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In brief

19/12/2017

Alstom to develop control system for French railways

ALSTOM and SNCF Réseau are working together to develop and deploy new regulation and control systems for railway traffic.

After calling for tenders in 2016, SNCF Réseau has selected Alstom to design a new operational traffic management tool. Alstom will provide its Iconis system, which detects and offers solutions to manage traffic conflicts while anticipating the impact of disruptions.

Iconis combines the reliability of a standardised solution with the flexibility required for all future evolutions. It is already in use on 15,000km of track worldwide and will be adapted to the French network.

Initially, Iconis will be deployed on the railway lines connecting Paris, Lyon and Marseille, with commissioning planned for 2019.

SNCF Réseau has launched an extensive program to modernise operational traffic management with a view to supervising train movements both in normal conditions and during disruptions. The aim of the program is to improve traffic regularity, incident management and the information provided by rail companies.

Operational traffic management is currently organised on three levels: the national centre for traffic operations, the 21 regional operational centres and signal boxes at the local level.

Within the SNCF Group, SNCF Réseau has the role of developing, modernising and marketing access to the national rail network. SNCF Réseau is responsible for ensuring safety and performance on 30,000km of line, including 2600km of high-speed line.

In brief

12/12/2017

Australian flavour for Asia Pacific Rail in Hong Kong

TWO Australians have been added to the line-up of confirmed speakers for next year’s Asia Pacific Rail conference in Hong Kong.

The event will take place on 21-23 March 2018.

Those giving presentations will include:

Jeroen Weimar, chief executive officer, Public Transport Victoria (PTV): Melbourne has witnessed an almost 50 per cent increase in public transport use over the past decade, leading the government to invest billions of dollars to improve the city’s train, tram and bus networks. The large-scale modernisation program was driven by the rapid urbanisation of metropolitan Melbourne. While this presents a huge opportunity for PTV and the city to establish themselves as global leaders in public transport, the authorities will need to manage disruptions caused by upgrading works.
Stewart Mills, executive director – engineering and maintenance, Sydney Trains: In Sydney, Transport for NSW is similarly committing a large investment to upgrade rail infrastructure, enabling extra services to be delivered across the network and for the network to operate at even greater capacity. Mr Mills heads the engineering and maintenance directorate which manages a $1.1 billion annual maintenance program on behalf of Sydney Trains and NSW Trains to deliver a safe, reliable passenger fleet and metropolitan rail network.

Industry pushes government for national rail plan

AUSTRALASIAN Railway Association (ARA) representatives met Commonwealth ministers in Canberra on 12 September to discuss the need for clear direction on rail nationally.

“It was a significant day for the rail industry as we build momentum for a National Rail Industry Plan, and meeting with Commonwealth ministers is our first step,” said ARA chief executive officer, Danny Broad said.

“The rail industry makes a significant contribution to the Australian economy. Investment in rail by Australian governments will be in the order of $100 billion through to 2030.

“We met with Commonwealth ministers to say ‘We need a plan to co-ordinate this effort and we need your support’.

“Through better co-ordination and long-term certainty, we can ensure the industry is well positioned to take advantage of all the lessons from the past and position ourselves for the future.

“The Commonwealth Government will be investing $89b in naval shipbuilding through to 2055.

“This investment will be supported by a Naval Shipbuilding Plan. Rail’s contribution to Australia is no less than shipbuilding.

“Next we will be meeting with state and territory governments, as well as Opposition representatives, to discuss our plan, seeking their support. To get this right we really need a combined effort by Commonwealth, state and territory government, as well as industry support.

“The emphasis of any National Rail Industry Plan will need to include five key areas of focus:

recognising the importance of rail for Australia’s infrastructure development, urban planning and freight movements;
harmonising standards, minimising regulations and maximising economies of scale;
growing the capabilities of individuals and companies;
maximising opportunities for rail companies; and
fostering innovation, research and development,” Mr Broad said.

Regional business to build bogies for Melbourne HCMT

EVOLUTION Rail consortium member CRRC has awarded Victorian regional company, Hofmann Engineering, the contract to manufacture and supply more than 900 bogie frames for the Victorian Government’s High Capacity Metro Trains (HCMT) project.

After a competitive evaluation process which included technical, commercial and local content considerations, the bogie frames will be built using 87 per cent Victorian local content and will create 30 jobs for Hoffman Engineering in Bendigo.

“The Evolution Rail consortium – comprising Plenary, Downer and CRRC – is proud to be partnering with Victoria on the HCMT project to build the new state-of-the-art fleet that will be among the best in the world,” Phillip Walker, Evolution Rail CEO, said.

“The HCMT project is creating new opportunities for local businesses like Hofmann Engineering, creating jobs for the future and supporting the growth of a sustainable and globally competitive rail manufacturing industry.”
The HCMT fleet will be built with 60pc local content.

Businesses wanting to be a part of the HCMT project can visit the Industry Capability Network website www.gateway.icn.org.au.

Evolution Rail has been contracted by the Victorian Government via a public-private partnership to deliver the HCMT Project.

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