News

Train builders from all over the world are lining up their bids to win the lucrative High Speed 2 train contract. Thought to be worth £2.5 billion, the deal for up to 60 high-speed, classic-compatible EMUs will be awarded after the winner of the new West Coast Partnership franchise is confirmed in late-2018. However, the…

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REGULAR scheduled steam-operated passenger trains returned to the main line in Poland on May 15 after a three-year gap. Services now operate six days a week – with no scheduled steam services on Sunday – although the working steam locos at Wolsztyn often operate special charter services at weekends. Currently, two locomotives are available, both…

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More than 60 years after the first BR diesel railcars were introduced, the final vehicles in regular passenger service have been retired. Chiltern Railways withdrew its two 1960-built Class 121 ‘Bubblecars’ on May 19, marking the occasion with a special event on the Aylesbury-Princes Risborough branch where they have worked since 2003. The withdrawal of…

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Hitachi took members of the media and stakeholders as well as customers, GWR and Eversholt, to see progress made on manufacturing the new Class 802 West of England trains in late May. The bi-mode trains are being built in Italy by Hitachi Rail Italy, which is the new name for Ansaldo Breda, the company Hitachi…

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ELECTRIC services between Maidenhead and London Paddington commenced on May 22 using a pair of Class 387/1 EMUs. As well as replacing DMUs on commuter services, the Class 387s will provide more peak capacity between Maidenhead and London Paddington, offering a better spread of seats where they are most needed. A further six four-car units…

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Eurostar e320 high-speed trains started operation on the London-Brussels route on May 28. The Siemens-built EMUs are replacing Class 373 sets on UK-Belgium services, and will allow Eurostar to introduce a twice-daily service to Rotterdam and Amsterdam from December. The first public working of an e320 set to Brussels took place on May 23, when…

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INDIAN Railways decided in February to retain Nilgiri Mountain Railway 0-8-2RT X-37384 in working order at Coonoor shed as it is the only surviving coal-fired steam locomotive of its class. Originally, it had been planned to plinth the loco along with another now withdrawn coal-fired sister loco at Udhagamandalam (Ooty) and Coimbatore. The rack section…

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INDIAN Railways has reintroduced the 167-year-old ‘Fairy Queen’ 2-2-2T British-built steam loco into occasional passenger service as part of changes to its long-running ‘steam express’ programme of tourist trains. It first entered service in 1855. The veteran loco works the service on certain dates and on other dates Indian-built WP Pacific WP7161 is used. In…

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MEXICAN industrial conglomerate Grupo México has agreed to buy Florida-based railroad Florida East Coast from US investment group Fortress, paying around $2 billion. Grupo México owns the majority of two of Mexico’s main rail operators (55.4% of Ferromex and 74.9 % of Ferrosur). Florida East Coast has its own 565km-long route between Miami and Jacksonville…

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