Cornish link severed

A. Samuel
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The bad weather that hit Cornwall in November could close the branch between Par and Newquay until the middle of this month. There were three separate landslips in the Pontsmill area – one deposited several thousand tonnes of spoil on the track whilst another removed most of an embankment. This will be rebuilt using gabions.

The worst damage occurred a mile from the nearest road. Although a bridleway runs close to it, a three-tonne weight restriction over a bridge meant it was unsuitable for the 13-tonne equipment that Network Rail needed to bring in. A bailey bridge had to be installed and a culvert strengthened before work could start.

A smaller landslip on the main line between Lostwithiel and Bodmin Parkway was swiftly dealt with. The route reopened under an ESR later the same day, 17th November, and normal linespeed was restored early the following afternoon.

Birmingham Moor Street terminating platforms reopening

A. Samuel
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The terminating platforms at Birmingham Moor Street, which date from 1909, will reopen on 11th December, with the first passenger train being a steam-hauled charter to London Paddington. Of the three platforms, only two will initially be commissioned. However Platform 5 could be brought back into service if demand increases, although it has not been connected to the network during the latest works.

Commissioning of the signalling, controlled from the West Midlands Signalling Centre, took place over the weekend of 13/14th November. In addition, new stabling sidings have been installed south of the station and these will be used overnight by Chiltern units.

The last passenger train to use the terminating platforms was on 26th September 1987, when steam locomotive 7029 Clun Castle left at the head of a charter to mark the station’s closure and the opening of a through route to Birmingham Snow Hill.

The new platforms will help to increase capacity at Snow Hill which lost one to the Midland Metro.

New signalling along the Durham Coast Line

A. Samuel
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The Durham Coast Line is now benefitting from new signalling following a £28 million scheme that has modernised the 25km section between Stranton in Hartlepool and Ryhope Grange. Five signal boxes have been decommissioned as part of the project, with control being transferred to a Westcad workstation at Ryhope. Hall Deane and Church Street level crossings have been renewed with a CCTV system.

The area is a notorious cable theft hot spot so Network Rail has adopted anti-theft measures to make the system’s new cables harder to steal and easier to trace.

The project has been completed on time and on budget in just 18 months and has had minimal impact on train services. Most of the 160,000 man hours of work were carried out during ‘Rules of the Route’ possessions.

West Hampstead Thameslink new station building

A. Samuel
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Construction of a new station building at West Hampstead Thameslink has got underway, with the work set to be completed in December 2011. It will increase passenger capacity, ease congestion and improve connections with the separate Overground and Underground stations.

As part of its commitment to delivering value for money, Network Rail agreed to revisit designs for the building. Whilst the outline of the scheme remains unchanged, significant cost savings have been achieved through changes to construction methods and materials. A silent piling method will also be used to minimise the noise impact on local residents.

New Zealand rail rescue service

A. Samuel
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Plasser & Theurer’s MFS system of conveyor and hopper units has been put to the test in the Manawatu Gorge on New Zealand’s North Island. Following a landslide, 60 metres of tracks were buried under 10,000m3 of material. The only way to remove it was with a rake of six MFS 40-6 wagons, with a combined capacity of 240m3.

Rail services through the gorge were suspended at the end of September after a freight train hit the debris and derailed. The locomotive was rescued within hours but access constraints in the remote area meant that the job of clearing the line proved far more time-consuming. Abseilers used explosives to loosen material at the top of the slip, bringing it safely down to track level for removal.

Ipswich Station’s new footbridge

A. Samuel
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A new footbridge has been lifted into place at Ipswich Station as part of the £370 million ‘Access for All’ scheme, providing a step-free route between the concourse and all four platforms. Two new lifts fitted with CCTV and telephone links will also be installed, together with tactile paving on the platforms.

To date, 148 stations in England, Wales and Scotland have been selected to receive similar improvements which are being managed and delivered by Network Rail. The facilities at Ipswich are due to be completed by spring 2011. Seven others on the National Express East Anglia network will benefit between now and 2013.

Russian Railways’ environmental protection work in 2010

A. Samuel
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Russian Railways invested 1.4 billion rubles in the construction and reconstruction of environmental protection facilities during 2010, as part of its Environmental Strategy. Under the programme, 110,000 tons of industrial and consumer waste were recycled and neutralized, and greenhouse gas emissions were slashed by 345,700 tons.

Company subsidiaries reduced emissions of atmospheric pollutants from stationary sources by 5%. The smaller environmental impact was achieved by technical retrofitting, an effective system for managing and monitoring environmental activities, and through investment projects.

During 2010, the company conducted shoreline reinforcement work near the lines along Lake Baikal and the Black Sea coast, and overhauled diesel locomotives, switching outdated engines for more modern and environmentally friendly models.

Gas-turbine and dual-mode shunters were used for moving trains, an innovative freight road locomotive was developed and tested, and energy saving measures were adopted, including the installation of LED lighting.

Russian Railways has drawn up and adopted an Environmental Strategy up to 2015 with an outlook to 2030. The document aims for a 35% reduction in the company’s negative environmental impact by 2015, and 70% by 2030.

Rail is recognized throughout the world as one of the most environmentally friendly modes of transport, because the intensity of its energy consumption is significantly lower than that of other forms of transport, for example cars. The environmental advantages of railway transport in Russia are ensured by broad use of electric traction (more than 85% of freight and 80% of passengers), which reduces harmful atmospheric emissions.

Russian Railways plans to buy 1,250 locomotives in 2011-2013

A. Samuel
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President of Russian Railways Vladimir Yakunin announced the plans.

“The locomotive fleet has traditionally been one of the key elements of the network’s operations. Its efficiency and reliability dictates not only the rhythm and results of the company’s work, but also the quality of freight and passenger services”, Vladimir Yakunin said.

The company president said that current reforms of the locomotive fleet should lead to substantially improved operational efficiency, with a 16% increase in locomotive productivity by 2015.

Commenting on the state of the company’s locomotive fleet, Vladimir Yakunin noted that since the founding of Russian Railways, locomotive productivity has increased by 10%. Over the past seven years, the company has acquired more than 2,000 new locomotives, and modernized and extended the service life of more than 3,700 locomotives. Substantial funds have been spent on developing vacation retreats for locomotive crews, as well as rehabilitation centres, and on modernizing and renewing depots.

“Russian Railways is now switching to new principles of partnership with railway equipment producers, harmonized with European standards. These are focused on comprehensive safety parameters, operational readiness, and lifecycle cost of equipment, which will define the company’s technical policies in its relations with workers and producers”, Vladimir Yakunin said.

For example, the electric passenger locomotive EP20 is being developed at Transmashholding’s Novocherkassk Electric Locomotive Plant, in conjunction with Alstom. In November 2010, the Sinara Group and Siemens finished work on a test model of a new-generation 2ES10 electric freight locomotive. In total, Russian Railways plans to buy 1,250 locomotives from 2011 through 2013 at a cost of over 112 billion rubles.

Bombardier Transportation signs agreement with Russian Railways

A. Samuel
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BT Signaling B.V. has signed an agreement to purchase a stake in the signalling equipment manufacturer United Electrical Engineering Plants, known as Elteza. Elteza is a subsidiary of Russian Railways (RZD). Initially, BT Signaling will purchase a 25 per cent stake in Elteza. Following further approval, BT Signaling will increase its stake to nearly 50 per cent. RZD will remain the majority shareholder. The agreement was signed at a ceremony in Moscow on December 13, attended by Pierre Beaudoin, President and CEO of Bombardier Inc. and Vladimir Yakunin, President of Russian Railways.

Elteza is Russia’s largest signalling equipment producer with more than 3,000 employees across seven manufacturing sites. The company focuses on the design, development and production of rail signalling equipment and automatic and remote train control systems which have been delivered in Russia, the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and the Baltic states. The new partnership will be one of the first successful examples of the privatisation of a Russian Railways’ subsidiary and part of the modernization strategy of RZD.

Already strong partners in the signalling sector, Bombardier and RZD have a well established engineering joint venture, Bombardier Transportation (Signal) Ltd., in operation in Moscow since 1996. This partnership has worked in close cooperation with Elteza to equip over 90 Russian stations with BOMBARDIER EBI Lock 950 computer-based interlocking (CBI) technology. This new agreement will lead to the creation of an Elteza department dedicated to new technologies and focusing on the manufacture of products including EBI Lock 950 as well as the latest generation of wayside products.

Commenting on the announcement, André Navarri, President and COO of Bombardier Transportation, said: “This agreement is a landmark for Bombardier Transportation, increasing our already strong presence in the rail control sector in the region and expanding our signalling technology interests.” He added: “We value this opportunity to further develop our presence in Russia but also in CIS and Baltic States.”

Sergey Ermolaev, Chief Country Representative Russia and CIS of Bombardier Transportation, stated: “We have had a strong relationship with RZD for many years and this new agreement further confirms the strong reputation of our technology and our organisation. We are very pleased to be working together on this exciting venture and look forward to continuing to develop our operations in Russia.”

Completion of this transaction is subject to the approval of all required governmental authorities and to other consents and other usual conditions. The transaction is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2011.

First Capital Connect kick starts young footballers’ careers

A. Samuel
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First Capital Connect has donated train season tickets to five young football scholars starting their careers at the Stevenage Football Academy.

The Stevenage FC scholarship is a two-year course for 16 year olds wishing to aspire to become professional footballers. They work throughout the year dividing their time between studying and learning the skills required to become a professional footballer. At the end of the course they can be selected to play for Stevenage, move to another football club or look into becoming coaches.

Five of the students enrolled in the football scholarship live in the London area and are commuting to Hitchin everyday to the North Herts College where the scholars train. In order to help them to achieve their goal of becoming professional football players First Capital Connect has provided them with free travel.

To mark the donation a First Capital Connect team challenged the young footballers to a penalty shoot out and five-a-side match at North Herts College. The FCC team won the penalty shoot out however the football academy team commanded the five-a-side match and won 9-2.

Steve Castle, a train driver manager at First Capital Connect who took part in the football said:

“We are delighted to be able to help out the young footballers at Stevenage Football Academy as they look to start their careers in football. Our team had a great (but exhausting) time playing against the scholars and we were extremely impressed with their football skills. We wish them all the best for their future careers and will certainly look out for their names in the future.”

Jimmy Gilligan, Stevenage Football Academy’s Head of Youth, said:

“On behalf of the academy I would like to thank First Capital Connect for their generosity. The season tickets have made a real difference to the boys and I am pleased they were able to express their gratitude in person.”

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