In Numbers

100

French rolling stock manufacturer has supplied the 100th fully electric locomotive to Indian Railways

£570m

Mace and Dragados has been awarded the contract to build HS2’s Birmingham Curzon Street station

Sh32bn 

Kenya plans to spend Sh32 billion ($300m) to upgrade its railway transport systems over the next financial year

£1bn 

Network Rail are looking to save a £1bn by securing private sector investment in Britain’s rail telecoms network

2,500

West Midlands Trains was slammed for emailing 2,500 staff about receiving a bonus, which turned out to be an ill-advised cybersecurity awareness test

Projects

Skanska track upgrades unchecked

Construction company Skanska, in partnership with Electrification of Railways in Prague, has secured a contract from the Railway Administration of the Czech Republic for the overhaul of a 7.4km-long railway track near Pardubice, Czech Republic.

Source: Future Rail

Siemens secures Lisbon Metro contract

Stadler and Siemens Mobility has secured a £100m (€114.5m) contract to upgrade and improve the Lisbon Metro in Portugal. Apart from improving the current equipment, which will see 14 three-car metro trains be delivered, Siemens Mobility will deploy its communications-based train controlsystem Trainguard MT on three lines.

Source: Future Rail

Rail Baltica tender for company

Rail Baltica has opened the first public tender to procure cableway components for their major construction project. The £40m (€46m) contract will come under the first phase of the initial public consolidated material framework procurement, and will cover the delivery of the cableway materials and components for 870km of railway.

Source: Future Rail

New plan for Spain trains

Spanish rail operator Alstom has finished converting four high speed AveliaEuroduplex trains to service the Madrid-Barcelona route. To be run by the SNCF’s local subsidiary OUIGO España, these trains have been adapted by Alstom and SNCF to operate on Spain’s high-speed rail network.

Source: Future Rail

In Quotes

Tim Wood, Acting Chief Executive at Transport for the North, following the Queen’s Speech announcement about ‘levelling up’ transport in the north:

“We now need to see commitment to these aims in the upcoming Integrated Rail Plan, including backing the full HS2 and Northern Powerhouse Rail networks. Alongside a sustained pipeline of investment in our roads and active travel provision, this will support the cross-cutting themes of economic recovery and growth out of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as increasing skills and opportunities for the North’s communities.”

Source: PMLive

UK Rail Minister Chris Heaton Harris, following news the government asked the rail industry to resolve prolonged disruption following the discovery of cracks in Class 800 Series Hitachi trains:

“I have directed the rail industry to urgently set out a comprehensive plan to ensure services can safely resume as soon as possible. I expect operators to explore all options for replacement services to help people complete their journeys, and have asked Hitachi for a safety inspection plan, as well as longer term repair strategy. Our focus is to ensure trains are returned to service as quickly as possible, once they are fully approved as safe. Only then can we start to rebuild a reliable and punctual timetable for passengers.”