UK is putting on hold further expansion of electrification due to cost over runs and lack of supplies. Also note that article states system is at capacity much of day. That may be the reason that supplies are in short supply ?
Even Cuba is getting into the act of improviing RRs. They are closing Havana station for reconstruction. Article also lists several route rojects to decrease travel time. Maybe this is in anticipation of thawed cuba - US relations ?
What is probably to become a regular happening China just opened another ( 300 KPH ) HSR rail line. Article notes that 86% of route is in tunnels or on bridges.
http://www.railjournal.com/index.php/asia/china-opens-hefei-fuzhou-high-speed-line.html?channel=540
Probably so. The embassies are scheduled to open soon.
Not surprising to me. What might be highly interesting: look at the topo and compare it with either the ‘revised’ White Train route or the parts of the ‘second spine’ route in New England. Then see if the ‘86%’ of tunnels and bridges have length and heights respectively that are comparable to what the American routes would require…
505 miles in rugged terrain, built in 5 years. The trains take under 4 hours. I believe the terrain north of Fuzhou is more rugged than the New England routes would be, for the most part. The highest mountain is over 7,000 feet high. Fujian province is said to be “Eight parts mountain, one part water, and one part farmland.”
World HSR summary by railway gazette. Of course China leads. But interesting who USA lags behind.
Why is that surprising? We lag behind many countries on HSR.
HSR line Hong Kong - mainland overbudget and delayed. Guess not all China projects get fast tracked/
A surprize China’s population likes to tour country on HSR
Again, why is that surprising? The route serves several well-known tourist destinations, such as legendary mountains. And some of the tourists will be foreigners, including “overseas Chinese.”
China starts testing another HSR line.
Why not buy HSR train sets in bulk ? Then just pawn off a few to offer to US. China putting out tender for 351 train sets.
China is spending about 4 times what all US RRs including Amtrak this year.
Actually this is a little misleading. They are putting the projects up north on hold in order to concentrate on on electrifying the Great Western Main. This is required to make sure it’s in place for the upcoming HST replacement trains.
Ah it seems that China wishes to keep its 1st place on HSR networks, both construction and operation. Anyway, also in Spain - they also want to keep their 2nd place in the ‘HSR network contest’ - two new streches of HSR are also being redied for opening, both in the North of the country. Both are sections of the North high speed Corridor.
The first of it links the present end of the line at Valladolid with Leon. As a cost saving measure, part of it was build in single track (but with space for a second track already built) and as on this phase ERTMS will not be installed, top speed will be limited to 200 Km/h (125 Mph) since the only cab signal system installed is the so called ‘Asfa digital’. However, with ERTMS installed, and maybe a second main track in place, top speed may reach a maximum of 350 km/h. Here’s some info (quite complete, it even mentions the maximum speeds of operation), in spanish only ; https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Línea_de_alta_velocidad_Valladolid-Palencia-León
A video of the tests depicting Adif Talgo test train (from the same family of the newest Cascades) ;
The Valladllid to Leon HSR section is expected to open in September.
The other HSR section wich will start to be tested soon is the Galicia branch, starting at Olmedo. On the 7th of august a section fo Oledmo to a point just north of Zamora will be opened for test runs with catenary already energized (electrified on 2X25 Kv)
A strange accident with a Spanish AVE train in France, and not the first time it happens. ee here ;http://www.trenvista.net/noticias/europa/francia/arde-un-ave-serie-100-en-lunel-francia/
Luckily only two passengers (?) went tothe hospital. I wonder why the lead car caught on fire?
For me it’s even stranger. This kind of EMU is not different from other TGV type trains in use in France. It’s basically equal to TGV-atlantique type Sets. Well, maybe a little different because these sets - numbered 017 to 024 - were originally broad gauge an dwre built to be used on the Express services between Barcelona, Valencia and Alicante, later being converted to standard gauge (when tthe international conection between Spain and France opened), in order to be used on international services: Originally thhesee setes wer also dual current, operating under 3 Kv dc and 25 Kv ac, being converted to operate under 1,5 Kv ac, in order to be ‘coompatible’ with the french electrification. Since its not the first time one of these power cars caughts fire, maybe the problem lies in the way the trains were converted to operate under 1,5 Kv, in wich current intensity is much higher tahn under 3 Kv. There are other ‘tri-current’ TGV type sets operating, notably between France and _Italy with the same voltage ‘arrangement’, so maybe these spanish trains were not properly converted, a strange situation, since it was done by its original maker, just a guess
Japan is getting plans started on final section of 5 HSR lines planned back in 1973. This leg to Osaka.