BOMBARDIER confirmed on October 20 that it has signed a Shekels 1bn ($US 262m) contract with Israel Railways (IR) to supply 62 four-axle Traxx ac electric locomotives with an option for 32 additional units.

ISFAHAN became the fourth Iranian city to open an urban rail network on October 15, when public services began operating on the 11km northern section of metro Line 1 from Shohada in the city centre to Qods.

OMAN Rail, which is developing the country's 2135km railway network, has received bids from eight groups led by international rail operators for the operations and maintenance (O&M) contract for phase 1 of the network.

SAUDI Railway Company (SAR) has placed an order with The Greenbrier Companies, United States, for approximately 1200 tanks wagons to support industrial mining operations led by Ma'aden at Wa'ad Shamal Industrial City in the Sirhan-Turaif region of northern Saudi Arabia.

REPRESENTATIVES of Riyadh's Fast Consortium, Arriyadh Development Authority, and residents of the district of Salah Al-Din attended a ceremony at the site of the future Salah Al-Din station on October 4 to witness the first tunnel boring machine (TBM) breakthrough on Riyadh metro Line 5 (Green Line).

IRJ at railway Interchange: Loram showed its new Shoulder Ballast Cleaner 2400 at the outdoor exhibition area at BNSF's Northtown yard in Minneapolis.
The new machine has enhanced automation and can operate at speeds up to 6.5km/h and in curves of up to 17o. The 15 high-capacity conveyors can process more than 2400m3/h.

Mr Dennis Mathison, Loram's chief engineer, says the objective is to double shoulder cleaning production to allow twice the amount of track to be serviced.

The machine's automation features include a sequential automatic start-up of its digging wheels, conveyors and work mechanisms; automatic digging depth and scarifier control; bulk sensing conveyor flow measurement; an obstacle detection and avoidance system; advanced crossing sequencing capability and an advanced ethernet camera system.

PHASE 1 of Etihad Rail has carried more than 2 million tonnes of sulphur during the first year of trial operation, and full commercial operation of the 264km line linking Shah and Habshan with the port of Ruwais is expected to start soon.

THE Israeli prime minister Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, together with Israel's transport minister Mr Israel Katz, and Israel Railways' general manager Mr Boaz Zafrir, officially opened the 70km Ashkelon - Beer-Sheva line on September 17.

THE first of six passenger trains being built by CAF was handed over by the company's CEO Mr Andres Arizlorret to the chairman of Saudi Railway Company (SAR) Dr Saad A Al Qadhi and SAR's CEO Dr Rumaih Al-Rumaih at the new station in Riyadh.

BORING of 113km of tunnels on the first phase of the Doha metro project has reached the halfway point, according to the managing director of Qatar Rail, Mr Abdulla Al-Subaie.