MRT Jakarta has awarded the final civil works contracts for the Indonesian capital's first metro line allowing construction to start next month.

 

A Yen 35bn ($US 353.8m) contract to construct three elevated sections has gone to a Japanese-Indonesian consortium of Tokyu-Wika and Obayashi-Shimizu-Jaya Construction. Tokyu-Wika has also won two construction packages worth Yen 25bn, while Obayashi-Shimizu-Jaya Construction was awarded a Yen 10bn contact for another section. The first civil works contracts were awarded in June.

 

"With the completion of the tenders, we are upbeat that the MRT project will be realised," says Mr Dono Boestami, president-director of MRT Jakarta, although the system and rolling stock tenders are still be evaluated.

 

The 15.2km line will link to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle with Lebak Bulus in southern Jakarta. It will have a 9.2km underground section with six stations while the rest of the line will be elevated with seven stations. The metro is due to open in 2017, and services will initially operate at five-minute headways. Ridership is expected to reach 420,000 passengers per day after three years of operation.

 

 

 

 

 

TEST running started today on the first metro line to be built in the northern Chinese city of Harbin, where temperatures can plunge to -38oC.

 

The 17.5km line with 18 stations connects the city's two main line stations, East and South. The line partly uses a former air-defence evacuation tunnel built during the Second World War.

 

CNR Changchun Railway Vehicles has supplied a fleet of 17 six-car trains which have been fitted with special insulation to withstand the extreme cold. The trains have aluminium alloy car bodies and each set comprises four motored cars and two trailers. Bombardier supplied the traction and auxiliary systems as well as the train control equipment.

 

Harbin has a population of more than 10 million, and two more metro lines are planned with a view to creating an 89.6km network by 2018.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A ceremony was held in Rajin, North Korea, on September 22 to mark the reopening of the cross-border line from Hasan, Russia.

 

The ceremony was attended by the president of Russian Railways (RZD) Mr Vladimir Yakunin, North Korea's Minister of Railways Mr Jeong Gil Su, and Russian Deputy Transport Minister Mr Alexei Tsydenov.

 

According to Russian Railways (RZD), the Roubles 9bn ($US 283m) project involved relaying 54km of dual-gauge (1520mm and 1435mm-gauge) track and the refurbishment or replacement of 18 bridges, 12 culverts, and three tunnels with a combined length of 4.5km. A new intermodal terminal has also been constructed at Rajin, which is situated in North Korea's Rason Special Economic Zone.

 

Speaking at the ceremony, RZD president Mr Vladimir Yakunin said annual freight volumes are forecast to reach four million tonnes within two years.

 

 

 

  

 

INDIAN Railways (IR) is working on plans to adopt Common Rail Electronic Direct Fuel Injection (CREDI) technology for diesel locomotives with the aim of reducing fuel costs for its 4500-strong fleet.

 

A prototype unit is being developed by Ganser Common Rail Systems, Switzerland, and is due to make its first run next March. IR plans to equip 50 locomotives with CREDI by end 2014. The cost of equipping each locomotive is expected to be around Rs 5m ($US 100,000).

 

IR says it estimates that equipping the entire fleet will generate annual savings of Rs 6bn on its Rs 160bn diesel bill and reduce emissions by 30%.

 

Diesel prices have risen several times since January, when the government permitted the state-run oil companies to fix diesel prices independently, and IR has struggled to accommodate the higher costs, which cannot be offset by increased fares.

 

In recent months, IR been experimenting with a series of technologies to cut costs, and it has appointed Westport Innovations, Canada, to convert a locomotive to run on Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) – which it is hoped will bring down fuel costs by up to 40%. Initial plans are to build 20 LNG-variant locomotives, and the contract for the first new-build prototype is likely to be awarded shortly.

 

IR is also looking at the use of genset locomotives as well as Auxiliary Power Units (APU), which are estimated to generate savings of approximately Rs 2m per locomotive per year. On an APU-equipped locomotive, the main power unit shuts down after 10 minutes of idling and all systems are powered by the much smaller APU, which consumes just 3 litres of diesel per hour, compared with 25 litres per hour for an average-sized diesel engine.

 

 

 

 

DUBAI Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has reportedly finalised plans for the extension of its two existing driverless metro lines with the aim of completing both projects by 2020.

 

According to local media reports, Mr Abdullah Yousuf Al Ali, acting CEO of the RTA's rail division, says that studies are currently being carried out on the 12km extension of the Red Line from Rashidiya to Mirdif and the 24km Green Line extension from the existing Creek terminus in Al Jaddaf to Academic City. Both projects are included in the RTA's rail masterplan and construction is expected to begin next year.

 

The Red Line extension will serve newly-built areas of the city, such as Shurooq and Al Mizhar, while the new section of the Green Line will connect Ras Al Khor Industrial Area, International City, and Silicon Oasis to the metro network.

 

The 75km network currently carries around 366,000 passengers per day.

 

 

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URUGUAY Trains (TDU) has put forward plans to two local authorities to reintroduce a passenger rail service between Montevideo and Minas following completion of a feasibility study. The mayor of Canelones, one of the two local authorities, has already pledged his support.

 

TDU has also started negotiations with the National Railway Authority (DNTF) to gain to access to the line, which it says is in reasonable condition. TDU has been offered a US Budd diesel railcar and is trying to raise funding to acquire it.

 

The feasibility study conducted by the Grupo del Sur consultancy estimates that with four round trips a day, the service could attract 280,000 passengers a year. An internal rate of return of 26% and a net present value of $US 1.38m are forecast.

 

The line last carried passenger trains in 1988, but the population has grown considerably since then leading to severe road congestion. The line would serve several towns and has a potential catchment of around 85,000 people.

 

TDU was set up in 2010 as a cooperative to operate passenger and freight trains using its own or leased rolling stock. It is being supported by the Swiss based International Cooperative for Developing Latin-American Railways (Aiffla).

 

 

 

 

The new Chinese ambassador to Thailand insisted yesterday that rail-link cooperation with the mainland would be advantageous for Thailand and the region.

 

In his first press conference since taking the post in Bangkok last month, Ambassador Ning Fukui said: "This is one of the four major projects China will be pushing in the future". Other bilateral cooperation would include education, new energy and water management, he said. The ambassador said China's prosperity would also be linked to the development of its neighbours.

 

Trade between China and the ASEAN was worth US$400 billion (Bt12.5 trillion) in 2012, and the aim is to boost the value of trade to $1 trillion by 2020.

 

Beijing has been pushing for an ambitious Trans-Asian Railway link with Southeast Asia, which it says will offer great economic advantages to the ASEAN bloc.

 

"We have had close cooperation between the Chinese and Thai sides, but it's still in the stage of consultation," the ambassador said.

 

He added that cooperating over the high-speed rail link with China would be positive in many ways, given Beijing's ability to build bullet trains, that are already popular in China, as well as low construction costs. Thailand also stood to gain due to its location.

 

Ambassador Ning also spoke of Beijing's determination to push for stronger ties with the Kingdom, adding that large Chinese firms were planing to boost investment in Thailand in the near future. The envoy said Chinese PM Li Keqiang would visit ASEAN next month.

 

The government will turn its attention to building the US$7 billion Boten-Vientiane railway, to link the Lao capital with the Chinese border, according to the government spokesperson.

 

Speaking at a media conference following the government's open meeting that ended on Friday, Ms Bounpheng Mounphosay said the five-day meeting had adopted an infrastructure development strategy on land, air and water transportation.

 

Regarding rail development, the strategy prioritises the development of a rail network to connect with others in the region and sub-region.

 

“Our particular focus is to build a rail link between Boten and Vientiane,” Ms Bounpheng told the conference. Ms Bounpheng's announcement comes shortly before the planned visit to China by President Choummaly Sayasone.

 

Choummaly, who is also Secretary General of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, will pay an official visit to China from September 26 to 30 in response to an invitation from his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

 

The topics slated for discussed by the two presidents have not been identified, although Vientiane is reportedly seeking financing from Beijing to build the 421 km high-speed railway.

 

Chinese ambassador to Laos Guan Huabing said last week his government attaches great importance to working with Laos to develop the railway.

 

The ambassador made the comment during an interview with Chinese and Lao media at the embassy in Vientiane ahead of China's National Day on October 1 and President Choummaly's visit to China.

 

Guan said “The determination of the Chinese government to push for the construction of the railway remains unchanged.”

 

He said both sides were looking at the details as they explore a win-win form of cooperation. Construction of the Boten-Vientiane railway was delayed following changes to the initial joint-venture plan between Vientiane and Beijing.

 

Laos and China planned to jointly undertake the project, with China to put up 70 per cent of the investment cost. A groundbreaking ceremony was planned for 2011 with a completion date in 2015, but the ceremony did not take place.

 

The project was delayed after the Chinese construction company reportedly pulled out. However, the Lao government is determined to bring the project to fruition and still hopes to obtain financing from Beijing following parliament's approval.

 

The planned railway would form part of the Asean-China rail link, which begins in Yunnan province, China, and runs southwards to Singapore through Laos, Thailand and Malaysia. The Lao government wants to build the railway as part of efforts to turn the landlocked country into a land link within the region.

 

In November last year, the government signed a contract with a Malaysian investor to build a US$5 billion railway linking Savannakhet province to Laobao on the Vietnamese border over a distance of 220km.

 

Laos' only existing rail link consists of a 3.5 km track linking Vientiane to Nong Khai province in Thailand.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shanghai Metro turnover hit a new record high in history yesterday, the last work day before the Mid-Autumn Festival, with about 8.67 million riders transported by the tube network, city subway operator announced today.

 

Many downtown malls offered holiday shopping discounts. And 50%-off discounts also happened to be offered at many local sightseeing spots for Shanghai Tourism Festival yesterday. The factors combined had increased Metro travel demand, the operator said.

 

More riders brought to the network by the newly opened second phase of Metro Line 11 also contributed to the new record, said the Metro management.

 

Metro authority estimated the next subway travel peak would fall on September 30 with the approaching of the National Day Holiday with traffic surpassing 8 million people again.

 

As city Metro network continues to expand, it's expected that the single-day Metro turnover would hit 9 million before the end of this year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A subway system that can move 5.1 million people every weekday with an on-time performance of 99.9 percent certainly deserves to call itself “one of the world’s leading railways.”

 

But Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is doing something odd for an urban rapid transit system — even more odd than being on time. It’s exporting its brand as one of the world’s best metros and super-efficient services to cities around the world.

 

As the Wall Street Journal reports, MTR already runs rail lines in mainland China, Australia, and Europe and exports its trademarked door chimes. And now it’s looking to build on that growth with rail projects from Germany to Sydney to London’s Crosscut commuter rail project. It’s rare to see a city expand its mass transportation system to other cities around the world, but then again, MTR isn’t your typical urban transit system.

 

While MTR isn’t able to reach Hong Kong’s impressive on-time performance of 99.9 percent in other cities, its ability to improve existing lines is quite remarkable. According to WSJ, the London Overground, run by MTR, had an on-time performance of 96.7 percent over the last 12 months compared to 88.4 percent in 2007, before MTR took over. The same happened with the Melbourne Metro which increased on-time performance from 84.6 percent in 2009 to 93.7 percent last August.

 

With a track record like that, don’t be surprised to see MTR win more bids in more cities to run rail services.

 

 

 

 

 

The Jaipur Metro Rail Corporation (JMRC) selects Continental Engineering Corporation (CEC), a Taiwan-based company, to construct Metro project phase I (B), proposed from Badi Chaupar to Chandpole and based on an engineering-procurement-construction (EPC) model.

 

The company has quoted that the construction of underground corridor and two Metro stations will be done at a cost of Rs 507 crore. Earlier, the JMRC has estimated Rs 554 as cost of the project. The selection of CEC will now save approximately 10% of the state government's money.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Delhi Metro officials were carrying out routine inspections at the Noida City Centre station on September 16, when they found that a part of the platform had sagged and cracks had appeared in it.

 

Similar cracks were seen on the other end of the platform. More than a week and rigorous investigations later, Delhi Metro says it is yet to identify the reason for the mysterious sagging.

 

 

 

China's railways will carry more than 10 million passengers on peak days during the upcoming week-long National Day Holiday, official media said today.

 

From September 28 to October 7, the daily passenger volume will reach 8.1 million on average, up by 10.9 per cent, or an increment of 5.73 million passengers from a year earlier, China Railway Corporation said in a statement today.