International Railway Journal - August 2007 - (Page 7)

In brief shippers, Glencore and Drummond, have bought 200km of the concession. This leaves the rest of the 1500km Northern Railway seeking a new concessionaire and it is likely to be split into two sections. El Salvador SNCF orders 80 double-deck TGVs F RENCH National Railways (SNCF) has awarded Alstom a €2.1 billion contract to supply 80 double-deck high-speed trains. The 320km/h trains are a development of the TGV Duplex already in service with SNCF and will operate services from Paris to eastern France, Luxembourg, Germany and Switzerland via the newly-opened TGV Est high-speed line. Delivery of the trains will begin in 2009. The contract includes an option for an additional 40 trains, which could take the total contract value to €3.1 billion. It is hoped to reopen the line between San Salvador and Apopa next month as a suburban service with four round trips a day on weekdays. The 12.5km journey will take 40 minutes because of regular stops and settlers on the line. Portugal sets out high-speed strategy Finland Finnish Railways (VR) recorded an 8.3% increase in turnover between January and April this year, compared with the same period in 2006. Turnover reached €402.3 million, and group profits of €2.4 million compared well with last year’s €0.8 million. While the number of passenger journeys increased by 5.3%, freight traffic fell 4.6%, largely due to a fall in raw timber traffic from Russia. T HE PORTUGUESE government has unveiled its timetable for construction of the country’s high-speed network. The Lisbon - Madrid and Lisbon - Oporto lines will be built and operated as public-private partnerships (PPP) or 40-year concession contracts, and both projects will be implemented in two sections. The first €1.7 billion tender for the construction of the Poceirão - Caia section of the Lisbon - Madrid line will be published in the second quarter of 2008, while the tender for €1.6 billion Lisbon - Poceirão section, which will include a 13km bridge over the River Tagus near Lisbon, will be launched in the second half of 2008. The 206km Portuguese section of the line will open in 2013. Tenders will be published in the first half of 2009 for the Lisbon - Pombal and Pombal Oporto sections, which are estimated at €2.1 billion and €1.7 billion respectively. The 290km line will open in 2015. A further tender for the construction of the 55km Braga - Valença do Minho line north of Oporto will be published in the second half of 2009. DSB and First win Øresund contract Bolivia to nationalise railways France A month after the TGV Est line opened, French National Railway (SNCF) says the route has carried more than one million passengers. SNCF says 88% of second class, and 75% of first class seats were occupied. B A CONSORTIUM of Danish State Railways (DSB) and First Group, Britain, has been awarded a DKr 7 billion ($US 1.27 billion) contract to operate services from Copenhagen to southern Sweden via the Øresund bridge. DSB has operated the service from Copenhagen to Kastrup Airport and Malmö with SJ, Sweden, since the bridge opened in 2000. However the new contract significantly increases the scope of the franchise, with services extending to Helsingør in Denmark and Gothenburg, Kalmar and Karlskrona in Sweden. DSB and First Group have indicated they will establish separate companies to operate local services on either side of the bridge. Øresundstrafiken will provide services in Denmark while Kystbanan will run trains in Sweden. DSB says the new contract will help it achieve its aim of earning 20% of its revenues from operations outside Denmark. The extended Øresund contract is expected to increase DSB’s overall turnover by 3%. OLIVIAN president Mr Evo Morales has announced plans to nationalise the two unconnected networks of the former Bolivian National Railways (ENFE). The move will effectively end the 40-year concessions granted to Trenes Continentales for the 1244km Oriental (eastern) network, and Antofagasta, Chile, which operates the 1499km Andina network. Morales says the people of Bolivia do not see any benefits from the concessioning system, and that technically 49% of the two railways’ shares belong to the government, even though they are managed by Swiss and Argentine banks. Freight traffic has increased on both networks since 1996 although most remaining passenger trains, including those serving the capital La Paz, have been withdrawn. Hungary A new passenger operator, MAV-Start Railway Passenger Transport Company, began operation on July 1. Owned by Hungarian State Railways (MAV), it aims to offer a highquality service, and will operate independently of its parent company. International The International Union of Railways (UIC) is to create a high-speed department to promote global development of high-speed rail. Mr Ignacio Barrón de Angoiti, on secondment to the UIC from Spanish track authority Adif, has been named director of the new department. continued on page 9 IRJ August 2007 7

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of International Railway Journal - August 2007

Contents This month News Market News Transit News News Analysis Voith Goes For Maxima Impact First Gauge-Changeable Loco Under Test Power Surge China Feels the Need For Speed A Firm Foundation For Chinese High-Speed Testing Times on the Betuwe Route Tough Tests For Mass Transit Software A Measure of Success Rendezvous Full Contact List Advertisers Index The Last Word

International Railway Journal - August 2007

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