November 2005 in rail transport

This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in November 2005.

November events

November 1

• - Government officials in China announce plans to privatise the nation's rail network into separate corporations that could be listed on international stock markets. The strategy is to raise money for improvements and expansions to the network, which would increase the amount of track by about 27,000 km (17,000 mi). The plan could lead to partial or complete foreign ownership of some railway lines, but some investors have already raised concerns over the network's regulatory system, especially in regard to the newly independent railways' abilities to raise prices to cover costs. (BBC News)
• - About 1,000 protesters in Milan block the tracks of the railway line connecting Turin, Italy, to Lyon, France. The demonstration, which was timed to coincide with geological surveys along the route by Lyon Turin Ferroviaire (LTF), was intended to protest against planned high-speed rail service along the line; protesters' concerns centered around the environmental impact of the new service, while LTF is the proposed operator of the service. Fifteen trains were cancelled and six others delayed due to the protest. After some clashes between protesters and police, the road to Mount Rocciamelone, where the surveys are taking place, is completely closed to all but the survey crew. (Planet Ark) (AGI)

November 2

• - Viet Nam Railways announces that it has awarded a VND1 trillion (US$63 million) contract to ZTE of China to modernize the railway's telecommunications and signal systems. The project, which has been in planning since 2001, includes upgrading the systems on three lines out of Hanoi as well as several junctions in and around Hanoi. (VietNam News)

November 4

• - BHP Billiton releases a statement saying that exports of iron ore could be delayed if the company is forced to allow access to its Mount Newman rail line in Western Australia to competitor Fortescue Metals Group (FMG). FMG applied to Australia's competition council to gain access to the railway line that runs adjacent to FMG's mine at Mindy Mindy. BHP cites the increased complexity of the system and the high cost of providing such access as barriers to FMG's access, while FMG claims the access would promote industrial expansion in the region. BHP has filed suit in federal court to block the access, and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has yet to rule on the case. (Sydney Morning Herald)
• - The United States Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announces a requirement for increased and more detailed inspections of around 90,000 miles (140,000 km) of track that use continuous welded rail. The inspections are to detect and repair potential problems that involve loose or missing bolts, detectable problems in the rail and other potential hazards. In making the announcement, the FRA and NTSB cite inadequate track inspections as the cause of three major derailments since 2002, including a Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) derailment in January 2002 near Minot, North Dakota, that released a cloud of anhydrous ammonia, and an Amtrak derailment in 2004 near Flora, Mississippi, in which a passenger died. CP disputes inadequate inspections as the cause of the 2002 accident. (AP/Newsday) (FRA)
• - Four labour unions representing railway workers in France announce that they will go on strike on November 21 against SNCF to protest actions that could lead to the privatisation of the rail network. Four other unions have yet to decide if they will join the strike, while the French federal government is trying to assure the unions that privatisation is not being considered for the railway. (AFX/Forbes)

November 7

• - Russian officials announce that projects begun under Joseph Stalin's rule to connect the Siberian Arctic by rail to Moscow may be revived and completed. Construction on the "Railway of Bones", as it has come to be known, was begun with prison labor teams in April 1947, but was abandoned in 1953 after Stalin's death. At least ten people died each day working on the railway's construction. The railway was designed as a means of supplying military posts near the Bering Strait, now the government hopes the line will carry natural resources, such as nickel from Norilsk (which currently accounts for 2% of Russia's gross domestic product). (Mail & Guardian)
• - The extension of Minsk Metro's Avtozavodskaya Line connecting Pushkinskaya to Kamennaya Gorka opens.

November 8

• - Deutsche Bahn (DB), the state railway of Germany, is in talks that could lead to the railway acquiring BAX Global (founded in 1972 as Burlington Northern Air Freight), which saw revenues in 2004 of US$2.44 billion. The Financial Times reports that the purchase price could be as high as $118.2 million. Neither DB nor BAX would comment to reporters on the proposed sale. (Richmond Times Dispatch)

November 9

• - Amtrak's board of directors asks David L. Gunn to step down as president. David Hughes is named as acting president and CEO until a permanent replacement can be appointed. David Laney, Amtrak's chairman, stated "Amtrak's future now requires a different type of leader who will aggressively tackle the company's financial, management and operational challenges. The need to bring fundamental change to Amtrak is greater and more urgent than ever before." The board envisions fundamental changes for the railroad including increasing competition and shared financial responsibilities with states. (Amtrak)

November 11

• - CSX Transportation operates its last train on the Baldwin Subdivision in Michigan. CSX sold the former Pere Marquette Railroad line between Grand Rapids, Ludington and Manistee to the new short-line railroad Marquette Rail.^[1]

November 19

• - Union Pacific Railroad opens the new trench through Reno, Nevada, eliminating several grade crossings through the city's downtown area. Trains are dispatched through the trench at a maximum speed of 60 mph (97 km/h).^[2]

November 22

• - Connecticut officials announce that Eugene Colonese, currently deputy director of operations planning for Metro-North Railroad, will become the state's new rail administrator at the Connecticut Department of Transportation. Colonese fills a vacancy at the agency that was created when Harry Harris and three other DOT employees were suspended during an investigation into state contract finances. One of Colonese's first duties is expected to involve the specification and purchase of 342 new passenger cars for the New Haven Line; the cars are expected to be delivered in the beginning of 2009. (The Advocate)
• - PointShot Wireless of Ottawa announces that they have installed the first trainboard 802.11 wireless access for passengers in North America. The installation will allow commuters on Via Rail trains between Quebec City and Windsor, Ontario, to access the internet from their own hardware while the trains are in motion. (UPI)

November 23

• - Railroad workers across France return to work from a strike action. The labour unions involved in the strike report that they are pleased with concessions agreed to during negotiations on Tuesday and French President Jacques Chirac offered his personal guarantee that SNCF would not be privatised. The strike, the sixth by French rail workers in 2005, suspended one third of all TGV trains across the country. (IHT)

November 26

• - Ferromex purchases the 900-mile (1,400 km) Ferrosur, formerly known as Ferrocarril del Sureste, for US$307 million, making Ferromex the largest railroad in Mexico at 4,900 miles (7,900 km). The two railroads had attempted to merge in 2002 but were denied for antitrust reasons.^[3]
• 

  Seattle Center Monorail accident, November 26.
  - The two trains of the Seattle Center Monorail collide at a "pinch point" (pictured) near the Westlake Center station.

November 30

• - In the Kindu rail accident at least 60 people were killed when they were swept off the roof of a train into the river below as the train crossed a bridge in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
• - United States President George W. Bush signs a transportation appropriations bill into law that includes US$1.3 billion to fund Amtrak, despite the administration's plans earlier in 2005 that would have eliminated all funding for the railroad. Amtrak's appropriation includes $495 million in operating subsidies and $780 million for maintenance of way and repair projects. The bill also included money for several other transportation programs in New Jersey, including a new rail tunnel from New Jersey to Manhattan, an extension of the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail, and repairs and upgrades to Newark Penn Station and Morristown Station. (Newark Star-Ledger)
• - P. Scott Conti succeeds Orville Harrold as president of Providence and Worcester Railroad to fill a vacancy left by Harrold's death earlier in the month.^[4]

References

• AFX News Limited (reprinted by Forbes.com November 4, 2005), Unions call strike against French railway SNCF amid fears of privatisation. Retrieved November 7, 2005.
• Agencia Giornalistica Italia (November 1, 2005), Turin-Milan: Police guard new railway area. Retrieved November 1, 2005.
• Amtrak (November 9, 2005), Amtrak Board Releases Gunn. Retrieved November 9, 2005.
• BBC News (November 1, 2005), China eyes state railway sell off. Retrieved November 1, 2005.
• Fuller, Thomas; International Herald Tribune (November 23, 2005), French railroad workers set to end strike. Retrieved November 23, 2005.
• Ginocchio, Mark; The Advocate (November 23, 2005), DOT puts railroad veteran Colonese in key position. Retrieved November 23, 2005.
• Jalonick, Mary Clare; Associated Press (reprinted at Newsday.com November 4, 2005), Agency Calls for More Railroad Inspections. Retrieved November 7, 2005.
• Newark Star-Register, reprinted by Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (December 1, 2005), Bush, in reversal, clears $1.3B in aid to Amtrak. Retrieved December 2, 2005.
• Planet Ark (reprinted from Reuters November 1, 2005), Environmental Protesters Block French-Italian Railway. Retrieved November 1, 2005.
• Richmond Times Dispatch (November 8, 2005), German railway eyes BAX Global. Retrieved November 8, 2005.
• Sydney Morning Herald (November 4, 2005), Iron ore export at risk, warns BHP. Retrieved November 7, 2005.
• United Press International (November 22, 2005), Wireless access set for Canadian railroad. Retrieved November 23, 2005.
• United States Federal Railroad Administration (November 4, 2005), Train Derailments Lead to More Detailed and Frequent Inspections of Railroad Track Joint Bars. Retrieved November 7, 2005.
• VietNam News (November 3, 2005), Chinese firm wins $63m railway bid. Retrieved November 3, 2005.
• Walsh, Nick Paton; Mail & Guardian (November 7, 2005), Plans to revive 'railway of bones'. Retrieved November 7, 2005.

1. ↑ "Exit CSX, enter Marquette Rail". Trains Magazine. Vol. 66 no. 3. March 2006. p. 15. ISSN 0041-0934. 
2. ↑ "Trains are rolling through the Reno trench". Trains Magazine. Vol. 66 no. 3. March 2006. p. 9. ISSN 0041-0934. 
3. ↑ "Abandonments & Acquisitions". Trains Magazine. Vol. 66 no. 3. March 2006. p. 15. ISSN 0041-0934. 
4. ↑ "Arrivals & Departures". Trains Magazine. Vol. 66 no. 3. March 2006. p. 11. ISSN 0041-0934.