Aluminium cables deter metal theft in Norway N
ORWEGIAN infrastructure manager Jernbaneverket says it has successfully trialled aluminium lineside cabling on the Oslo - Ski - Halden Østfold line in an initiative which aims to tackle the problem of cable theft. According to
Jernbaneverket, criminals targeting traditional copper cable have been deterred by the new cabling, which has a toughened plastic coating that
can only be stripped using specialist tools. Furthermore, aluminium has only around a quarter of the scrap value of copper.
“This has been enormously inspiring for us, we see that it works, and it really pays to test new options,” says Østfold line power supply manager Mr Jan Prang. “Copper thefts cost the railway a lot of money and if we install aluminium cables in
SBB launches Re460 overhaul project: Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) plans to carry out heavy overhauls in its own workshops on its entire fleet of 119 Re460 electric locomotives by 2022 in a SFr 230m ($US 238m) programme designed to extend their life by 20 years. The first prototype is due to be finished at the end of 2015. The 200km/h four-axle locomotives, which entered service in the early 1990s, will have upgraded driver’s cabs, new power converters to cut energy consumption and new compressors. Photo: David Gubler
the most vulnerable locations we can redirect our spending to maintenance activities.” Jernbaneverket says it has experienced six incidents of cable theft this year on the Sarpsborg - Skjeberg section of the line alone.
Following the success of the trial, which began in April, the cables will now undergo type approval to allow their use across the Norwegian railway network.
N an effort to make transport ticketing simpler and easier for passengers across Europe, representatives from four ticketing standards bodies and the International Public Transport Association (UITP) have founded the Smart Ticketing Alliance which they hope will provide a basis for improved European and global cooperation. VDV-KA, Germany, Itso, Britain, AFIMB, France, Calypso Networks and the UITP have all agreed to and signed the Smart Ticketing Alliance Charter which establishes a trust scheme that mirrors similar agreements in
IRJ August 2013
European Smart Ticketing Alliance agreed I
the mobile phone and banking industries, among others. The agreement follows a Memorandum of
Understanding signed in February 2012 which committed the alliance to cooperate on developing smart ticketing based on the principles of Interoperable Fare Management (IFM) set out in the EU-IFM Project funded by the European Commission.
They would also proceed with further developments in using contactless bankcards and Near Field Communication- enabled (NFC) devices, particularly mobile phones, for
transport ticketing purposes. The main goals of the
alliance are: cooperation between national and regional smart ticketing schemes to establish interoperable smart ticketing
in Europe and elsewhere to produce the functional and technical requirements for
smart ticketing interoperability cooperation on the establishment of trust schemes, specifications and
certification, and cooperation with other European and international bodies to promote interoperability in smart ticketing.
KL - Singapore HS tender due next year
T
HE CEO of Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Commission (Spad), Mr Mohd Nur Kamal, says he expects tenders to be invited for a high-speed line to link Kuala Lumpur with Singapore by the end of next year. Malaysian prime minister Mr Najib Tun Razak and his Singaporean counterpart Mr Lee Hsien Loong pledged in February to build the railway by 2020. Technical studies are already underway for the Ringgits 40bn ($US 12.7bn) scheme which involves constructing a 330km standard-gauge line from Kuala Lumpur via Seremban, and then following a route via the coastal towns of Melaka and Batu Pahat to Johor Bahru, Malaysia’s most southerly city, and Singapore. A maximum speed in excess of 300km/h is envisaged to achieve a journey time of around 90 minutes. This would be highly competitive with air, and much quicker than using the current metre- gauge train service which operates over a 397km route and takes 6h 11min.
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