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Rail Articles

NSB’s success story

26 November 2007 | By Goran Mandic, Chief Engineer ATC/ERTMS and GSM-R, Passenger Traffic, NSB

NSB enters the fourth quarter of 2007 with historical results. The Norwegian media is reporting an approximate revenue increase of 10% for the first half of 2007 and an equivalent increase in passenger traffic. If this trend continues, the total number of passengers for this year is estimated to reach…

ITA COSUF – scope, activities & structure

26 November 2007 | By Dipl.-Ing. Felix Amberg, President of COSUF and Chairman of Amberg Engineering Ltd/Hagerbach Test Gallery Ltd and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Alfred Haack, Past-Chairman, STUVA e.V.,

COSUF – the ITA-Committee on Operational Safety of Underground Facilities, was set-up in May 2005 at the ITA World Tunnel Congress in Istanbul, Turkey. This important step followed a joint initiative of eight European research projects which all aimed at improved tunnel safety after the disastrous fire accidents in various…

Maintaining tracks for long-term future service

26 November 2007 | By Dr. Konstantin von Diest, Head of Development, Stahlberg Roensch

A railway track represents a large investment that is not only meant to enable safe, fast and comfortable passenger and freight traffic, but is also expected to be permanently available. The track should allow decades of intense utilisation with no major interruptions. Track possessions for maintenance work or premature failure…

Consistent and positive ballastless track systems

26 November 2007 | By Jens Kleeberg, General Manager for Track Design, RAIL.ONE International GmbH

The international increase in transportation volume throughout the world over recent years has led to a revival in railway traffic. This has in turn resulted in an appreciable number of technical innovations and an enhancement in railway technology in the areas of rolling stock, train control and track engineering.

New tracks in Stockholm improve train traffic

27 September 2007 | By Kjell-Åke Averstad, Project Manager, Banverket

For more than 20 years, there has been a political discussion about more rail lines running through Stockholm. For the same length of time, hundreds of thousands of travellers have endured heavy trafficked rolling stock. At both mornings and evenings, the long-distance, high-speed, commuter and even freight trains have waited…

An organised identity to focus on clear goals

26 September 2007 | By Per-Olof Granbom, Director General, Banverket

Since last February, Banverket has taken on a new identity. The organisation is now totally focused on the customer: providing a higher level of reliability and punctuality and stopping the increasing costs for major investment projects. “If rail transport is to have a future, we must ensure the quality of…

Higher railway investment level can help reverse climate change

26 September 2007 | By Katarina Norén, Director of Strategy and Marketing, Banverket

Railway infrastructure investments in Sweden are presently substantially higher compared with preceding planning periods. Reversing climate change while maintaining continued economic growth are political priorities and an expanded railway system can help fulfil both these objectives.

SJ is back on track

26 September 2007 | By Claes Broström, Vice President of Fleet Management, SJ

From the threat of bankruptcy to the position of a profitable travel company in just a few years, SJ is now crowning themselves as the most efficient and profitable train company in Europe. But with Sweden’s old rail infrastructure still in use means that SJ is struggling to keep up…

One year on: high-speed plans continue

26 September 2007 | By José Alves Monteiro, General Director of Strategic Planning & Control, REFER

In our last article (published in ERR 4/06) concerning the plans, projects and priorities of REFER, we presented a general perspective of the public infrastructure investment in the conventional network corresponding to the most urgent ones and it also gave some information about the development of the high-speed project. Approximately…

Portuguese high-speed network is fast approaching

26 September 2007 | By Carlos Alberto João Fernandes, Member of the Board, RAVE

RAVE is a company that develops and co-ordinates the projects and studies that are necessary to facilitate decision-making in the context of planning, constructing, financing and operating a high-speed rail network that is to be established in continental Portugal along with its planned connections to the high-speed railway network in…

ADIF looks towards the future

26 September 2007 | By James Abbott, Technical Editor, Global Railway Review and Joaquin Jiménez Otero, International Affairs Direction, ADIF

Heavy investments will be made in the Spanish railway network in forthcoming years. The Spanish railway network has been split into separate companies managing the railway infrastructure (ADIF) and train operations (Renfe). There is strong political impetus to invest in the railways, with the 15-year Strategic Plan for Transport Infrastructure…

Renfe faces the future with confidence

26 September 2007 | By James Abbott, Technical Editor, Global Railway Review

Completion of the first high-speed line in Spain 15 years ago gave Renfe a new confidence and investment in the network is continuing at a sustained pace. Spain has one of the fastest–growing railway networks in Europe. Renfe (Spanish National Railways) gained a new confidence with the opening of the…

Corrugation and dip angle measurements performed by Eurailscout

26 September 2007 | By Steffen Knape, Director, Eurailscout

Corrugation on rails causes severe damage to the railway infrastructure. Corrugation causes noise, additional stress in the rails and high frequency vibration which damages the subsoil; squats can also occur if rail head corrugation is not controlled.

Beneficial monitoring: not whether, but when?

26 September 2007 | By Ton Bontekoe, Product Manager – Gotcha, Lloyds Register Rail

Achieving high levels of rail system reliability in all the phases of the life cycle at an optimal cost requires sound information, robust risk based analysis, proper implementation of asset management activities and on-going critical review.

Power Supply Solutions

26 September 2007 | By Maurice Debrand, Managing Engineer, RFF, Margo van Vliet, Senior Consultant and Remco Paulussen, Senior Power Supply Specialist, ARCADIS The Netherlands and Mikaël Beck, Project Management Assistant, ARCADIS France

The dimensioning of power supply systems for railways is complex. To obtain a power supply that fulfils the traffic demands over its lifespan, improving or upgrading of the power system cannot be avoided. The many planned projects for the northern transalpine line Lyon – St Jean de Maurienne and the…