May 29, 200718 yr I'm back from Europe and come bearing photos. Lots of photos (and videos, too)! To see the rail/transit-related photos, go to http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=12977.0 I'll post the city photos separately. I have way too many of those to include in a single thread. Even the European rail/transit photo thread has 159 pictures!! "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 2, 200718 yr http://environment.guardian.co.uk/travel/story/0,,2090207,00.html Multi-billion rail plans aimed at tackling congestion · Above-inflation fare rises will stay, passengers told · New focus on 'carbon, capacity and customers' Dan Milmo, transport correspondent Tuesday May 29, 2007 The Guardian The government will unveil a multi-billion pound rebuilding programme for the British rail network this summer to ease congestion on the most crowded lines. Ministers will give the go-ahead to the £500m reconstruction of Birmingham's New Street station and are close to approving a £3.5bn overhaul of the former Thameslink route through London. ....... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 2, 200718 yr http://www.railfuture.org.uk/tiki-read_article.php?articleId=1010 The inaugural journeys of the new high-speed rail service from Germany to Paris took place on Friday 25 May 2007. Trains departed simultaneously at 08.30 from Stuttgart and Frankfurt to arrive at the same time – 12.39 – in Paris. SNCF President Anne-Marie Idrac and DB's chairman Hartmut Mehdorn launched the new services. Scheduled services, using both French TGVs and German ICEs at speeds of up to 200mph, start on 10 June 2007. The full service will follow in December. "Europe's leading railways are bundling their strengths for the first time," said Mr Mehdorn. "This will strengthen the competitiveness of the railways on key international routes. Rail can look forward to a bright future in Europe. "With the creation of this joint venture between SNCF and DB, we will both gain new customers and more than double traffic between France and Germany." Anne-Marie Idrac added: "We are sharing the best of our products: TGV and ICE, thus offering competitive travel times, a quality service and attractive prices." To meet the special requirements of the French network, numerous technical modifications had to be carried out to the ICE over a four-year period. The number of modifications to the train have been time-consuming and expensive. They have focused on the control system of the electronic brake, the passage of pantographs through neutral sections in the catenary, the control system for the doors, aerodynamic modifications in the underfloor section to eliminate flying ballast, and the sophisticated technology of the French train control systems. DB and SNCF have set up a new joint venture company with registered offices in Saarbrücken to market the new high-speed services. Tickets for the ICE as well as the TGV from and to Paris can be booked through the Deutsche Bahn UK Booking Centre. Telephone: 08718 80 80 66 (8p per minute). Internet: www.bahn.co.uk Information from DB A German ICE and a French TGV at Paris Ourcq depot, Paris's fourth high-speed train maintenance centre. Picture: DBAG/SNCF "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 7, 200718 yr http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/43018000/jpg/_43018881_virginvoyager_203.jpg The Voyager fleet could run on 100% biodiesel in the future http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/6729115.stm Last Updated: Thursday, 7 June 2007, 09:22 GMT 10:22 UK First UK biodiesel train launched The UK's first train to run on biodiesel is going into service as part of an attempt to make rail travel more environmentally friendly. The Virgin Voyager has been modified to run on eco-friendly fuel and the company is aiming to convert more in the future. ........ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
June 15, 200717 yr We've all heard it before: Europeans will ride trains while Americans won't. After my recent trip to Europe, and seeing many Americans sitting next to or near us on the trains, I wondered "how many Americans travel by train in Europe?" Some research on the Internet revealed this: 12.7 million Americans visited Europe in 2005 (most recent data I could find); 1.5 million Americans ride Europe's trains each year; Thus, Europe's trains are garnering 19 percent of Americans' travel market share in Europe. That is almost exactly identical to the extent that Europeans use their rail system. Yet, in the U.S., Americans use their rail system for only 1 percent of all city-to-city trips. I couldn't find data for Europeans' rental car use, but I'll bet that they rely on rental cars (and/or chartered buses) for virtually all of their U.S. travel. I spoke with several people in Europe who said they traveled across America on Greyhound and vowed they would never take the bus in the U.S. again! It shows people's responses to when convenient rail service is available -- and when it's not. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 6, 200717 yr The Railteam website: http://www.railteam.com/ http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/transport/article2730504.ece Railways join forces to compete with airlines By Claire Soares In Brussels Published: 03 July 2007 European rail operators threw down the gauntlet to low-cost airlines yesterday, launching a continental alliance that aims to get passengers off planes and on to trains by offering them sweeteners such as train miles and appealing to their green credentials as well as their wallets. Budget airlines such as Ryanair and easyJet have transformed travel, with Britons regularly nipping away for mini-breaks. But train operators hope to create a rail revolution, capitalising on the public's growing fears about climate change and frustration with lengthy airport checks. ........... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 7, 200717 yr And from the Economist.... _____________________ A high-speed revolution http://www.economist.com/business/PrinterFriendly.cfm?story_id=9441785 European railways form an alliance to promote swifter international travel Jul 5th 2007 | BRUSSELS, FRANKFURT, PARIS AND STRASBOURG From The Economist print edition AS THE fastest train in Europe reaches its top speed of 320kph (200mph) the glasses of wine on the bar barely wobble. Champagne country is a blur as the train tears along Europe's newest high-speed linethe first to link France and Germany. France's Train à Grande Vitesse (TGV) can now travel between Stuttgart and Paris in only three hours 40 minutes instead of six hours. The latest generation of Germany's Inter-City Express (ICE) trains has similarly shrunk the journey time between Frankfurt and Paris. This week high-speed railways in France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland joined with existing international services, such as the cross-channel Eurostar and the Paris-Brussels Thalys, to form Railteam, a new marketing alliance. The aim by the end of next year is to have one website that will allow travellers to view timetables and prices and, with one or two clicks, book tickets from one end of Europe to another. At the European Commission's insistence, Railteam members will compete on prices, though there could be some tricky moments as some of them team up to take on airlines. ........ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 20, 200717 yr I couldn't even imagine an article like this in the U.S., where media continues to harp on flea-like subsidies to Amtrak while ignoring elephant-huge subsidies to highway users.... ___________________ http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/transport/article2779431.ece Derailed: Government's green promises on transport policy A green transport policy? New figures show how 30 years of failure has put Britain on the road to gridlock and pollution By Ben Russell, Nigel Morris and James Macintyre Published: 18 July 2007 Dramatic new evidence that car travel has become far cheaper while buses and trains have soared in cost led to renewed attacks on Labour's transport policy last night, as MPs said the Government was undermining its own battle against climate change. According to newly disclosed statistics, the cost of car travel has fallen by 10 per cent over the past 30 years, while the price of bus and train tickets has risen by more than 50 per cent. The respective trends have continued throughout Labour's period in office. ........ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 23, 200717 yr Wow. $6.6 billion for a relatively localized project in Germany. I'd love to see $6.6 billion in federal funds for passenger rail capital improvements for the entire U.S.! _________________ July 23, 2007 From IRJ and Railway Age magazines International News Stuttgart 21 project approved After years of discussion, German Rails (DB) ambitious Stuttgart 21 project has been approved together with a high speed line from Stuttgart to Ulm at a total cost of 4.8 billion euros ($6.6 billion). A memorandum of understanding was signed in Berlin on July 19 by the federal transport minister, Wolfgang Tiefensee, the first minister of Baden-Würtemberg, Günther Oettinger, Stuttgarts mayor, Wolfgang Schuster, DB's CEO, Hartmut Mehdorn. Stuttgart 21 involves reconstruction of the citys main station to convert it from a terminus surface station to a through underground one. The station will be connected to a new 30km line, running via the exhibition centre and airport to Wendlingen, and a 58km [36.25 miles] 250km/h [156.25 mph] line from Wendlingen to Ulm. Construction will start in 2010, and the project should be completed in 2019-20 allowing the Stuttgart-Ulm journey time to be cut from 56 minutes today by ICE train to 28 minutes. For more Breaking News from International Railway Journal, visit: IRJ Breaking News "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
July 26, 200717 yr Editorial Observer New York Times Op-Ed I Love Paris on a Bus, a Bike, a Train and in Anything but a Car By SERGE SCHMEMANN PARIS Now that Michael Moore has broken a taboo by holding up France as a model for national health care, maybe its safe to point out other things France seems to do right. Like how Paris is trying to manage traffic and auto pollution. What Paris has done right is to make it awful to get around by car and awfully easy to get around by public transportation or by bike. Any tourist in a rent-a-car whos circumnavigated the Arc de Triomphe most likely will never drive in Paris again. But there are plenty of Parisians who do it all the time far too many, in fact. So Mayor Bertrand Delanoë, a Socialist, vowed in coming to office in 2001 to reduce car traffic by 40 percent by 2020. ......... http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/26/opinion/26thu4.html?_r=1&th=&oref=slogin&emc=th&pagewanted=print
August 9, 200717 yr Not exactly a raving endorsement of maglev in China. It's a gee-whiz technology that costs twice as much as conventional high-speed rail but delivers only 20 percent more travel time savings. And that travel time savings is getting less and less as conventional steel-wheel on steel-rail technologies improves its performance... ________________ Shanghai's fast train catches on only slowly By Irene Shen and Lee Spears Bloomberg News Published: August 1, 2007 SHANGHAI: Shanghai spent $1.25 billion building the world's fastest train, running from the city to Pudong International Airport. Cindy Huang would rather catch a bus. ....... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 10, 200717 yr Nine maglev lines are under consideration in the United States, including projects in California, Florida, Maryland and Pennsylvania. "We are optimistic," Wiegelmann said. "The Transrapid fits especially well in countries that don't have strong rail infrastructure." Sounds like "we like to pitch this in countries where they don't know better." If they grease the right pockets donate to the right campaigns they ought to have a lot of success in the US. What better way to show that trains are way too expensive and don't work well than to build some maglev lines to nowhere? Eternal vigilence friends, eternal vigilence.
August 10, 200717 yr The problem is maglev doesn't offer a distinct speed advantage over steel-rail high-speed trains -- and that's more evident at the start-up cost of maglev. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 10, 200717 yr China orders ERTMS signaling from Bombardier Bombardier Transportation announced that it has won a $91 million contract to supply ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management System) Level 2 onboard and wayside signaling equipment for the 186-mph high speed railline scheduled to go into operation in 2010 on a route of approximately 600 miles between Wuhan and Guangzou. ERTMS is already widely deployed in Europe. China Railway Signaling and Communications Corp. ordered the system from Bombardier for its customer, the Chinese Ministry of Railways. For more Breaking News from Railway Age, visit: Railway Age Breaking News "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 16, 200717 yr National Express awarded British East Coast franchise Britain's Department for Transport (DfT) has awarded National Express Group (NEG) a seven-and-a-half year franchise to operate inter-city services on the East Coast Main Line from London to Leeds, Newcastle, and Scotland. NEG will pay a premium of £1.4 billion over the life of the franchise, which runs from Dec. 9, 2007 to March 31, 2015. As part of its franchise commitment, NEG will introduce up to 25 additional services on the southern section of the route from December 2010, including a new two-hourly service from London King’s Cross to Lincoln. Journey times will also be cut and NEG will be required to reduce delays by 29% by 2015. For more Breaking News from IRJ, visit: IRJ Breaking News "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 16, 200717 yr International News $457 million China order goes to Siemens Siemens will supply $457 million worth of parts for 500 electric locomotives to be manufactured by China's CSR Zhuzhou Electric Locomotive company under a contract announced today. Siemens said the new units will be the world’s most powerful with output ratings of 9.6 megawatts. Components supplied by Siemens will be developed and manufactured at sites in Erlangen and Nuremberg, Germany. For more Breaking News from Railway Age, visit: Railway Age Breaking News "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
August 17, 200717 yr Railway Age International News Top builders compete to produce new U.K. train Alstom, Bombardier, Siemens, and Hitachi all appear on the list of companies or consortia that have been short-listed to compete for a contract to design a new British train that will be lighter and more environmentally friendly than current long-distance trains, the U. K. Department for Transport announced today. “We are developing a flexible train that can be deployed on different lines in different lengths, and with different sources of power, so this train can operate wherever we need it in the future,” said Rail Minister Tom Harris. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
September 4, 200717 yr There are also several good links to video of this speed run on the BBC website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/player/nol/newsid_6970000/newsid_6978100?redirect=6978111.stm&news=1&nbwm=1&bbwm=1&nbram=1&bbram=1&asb=1 Eurostar sets Paris-London record BBC News Eurostar has set a record on its inaugural journey from Paris to London via Britain's new high-speed line. ....... Construction of the line and revamping St Pancras cost £5.8bn in public funds. The high cost of the project is partly due to some major engineering challenges, including laying track to pass over the River Medway, under the River Thames and through 11 miles of tunnels beneath London. PROJECTED JOURNEY TIMES London-Paris 2 hrs 15 mins London-Brussels 1hr 51 mins London-Lille 1hr 20 mins ........... Story from BBC NEWS: http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/6977211.stm Published: 2007/09/04 11:58:05 GMT
September 5, 200717 yr Damn, you beat me to posting it! Many Brits I ran into in May are pretty psyched about this link, even though it will cut only 20 minutes from the trip. They are more excited about the improved rail links to the north from the East Coast Main Line at neighboring King's Cross Station. But the Brits in southern England are a bit miffed because they had a same-station connection at Waterloo. Now they have to get across London to make the connection. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
September 16, 200717 yr This is what I get for farting around the Japanese train buff videos at YouTube. Shinkansen meets John Williams sci-fi soundtrack... Or with an oriental-sounding Bonnie Tyler.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ksiZu5Sfek&NR=1 "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
September 16, 200717 yr A pretty cool advertisement for Virgin trains in the UK.... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 8, 200717 yr Faster Trains Winning Over Air Passengers in Europe Cox News Service By SHELLEY EMLING LONDON -- Travelers in Europe, whether they are tourists or local residents, are all too familiar with hassles at airports and aboard airliners. Now, their discontent is contributing to a new golden age of rail travel. ....... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 12, 200717 yr Think of all of the "old" train stations in this country that haven't survived..... Penn Station in New York, Columbus Union Station and others..... and take a look at what London is doing with it's 19th Century (!) train station. Eurostar finally getting up to speed in Britain By Eric Pfanner International Herald Tribune Thursday, October 11, 2007 LONDON: In a fusion of 19th-century architecture and 21st-century technology, a largely derelict railroad station has been reborn as the centerpiece of a £6 billion project that, in a little more than a month, will bring Continental-style train speed and style into the center of London. The station, St. Pancras International, will become the London terminus of Eurostar trains from Paris and Brussels starting on Nov. 14, when the final leg of a 300-kilometer-per-hour link from the Channel Tunnel to London is opened, shaving 20 minutes off the current journey time. "It means that Eurostar at last will be unleashed and can go full speed from London to Brussels, Paris and other points in Europe," said Mike Luddy, project director at London & Continental Railways, the company that built the rail line and redeveloped the station. ...... http://www.iht.com/bin/printfriendly.php?id=7858614
October 13, 200717 yr Cool. When I was in London last May, I got a photo of the St. Pancras station from the front. I might visit it in March when I go back. My photo from last May was posted at: http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php?topic=13123.0 Also, for other major passenger rail development projects, including the £2.1 billion West Coast Main Line upgrade to 140 mph, check out: West Coast Main Line upgrade: http://www.o-keating.com/hsr/investment.htm East Coast Main Line upgrade (I rode this line from York to London): http://www.railway-technology.com/projects/eastcoast/ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 14, 200717 yr ^Britain is spending more to upgrade a single line than Amtrak gets in one year. We're so stupid about transportation in this country.
October 15, 200717 yr I move back and forth across the pond -- does that count?? "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 16, 200717 yr Not exactly overseas, but it is across the inland seas of the Great Lakes... ____________ http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml#Feature2 October 15, 2007 VIA funding package counters inflation's effects Canada's C$691.9 million, five-year funding package for VIA Rail Canada Inc., announced Friday, is designed to counter the railroad's loss of purchasing power during the past decade due to inflation. The package includes C$516 million in capital funds over a five-year period to address fleet renewal, including refurbishment of F40 locomotives and LRC passenger cars, as well as strategic infrastructure improvements to eliminate rail bottlenecks. The remaining C$175.9 million, also over five years, will og toward VIA Rail's operating costs. "While VIA Rail's annual funding level was frozen in 1998, the effects of inflation over the past decade have had an impact on the purchasing power of this Crown corporation and its ability to maintain its aging fleet of locomotives and cars," the government said in a statement. "Once the capital investment program is complete, VIA will be able to operate without this additional funding." "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
October 30, 200717 yr From the International Railway Journal French to expand rail network PRESIDENT Nicholas Sarkozy of France has announced, during a conference on the environment, that an additional 2000km of high-speed lines will be built in France. Steps will also be taken to expand railfreight, and another 1500km of dedicated tram lines, bus lanes or cycle tracks will be built in provincial cities. At the same time, additional taxes will be imposed on trucks transiting the country and on the most polluting new road vehicles, with the funds generated being invested in public transport. These initiatives form part of an overall package of measures designed to reduce carbon emissions and pollution. Sarkozy wants to see a reduction of 2 million in the number of trucks on French roads by 2020. +++++++++++++++++++++++++ Britain’s Thameslink upgrade project finally launched NETWORK Rail, Britain’s track authority, has started work on the £5.5 billion project to upgrade the Thameslink cross-London line with a scheme to extend the platforms at Luton Airport Parkway station to accept 12-car trains. The project was originally called Thameslink 2000 reflecting its planned completion date, but has been delayed by numerous planning and funding problems. Thameslink is designed to increase capacity on the route between Bedford, London, Gatwick Airport and Brighton both in terms of train length and frequency, and incorporate lines to other destinations such as Cambridge, Stansted Airport and several towns south of London. It is due to be completed by 2015. +++++++++++++++++++++++++ French to build Moroccan high-speed line AFRICA’S first high-speed line moved a major step closer to fruition yesterday when French President Mr Nicolas Sarkozy and King Mohammed of Morocco witnessed the signing of an outline agreement to build a 320km/h line from Tangier to Casablanca. Under a deal the line will be designed, built, operated, and maintained by a French consortium, which includes Alstom and SNCF International. Commercial negotiations are due to be concluded next year, which will allow contracts to be drawn up and signed. The first 200km section of the line from Tangier to Kenitra will open in 2013. Services on the new line will be operated by a fleet of 18 Alstom TGV Duplex double-deck trains. The project is a key element of Morocco’s railway master plan, which stipulates the construction of a 1500km high-speed network by 2035. This will consist of two lines, the Atlantic Link, from Tangier to Marrakech and Agadir, and the Maghreb Link from Rabat to Fez and Oujda. Alstom also signed a Euros 73 million deal today with Moroccan National Railways (ONCF) to supply 20 6MW Prima electric locomotives and maintain them for two years. The 160km/h locomotives will be delivered from 2010 for use on both freight and passenger trains. +++++++++++++++++++++++++ Beijing to expand metro to 294km PLANS to build six more metro lines in the Chinese capital Beijing have been approved by the city’s Municipal Commission of Urban Planning. This will allow work to begin before the end of the end of the year. This will add another 152km to the existing five-line 142km network. Beijing expects the number of people using the metro to increase from the current 2.2 million per day to about 8 million per day by 2015. The proportion of people travelling by public transport is forecast to increase from 30% to 45% during the same period. +++++++++++++++++++++++++ China to start work on Beijing-Shanghai HS line this year CONSTRUCTION of China’s 1318km high-speed line linking the capital Beijing with Shanghai is due to start before the end of the year, according to the Ministry of Railways. This follows approval last month by the state council of a feasibility study for the project. The Ministry of Railways estimates the total cost at Yuan 130 billion ($US 17.3 billion). However, China Economic Net, a website controlled by China’s Economic Daily newspaper, says the final cost could exceed Yuan 200 billion. Trains will operate at up to 350km/h cutting the current 10-hour journey time between the two cities by half. #### "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 14, 200717 yr The project is a key element of Morocco’s railway master plan, which stipulates the construction of a 1500km high-speed network by 2035. This will consist of two lines, the Atlantic Link, from Tangier to Marrakech and Agadir, and the Maghreb Link from Rabat to Fez and Oujda.I've been saving all my money just to take you there. (For all you CS&N fans out there. :hi: )
November 16, 200717 yr All we hear from American PR factories is how the Chinese want to be like America (owning cars, houses in the burbs, etc). What we don't hear are stories like these.... _____________________ http://www.railjournal.com/latenews.shtml#Feature6 International Railway Journal November 16, 2007 Shanghai to build two more metro lines SHANGHAI has unveiled plans to build another two metro lines which will take the network to 13 lines, totaling 500km, by 2012. Line 12 will be 33.6km long with 26 stations, and will run from Hongmei Street in the city centre to Pudong New Area, while Line 13 will be a 13km, nine-station line from the city’s main railway station to Jiading. The additional lines are part of Yuan 200 billion ($US 26.8 billion) investment in Shanghai’s metro and commuter rail networks. The municipal and regional governments are contributing Yuan 90 billion while the remainder is being funded through loans from banks and the China Life Insurance Company. Shanghai currently has five operational metro lines totaling around 145km, although Lines 6, 8 and 9 will add another 87.4km when they open on December 28. Currently only around 15% of journeys in the city are made by metro although this is expected to reach 45% by 2012. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 23, 200717 yr China, part 2..... _________________ http://english.people.com.cn/90001/90776/6304784.html China to have 12,000 km of express rail lines by 2020 08:25, November 19, 2007 China has started construction on 16 new express passenger rail projects and is expected to have 12,000 kilometers of express rail lines by 2020, the Ministry of Railways said Sunday. New express rail lines will link up provincial capitals and large and medium-sized cities, as well as cities in the booming Bohai Sea, Yangtze and Pearl River regions. The construction of such lines is aimed to substantially enhance the country's rail transport capacities, as stated in the country's mid- and long-term plan on railway networks. The 115 km express rail line connecting Beijing and Tianjin would become the country's first that allows a maximum speed of 300 kilometers per hour. Track laying on the route started just days ago. The line will be ready for operation in time for the 2008 Olympic Games in August, and will shorten the journey between Tianjin and Beijing from 70 minutes at present to around 30 minutes, according to Liu Rong, director of the railway construction project. China's State Council has also approved the feasibility report on the planned 1,318 km high-speed railway linking Shanghai and Beijing after nearly 10 years of preparations. The project, if completed, will be the longest high-speed rail line in the world. The Beijing-Shanghai express railway is expected to cut travel time between the two cities from around 10 hours at present to about five hours. China's fastest domestic trains currently run at a speed of up to 250 kilometers per hour. Source: Xinhua "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 23, 200717 yr ^So the Chinese left us in the dust too. They already have one of the most state-of-the-art air traffic control system in the world-- ours is archaic by today's standards. Just think, all the cheap salad shooters, shoes, and toys we buy from China is financing this. So much for the American Empire...
November 23, 200717 yr And the Ruskies, too.... http://www.russiancourier.com/en/news/2007/11/20/78914/ MOSCOW, November 20 (RIA Novosti) Russia to allot $1.2 billion for Petersburg-Helsinki fast rail link Russia will allocate 28 billion rubles (about $1.15 billion) for a project to build a high speed passenger rail link between St. Petersburg and Helsinki, the Russian railway monopoly said on Tuesday. The project will establish an express train service between St. Petersburg and Helsinki, cutting the travel time from 5.8 to 3.5 hours, as well as allowing for the growing volume of freight to Russian ports on the Baltic Sea, and improving the environmental situation in the resort suburbs of St. Petersburg. The project will require a total of 79.7 billion rubles ($3.2 billion), of which 28 billion rubles will be allocated from the federal budget in 2008-2010 and the remaining 51.7 billion rubles ($2 billion) will be provided by the railway monopoly, Russian Railways said. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
November 29, 200717 yr I suspect this data is applicable to the U.S., and provides a justification for greater investment in rail on this side of the Atlantic, too! http://www.railjournal.com/latenews.shtml#Feature6 November 29, 2007 Study recommends investment in rail signalling SPENDING money on railway signalling enhancements is a more effective method of increasing transport capacity than any other option, according to an independent study commissioned by Invensys Rail Group, Britain. British consultant Credo, looked at road and rail capacity enhancement schemes before reaching its conclusions. The number of extra people per hour for every £1 million of investment per kilometre that signalling enhancements on commuter lines would generate, ranges from 1801 for ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management System) signalling to 3678 for conventional signalling. On intercity lines the situation is reversed, with 1348 and 1260 people/hour/£1million/km respectively. By contrast, the best figure road schemes manage is 789 for new-build intercity roads. ___________________ BTW, to learn more about ERTMS and the European Railway Agency, see..... http://ec.europa.eu/transport/rail/index_en.html "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
December 1, 200717 yr http://www.railjournal.com/latenews.shtml November 30, 2007 China to issue record $US 6 billion in railway bonds China’s Ministry of Railways is to issue Yuan 45 billion ($US 6 billion) of bonds to fund capital investment. This is the largest single amount since railway bonds were first issued in 1995 and will increase the total value of railway bonds to Yuan 113.7 billion. The money raised will be used to fund the purchase of locomotives and rolling stock and 21 railway projects. These include the construction of a second line between Hailar and the inland port of Manzhouli on the Russian border to relieve freight congestion on the existing 186km line, a passenger line between Zhengzhou and Xi’an, and electrification of the Qinshihuang-Shenyang line. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
December 2, 200717 yr Some of you remember 1970s-80s German techno band Kraftwerk and its "Trans-Europe Express" song. Well, here's the 2007 version about the TGV-Est line, where the French train hit 357 mph.... If you can't speak French, skip the first 2 minutes: Somehow, I can't see this concert happening in the U.S.A. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
December 3, 200717 yr You have GOT to check out this Christmas Card from Rail Europe. Can you imagine Amtrak being this creative? http://downloads.raileurope.com/holidayCard/06_christmas_card.html
December 10, 200717 yr This one rail line will exceed by 20-fold what the U.S. invests in passenger rail each year... ________________ http://www.railjournal.com/latenews.shtml#Feature6 December 10, 2007 Lyon – Turin gets public utility status CONSTRUCTION of a Euros 20 billion railway from Lyon to Turin has moved a step closer after France granted public utility status to its section of the line. French Rail Network (RFF) will be responsible for the construction of a 79km high-speed line between Lyon and Chambéry, and a freight line from Lyon to a junction at Combe de Savoie. From here a mixed-traffic line will be built to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, where trains will enter the 51km Modane Base Tunnel. The line will emerge in Italy at Condove in the lower Susa valley, where it will continue on a new 40km alignment to Turin. Italian Infrastructure Network (RFI) will be responsible for the construction of this section. Exploratory tunnels have already been excavated and construction will begin in 2011 with completion expected in 2020. Journey times for passenger services between Lyon and Turin will be cut from four hours to just 1h 45min and the line is expected to carry 40 million tonnes of freight per year by 2030, double the capacity of the existing line. Last Month the European Commission allocated Euros 672 million towards the project as part of the Trans European Network – Transport (TEN-T) programme. An inter-governmental commission will meet in Rome next week to discuss the plans further. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 3, 200817 yr http://www.railjournal.com/latenews.shtml#Feature6 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- January 3, 2008 SJ to order 20 intercity trains SWEDEN’S former national rail operator SJ says it will order 20 new intercity emus this year to allow it to strengthen trains on the country’s busiest long-distance routes. CEO Mr Jan Forsberg says he expects SJ to order 20 Regina emus this year to replace X2000 tilting trains on slower and less busy intercity routes. This will allow SJ to concentrate the X2000 fleet on its key routes from Stockholm to Gothenburg, Malmö, and Sundsvaal, where extra capacity is urgently needed. The new trains will be equipped for 200km/h operation, although software upgrades will allow 250km/h running if required at a later date. Bombardier is currently testing a Regina emu at speeds of up to 275km/h as part of the Green Train research programme. Around 70 Regina emus are already in regional service in Sweden. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 7, 200817 yr All we hear in the U.S. media is how the Chinese are trying to be just like the U.S., with more cars and highways. I don't recall the U.S. doing this.... International Railway Journal Latest News January 7, 2008 Construction starts on Chinese line CHINA has begun construction of a Yuan 41.7 billion ($US 5.6 billion) line in the southwest of the country from the port of Xiamen to Shenzhen, near the Hong Kong border. The 502km line will have capacity for up to 240 trains per day and an operating speed of up to 200km/h, which will allow journey times between the two cities to be slashed from 11 hours to 3 hours when it opens in 2011. It is expected to carry 12 million tonnes of freight per year. The project is being co-funded by the Ministry of Railways and the provinces of Fujian and Guangdong. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 7, 200817 yr ^wow 240 a day?? That seems way too high for such a long distance. That means a train would have leave every 6 minutes to travel 502km. I don't think many subways are that frequent in the whole world.
January 8, 200817 yr It has the capacity for 240 daily. It doesn't mean it will handle that many. Even so, that's 120 trains in each direction, which could easily be handled if the railway is at least triple-tracked over most if not the entire 300 miles. Some of the principal railways in Japan are at least four tracks wide throughout, with some sections 10 tracks wide, junctions designed more like freeway interchanges, and trains passing a given location every few minutes. When I was in the suburbs of London, I stood next to the four-track West Coast Main Line and counted 50 trains in 75 minutes. And that was during the lunch hour. I can only imagine what it's like during peak travel hours. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 8, 200817 yr Posted this before with some still photos, but it got obliterated in the file back-up problems recently. But here's a link to a video of an experimental "Air Train" built in Scotland in the early 1930's. Looks like something out of an old Buck Rogers movie. It requires Quick-time to watch it. http://www.scottish-screen.com/film/detail.php?id=13410001
January 17, 200817 yr http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml#Feature1 Late Breaking Rail Industry News January 16, 2008 The Western Hemisphere's first high speed rail system The government of Argentina has awarded a contract worth more than $1.48 billion to a consortium led by Alstom Transport to build a high speed rail system, the French Finance Ministry announced today. The 435-mile line will be the first dedicated high speed system in the Western Hemisphere. It will link the cities of Buenos Aires, Rosario, and Cordoba and use TGV technology. The Alstom-led Veloxia consortium was the sole bidder on the project. The system, which will operate at speeds from 160 to 186 mph, will be built in two phases and involve upgrading and electrifying existing rights-of-way. Phase 1 covers the double-track Buenos Aires-Rosario line. Phase 2 covers the single-track Rosario-Cordoba line. Meanwhile, the Argentine government has reportedly approved a $124 million plan to purchase Chinese-built passenger trains for Buenos Aires commuter services. The government will procure 24 multiple units and 160 locomotive-hauled coaches through Shanghai Golden Source International Economic and Trade Company, although the manufacturer of the vehicles has not been named. The first trains could be delivered as early as the end of this year. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 20, 200817 yr China keeps outdoing us on the infrastructure side.... _________________ China Daily article follows: Published Saturday, January 12, 2008, by China Daily Minister unveils rail plans By Xin Dingding China plans to lay 4,415 km of new railway tracks and convert 3,405 km to double lines this year, moving a step closer toward the goal of having a 120,000-km rail network by 2020. ........ "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 20, 200817 yr http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml#Feature1 Late Breaking Rail Industry News January 16, 2008 The Western Hemisphere's first high speed rail system The government of Argentina has awarded a contract worth more than $1.48 billion to a consortium led by Alstom Transport to build a high speed rail system, the French Finance Ministry announced today. The 435-mile line will be the first dedicated high speed system in the Western Hemisphere. It will link the cities of Buenos Aires, Rosario, and Cordoba and use TGV technology. The Alstom-led Veloxia consortium was the sole bidder on the project. The system, which will operate at speeds from 160 to 186 mph, will be built in two phases and involve upgrading and electrifying existing rights-of-way. Phase 1 covers the double-track Buenos Aires-Rosario line. Phase 2 covers the single-track Rosario-Cordoba line. Meanwhile, the Argentine government has reportedly approved a $124 million plan to purchase Chinese-built passenger trains for Buenos Aires commuter services. The government will procure 24 multiple units and 160 locomotive-hauled coaches through Shanghai Golden Source International Economic and Trade Company, although the manufacturer of the vehicles has not been named. The first trains could be delivered as early as the end of this year. Interesting that this is happening in a country that effectively killed its intercity passenger train service and has been in an economic tailspin. What does that say about us?
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