit Phataraprasit recently acknowledged, "Historically, we have not been able to leverage PPPs well."
Other countries in the region, including Cambodia, are moving more quickly with an eye towards greater regional connectivity. A southern 240-kilometer line running between the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh to the deepwater port of Sihanoukville is expected to start operations next May, said Peter Broch, senior transport economist with the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
It is one of two major rail restoration projects underway in Cambodia - the second being a 350-kilometer northern line that will link Phnom Penh to Poipet, just across the border from the Thai town of Aranyaprayet. Work on the line is due to start "very soon, right after the rainy season", said Broch, who predicted a May 2012 completion date. Together the two re-established lines will cost US$142 million, with the ADB leading and Australia's international aid agency, AusAID, contributing $25 million of the sum.
However, other high-speed rail ambitions recently came undone in Vietnam amid rising market concerns about the country's financial management. A proposed $56 billion north-south line that aimed to reduce rail travel times between the capital, Hanoi, and the commercial hub of Ho Chi Minh City from 30 hours to six ran into resistance and was scrapped on the drawing board by the National Assembly.
Others see a more hopeful model in Malaysia. The country's national railway company, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB), operates commuter, inter-city and freight services on peninsular Malaysia and has held its commercial own amid a rapid expansion in car ownership. While passenger numbers roughly halved from 7.6 million to 3.7 million from 1992-2007, freight loads rose from 3.6 million tonnes to 4.7 million tonnes over the same period.
KTMB notes that total tonne kilometers, a measure of both freight and passenger loads, rose from over 1 billion to 1.4 billion over the same time. KTMB is now pursing a strategy of mixing consolidation and growth, according to chairman Tan Sri Dato' Sri Lim Ah Lek.
Thailand's grand plan would eventually link with Malaysia through high-speed lines, creating a north-south link that reaches to China. As Asian economies look more towards regional rather than Western trade for future growth, it's a forward-looking plan with the potential to position Thailand as a highly efficient regional hub connecting China to Southeast Asia. But politics and nationalism could yet derail those economic ambitions.

source: Asia Times

Big loss in TasRail's first year

TasRail has recorded a $10 million net loss in its first year of operation.

The state-owned company was established when the Government bought back Tasmania's crumbling rail network from Pacific National for $30 million last year.

TasRail says making rail freight in Tasmania a profitable business is a significant challenge given the competition from road freight.

No dividends have been paid to the State Government.

TasRail says State and Federal funding needs to be spent on track upgrades, new locomotives, new wagons and a modern train control system.

source: ABC

Haramain Railway project on right track: Al-Seraisry

DAMMAM: The contract for implementing the final phase of the Haramain Railway project will be awarded by the end of this year, Transport Minister Jabara Al-Seraisry said Wednesday.

“We’ll study the financial and technical offers made by companies vying to win the contract before the end of this year to announce the winner,” the minister told reporters.

The railway linking Makkah, Madinah and Jeddah would bring about a dramatic improvement in the transportation of pilgrims between the two holy cities. It will reduce travel time between Jeddah and Makkah to half an hour and two hours for those traveling between Jeddah and Madinah.

The committee supervising the project opened financial and technical offers on Tuesday in the presence of Al-Seraisry, Abdul Aziz Al-Hoqail, president of Saudi Railway Organization (SRO), and other senior officials.

“The implementation of this mega project is moving in the right direction,” Al-Seraisry said. “We have called for tenders for all projects related to this vital railway.”

The project’s second phase includes construction of railroads, setting up of signals, communication and electricity supply systems and the importing of trains and rail cars, Al-Hoqail said, adding that technical offers made by Al-Shola and Al-Rajhi have passed the review stage.

Financial offers for establishing five railway stations in Makkah, Madinah, Jeddah, Rabigh and Jeddah airport have already been opened, the SRO chief said. The winner of the contract will be announced later.

Al-Rajhi consortium won the first phase contract valued at SR6.79 billion. Another agreement worth SR1.8 billion was signed with Saudi Electricity Company to provide the electricity required for the high-speed trains.

The Council of Ministers has urged SRO to speed up the construction of the 450-km project. It also instructed the state-owned Public Investment Fund (PIF) to sign and finance service and business contracts for the project by providing interest-free loans.

Muhammad Al-Dahlawi, chairman of the ministry's compensation committee, said the appropriation of land for the project was going well, despite objections raised by some landowners.

Al-Dahlawi told Arab News land acquisition would be completed on time to implement the project.

He said the eight-member committee included officials from the Makkah governorate, the Finance Ministry and mayoralties in Makkah and Madinah.

The Haramain Railway will operate trains at a speed of over 300 km per hour. The project includes the construction of 450 km of high-speed electric railway lines between the three cities. It will be equipped with advanced signaling and telecommunications systems.

Highlighting the profitability of the project, a senior official said the Haramain Railway would make SR500 million in the first year. The project is part of a major railway expansion program that involves laying 950 km new tracks between Riyadh and Jeddah and a 115 km line linking Dammam and Jubail.

source: Arab News

Deutsche Bahn successfully tests ICE 3 in Eurotunnel

Safety tests for the ICE 3 trains went well this past weekend indicating the train can be evacuated in under 20 minutes, said Eurotunnel on Tuesday.
Deutsche Bahn, which is hoping to launch the high-speed train in the tunnel, will mostly likely begin in 2012 or 2013 if further tests are successful. Currently, Ice 3 trains do not adhere to all the safety requirements needed to serve passengers in the Channel Tunnel.
Two pilot runs were taken this weekend, and Eurotunnel spokesman, John Keefe stated that both ‘went well’. According to Keefe, both tests showed that the train can be evacuated in less than the 20 minute time-frame required by safety regulations.
The Channel Tunnel Safety Authority, a joint team of English and French authorities, has been reviewing current safety policy. Eurostar, which currently offers high-speed services in the tunnel, is already awaiting for policy changes that would allow the use of ICE 3 trains.
In December, when five Eurostar trains shut down, Eurotunnel’s evacuation process underwent sharp tests. Passengers, however, had to wait as long as 16 hours to reach their final destination.

source: Discount Vouchers

Sri Lanka: Indian FM to kick off the laying of Northern Rail Line in November

The reconstruction of Northern railway line between former LTTE-held Omanthai and Palai and North Western railway line between Medawachchiya and Thalaimannar is scheduled to be launched during the three-day official visit of the Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna in November.

At present, trains operate only up to Thandikulam, three kilometers north of Vavuniya. Before being liberated from the clutches of the LTTE, Omanthai and Palai respectively were the Southern and Northern entry-exit points of the rebel-controlled territory of Vanni. Tiger terrorists removed the railway lines for construction of bunkers while nearly all railway stations had been totally destroyed due to heavy shelling coupled with a quarter century of neglect.

Highlight of Minister Krishna’s visit will be the kicking-off of the laying of the new rail line, which is funded by Indian Government and constructed by Indian Railway Construction Company Limited (IRCON).

Although the launching ceremony was earlier scheduled for October 29, 2010 at Medawachchiya, it was postponed due to the unavailability of Minister Krishna to attend the event.

The project is implemented under Uthuru-Mithuru (Southern Friendship) initiative which is under the Waddakkin Wasantham (Northern Spring/ Uthuru Wasanthaya) programme which is closely supervised by Economic Development Minister, Basil Rajapaksa.

The laying of the new North Western track will be executed under two phases. Under Phase One, the 43 km Medawachchiya to Madhu segment is to be constructed at a cost of Rs. 9.1bn (US $ 81 mn) while the Phase Two, under which the Madhu to Thalai-mannar sector will be built, is estimated to cost nearly Rs. 11.8bn (US $ 149.74 mn).

Through Indian Credit Lines, India has committed nearly Rs. 89.6 bn (US $800 mn) to under highly concessionary terms, directed at reconstruction and resettlement in the North.

Last August, IRCON International General Manager, S.L. Gupta, signed the contract for Government of India while Sri Lanka Railways Chairman, P.P. Wijesekara signed on behalf of the Sri Lanka under the auspices of Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Ashok Kantha and Sri Lankan Minister of Transport Kumara Welgama.

High Commissioner Ashok Kantha earlier said the laying of the North-Western rail track would re-strengthen the long-standing friendship between the two countries. Despite many obstacles, India is hopeful that the two nations would be able to connect the island to the subcontinent through a rail link, which existed before the full-blown civil war broke out in 1983.

Mega developments in Railway Sector

Meanwhile, top lender to Sri Lanka- China is financing the laying of the 56-km stretch beyond Pallai up to the northern port township of Kankasanthurai.

India is financing the upgrading of the 160 km long Coastal Rail Line from Colombo to Matara under three phases at a cost of Rs. 18.7bn (US $ 167 mn). Rehabilitation of the Colombo-Kalutara segment has already commenced and the 42 km long Galle- Matara segment is to be concluded by end 2010.

Meanwhile in the Southern Sri Lanka, state-run China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation (CMEC) will construct the 110-km long Matara-Kataragama rail track with Chinese financial assistance.

Under Phase One, a 30-km sector from Matara to Beliatta under Phase Two the rail track will be extended to the emerging port city of Hambantota. In the third and final phase, the rail link will be further extended up to sacred city of Kataragama.

On Tuesday, (October 19) President Rajapaksa visited the Omanthai Railway Station to inspect the re-construction of the Northern railway line after chairing the Northern Province progress review meeting held in Vavuniya.

The Asian Tribune learns that the visiting Indian Foreign Minister is to hold discussions with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris.

Sri Lanka also agreed with India setting up two new consulates- one in Jaffna (Northern Province) and the other in the emerging port hub of Hambanthota, as a means of reinforcing its presence in the island.

source: Asian Tribune

Amtrak Unveils 220 MPH High-Speed Rail Line Plan

NEW YORK – For New Yorkers who do business in Boston or Washington and want to get there in about 90 minutes without the headaches of air travel, Amtrak is hoping to make your dreams come true.

The company on Tuesday unveiled a $117 billion, 30-year vision for a high-speed rail line on the East Coast that would drastically reduce travel times along the congested corridor using trains traveling up to 220 miles per hour.

The proposal, which would require building a new set of tracks from Boston to Washington, D.C., is at the concept stage and there’s no funding plan in place, Amtrak President Joseph Boardman said at a news conference at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station.

The project would likely use some combination of public and private investment and hopefully be phased in starting in 2015, he said.

“Amtrak is putting forward a bold vision of a realistic and attainable future that can revolutionize transportation, travel patterns and economic development in the Northeast for generations,” Boardman said in a release.

The Next-Gen High Speed Rail line would have hubs in Baltimore, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington and would cut travel times in half or better. It would reduce the travel time between Washington and New York from 162 minutes to 96 minutes, according to Amtrak. The travel time between New York and Boston would go from 215 minutes to 84 minutes.

About 12 million riders a year use Amtrak along the northeast corridor.

Under the high-speed system envisioned, the trains would be able to accommodate about 33.7 million passengers by 2040. Amtrak officials estimated the high-speed system would generate an $900 million more a year with the added ridership. Its construction would create more than 40,000 new jobs annually over a 25-year building period.

“Amtrak’s plan to modernize the Northeast Corridor and make it a truly high speed rail line is the type of innovative thinking we need to get cars off the road, decrease pollution and put people to work improving America’s infrastructure,” said Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.). “I applaud the plan and pledge to work with Amtrak to improve the Northeast Corridor and make a America a leader in high speed rail.”

High-speed rail would not only help reduce congestion on the rails, but also in the skies, since it would be more enticing to passengers making shorter trips, according to Amtrak officials and others.

“No one should take a plane for a trip shorter than 500 miles,” said Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, noting that the system would be comparable to service now linking European countries.

The Democratic governor added that political leaders must generate the will to get the project done before current system is overwhelmed.

“It isn’t a dream, it isn’t a fantasy, it isn’t an illusion,” Rendell said. “Can we afford it? … We can’t afford not to do it.”

source: IEWY

China high speed railway tracks cover 7055 kilometers in Sept

According to Mr He Huawu chief engineer of Ministry of Railways that China high speed railway covered 7,055 kilometers as of September 30 and 10,000 kilometers of high speed railway tracks are under construction.
China currently has 377 EMUs that operate at speeds of 250, 350 and 380 kilometers per hour.
He estimates total track coverage of China’s high speed railway system will hit 50,000 kilometers in the next few years and will connect all cities with populations over 500,000.

source: Steel Guru 

Turnover of Pasazieru vilciens decreased by 3.2% in 2009

Consolidated turnover for the passenger rail company Pasazieru vilciens (Passenger Train) reached LVL 47.44 million in 2009, according to information from the Register of Enterprises provided by the firm Lursoft. That is 3.2% less than in 2008, when the concern had a turnover of LVL 48.99 million.

Consolidated losses for Pasazieru vilciens after taxes and before minority interest reached LVL 438.118 in 2009. In 2008, the concern earned a profit of LVL 1 million, writes LETA.

The concern's leading company had a turnover of LVL 47.68 million last year, 2.9% lower than the turnover of LVL 49.11 million recorded in 2009. The losses of the parent company reached LVL 414.251 last year. However, the parent company posted LVL 1.125 million in profit in 2008.

The joint stock company Pasazieru vilciens was founded on November 2, 2001 according to the restructuring program of the state stock company Latvijas dzelzcels ("Latvian Rail"). Pasazieru vilciens was established instead of the former structural units of Latvijas dzelzcels (LDz) – Elektrovilciens and Dizelvilciens and thus became the first subsidiary of LDz.

At the moment, Pasazieru vilciens is an independent state-owned company. On October 2, 2008, the Ministry of Transport on behalf of the State of Latvia and Latvijas dzelzcels signed a Purchase Contract that indicates that Pasazieru vilciens becomes a state-owned company.

Pasazieru vilciens is the only domestic railway passenger carrier in Latvia. Currently, Pasazieru vilciens passengers are carried on 10 routes, from which four are electric train routes (Riga-Aizkraukle, Riga-Jelgava, Riga-Skulte, Riga-Tukums) and six – diesel train routes (Riga-Daugavpils, Riga-Gulbene, Riga-Krustpils, Riga-Sigulda-Cesis-Valmiera-Valga (Estonia), Riga-Rezekne-Zilupe, and Riga-Liepaja).

source: Baltic Course

Warsaw-Łódź railway line to get zł.1.5 bln EU-fund injection

More than zł.1.5 billion is set to be injected into the second phase of modernization of the Warsaw-Łódź railway connection by the European Union .

Representatives of Polish state railway manager PKP PLK yesterday signed a zł.1.8 billion agreement with the Center for EU Transport Projects (CEUTP), of which zł.1.5 will come from EU funds.

The amount will be devoted to the second phase of modernization work on the Warsaw-Łódź railway connection, specifically the section that runs between the Miedniewice to Warsaw-West (Warszawa-Zachodnia) train stations.

Modernization work will include the reconstruction of tracks, the traction network, bridges and viaducts, platforms and passenger stops, collision-free intersections and traffic control equipment.

According to PKP PLK, the aim of upgrading the line is to shorten travel time and improve railway safety.

Once completed, the investment will enable passenger trains to travel at speeds of up to 160km/h, up from the current 100 km/h. Cargo trains will be able travel as fast as 120km/h on the tracks.

Some 130 trains use the route daily, carrying tens of thousands of passengers.

Total investment on the modernization of the Warsaw-Łódź connection is zł.2.2 billion and is planed for completion in 2013.

source: WBJ

Transports Ministry expects to complete country's railway link by 2012

 

Luanda – The Transports Ministry intends to connect via railways the Angolan provinces with the neighbouring countries by 2012, said on Friday in the Food Fair in Luanda the deputy minister for Railways, João Kuvíngua.

The Transports Ministry will this year will complete the rehabilitation of the Luanda Railway after its inauguration in 2011, then the railways of Moçamendes in 2012 and it is also predicted the completion of the Benguela Railways,  said João Kivíngua to ANGOP.

With the conclusion of the railway of Benguela we will have for the first time since the war the international network linked, because we will be connected to two neighbouring countries Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, he stressed.

source: Portalangop

China starts to develop new generation of high speed train

A train runs on Shanghai-Hangzhou High-Speed Railway during its trial operation, in Shanghai, east China, Oct. 18, 2010. The train CRH380A, setting a new speed record of 416.6 kilometers per hour, will make its debut operation officially at the end of this month. The ticket prices and the operation time table will be released this week.

China Railway Major Bridge Reconnaissance and Design Institute CO., Ltd. announced - during a ceremony marking 60 years since its foundation - that China has started to develop a new generation of high-speed train with a maximum operating speed of 500 kilometers per hour.

He Wuhua, with the Chinese Academy of Engineering, said in Wuhan, Hubei Province, that China is making efforts to study the systems dynamic of a high speed railway with a speed between 400 to 500 kilometers per hour.

The train CRH380A of the Shanghai-Hangzhou High-Speed Railway set a new speed record of 416.6 kilometers per hour during its trial operation in Shanghai on September 28.

China has the world's longest high-speed rail network with about 7,055 kilometers of routes in service as of last month.

source: Global Times