CSX of the United States has unveiled its first locomotive to be converted to hydrogen fuel cell power. It used a kit developed by fellow Class 1 freight railway Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC). The locomotive has been rolled out less than 12 months after CSX and CPKC announced a partnership to develop hydrogen traction last summer. Conversion was undertaken by the CSX locomotive workshops in Huntington, West Virginia, retaining the frame, cab, traction motors and bogies of the EMD GP40-2 locomotive. “Converting an existing unit into a next-generation locomotive further extends the useful ..read more

THE Dominican Republic’s Office for the Reorganisation of Transport (Opret) has awarded Alstom a contract to supply and commission eight new three-car Metropolis trains that will operate on the extended Line 2 of the Santo Domingo metro. Work is underway on the Line 2C project to extend the 13.7km underground line by 7.35km from María Montez to Los Alcarrizos. The extension includes a 900m underground section, with the remaining 6.45km elevated. Five new stations will be added to the line. The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (Cabei) is providing a $US 250m 20-year loan for the ..read more

MRT Jakarta has signed a Rupiah 4.7 trillion ($US 289m) contract with Sojitz of Japan to undertake tracklaying and supply railway systems, including signalling, for Phase 2A of the MRT metro programme in the capital of Indonesia. Phase 2A comprises the 5.8km extension from HI Roundabout to Kota. Contract Package 205 awarded to Sojitz has a term of six years and three months. The extension will have six intermediate stations at Thamrin, Monas, Harmoni, Sawah Besar, Mangga Besar and Glodok. MRT Jakarta hopes to open the section to Monas by 2027, and the full extension to Kota by the end of 2029 ..read more

THE Norwegian Railway Directorate has announced that infrastructure manager Bane Nor will reopen the main line between Oslo and Trondheim, also known as the Dovre Line, on May 20. This follows completion of major repairs to the 172m-long Randklev bridge at Ringebu, where two spans collapsed into the Gudbrandsdalslågen river on August 14 2023 after a bridge pier was washed out by flood water. Bane Nor has used a crane capable of lifting 1350 tonnes to move the spans to dry land where they have been repaired. At the same time, a major programme has been undertaken to rebuild the bridge pier and ..read more

URUGUAY celebrated the official opening of the Central Railway, the 273km upgraded north-south line from Paso de Los Toros to the port of Montevideo, on April 16. The president of Uruguay, Mr Luis Lacalle Pou, the minister of transport and public works, Mr José Luis Falero, and under-secretary of transport, Mr Juan José Olaizola, took part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Cardal station in the department of Florida, where they witnessed an 18-wagon train loaded with cellulose make the inaugural journey on the line. “Without a doubt, today is a day that transcends and marks an important mileston ..read more

WABTEC has been awarded a contract by Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) to develop an interoperability standard that will enable trains equipped with ARTC’s Advanced Train Management System (ATMS) to operate on lines with ETCS Level 2 signalling. Wabtec and ATRC will work with stakeholders to outline the operations concept and define the standards for the interoperability solution, with the manufacturer supplying the necessary software, systems and services. ARTC is the infrastructure manager for 8500km of inter-state lines primarily used by freight trains in New South Wales (NSW), Quee ..read more

UKRAINIAN Railways (UZ) has commenced construction of a 1435mm-gauge line between Uzhhorod and Chop on the Slovakian and Hungarian borders, a key step in integrating the Ukrainian network with the European Union (EU). A track laying ceremony took place for the project on April 11, which was attended by the prime minister of Ukraine, Mr Denys Shmygal, and the UZ board chairman, Mr Yevhen Lyashchenko. The project involves laying 22km of 1435mm-gauge track on the existing 1520mm-gauge line as well as reinforcing existing structures and upgrading signalling. Project documentation and a feasibility ..read more

PARIS transport authority Île-de-France Mobility (IdFM) has ordered a further 35 RER NG EMUs from Alstom for €650m, which will be deployed on Line E of the RER network. IdFM says that the additional double-deck trains have been ordered for the western extension of Line E to Mantes-la-Jolie, which is expected to be completed at the end of 2026. The first section of the extension, from Haussmann-Saint Lazare to Nanterre-La Folie, is due to open on May 6. More RER NG trains will be ordered soon to replace the MI2N fleet on Line E and complete replacement of the Z2N double-deck EMU fleet on Line D ..read more

BULGARIA’s minister of transport and communications, Mr Georgi Gvozdeikov, has signed a contract with Stadler Poland for the supply of seven double-deck Kiss EMUs. The contract is worth Lev 300.5m ($US 163.5m) and delivery is expected within 26 months. The European Union (EU) is co-financing the order through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan for Bulgaria. The ministry also confirmed that it is in negotiations with Talgo for the supply of 20 push-pull trains. These will be based on fleets supplied to German Rail (DB) and Danish State Railways (DSB), and will be certified to operate cro ..read more

THE outgoing Dutch government has allocated a budget of €98m for the electrification of two lines in the eastern Netherlands. They are: Zutphen - Hengelo: 46km of single track with four intermediate stations, and Almelo - Mariënberg: 19km of single track with three intermediate stations. Outgoing secretary of state at the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure, Ms Vivianne Heijnen, says that she wants to take a step towards a carbon emissions-free future for rail operations. The funding for both lines was unexpected as only a year ago the Dutch government informed regional authorities that there w ..read more