THE INTERNATIONAL LIGHT RAIL MAGAZINE www.lrta.org www.tautonline.com MAY 2017 NO. 953 KEEPING RUNNING IN EXTREME WEATHER Los Angeles: Measure M funding boosts LRT expansion Terror targets the St Petersburg Metro US draft budget freezes out transit 14 hurt as Hong Kong tram overturns UK tram-train Chaos theory 05> £4.40 Under scrutiny yet Making sense of the looking to 2018 Charleroi Metro 9 771460 832050 Phil Long “A great event, really well organised and the dinner, reception and exhibition space made for great networking time.” Andy Byford – CEO, Toronto Transit Commission MANCHESTER “I really enjoyed the conference and made some helpful contacts. Thanks for bringing such a professional event together.” 18-19 July 2017 Will Marshall – Siemens Mobility USA Topics and themes for 2017 include: > Rewriting the business case for light rail investment > Cyber security – Responsibilities and safeguards > Models for procurement and resourcing strategies > Safety and security: Anti-vandalism measures > Putting light rail at the heart of the community > Digitisation and real-time monitoring > Street-running safety challenges > Managing obsolescence > Next-generation driver aids > Wire-free solutions > Are we delivering the best passenger environments? > Composite and materials technologies > From smartcard to smartphone ticketing > Rail and trackform innovation > Traction energy optimisation and efficiency > Major project updates Confirmed speakers include: > Paolo Carbone – Head of Public Transport Capital Programmes, Transport Infrastructure Ireland > Geoff Inskip – Chairman, UKTram > Jane Cole – Managing Director, Blackpool Transport > Allan Alaküla – Head of Tallinn EU Office, City of Tallinn > Andres Muñoz de Dios – Director General, MetroTenerife > Tobyn Hughes – Managing Director (Transport Operations), North East Combined Authority > Alejandro Moreno – Alliance Director, Midland Metro Alliance > Ana M. Moreno - General Manager, Tranvía Zaragoza > David Hand – Divisional Director and LRT Group Practice Leader, Mott MacDonald > Peter Jones – Project Director, MPT Consortium > Dr Nick Mallinson – Programme Manager, > David Favest – Marketing Director, STIB-MIVB HVM Catapult, University of Warwick > Trevor Dowens – Principal Consultant, Ricardo Rail “Once again your team have proved your outstanding capabilities. > Derek Small – Engineering Director, SYSTRA The content was excellent and the > David Sidebottom – Passenger feedback from participants was great.” Team Director, Transport Focus Simcha Ohrenstein – CTO, Jerusalem LRT SUPPORTED BY ORGANISED BY www.mainspring.co.uk CONTENTS The official journal of the Light Rail Transit Association MAY 2017 Vol. 80 No. 953 www.tautonline.com EDITORIAL 169 EDITOR Simon Johnston E-mail: [email protected] 13 Orton Enterprise Centre, Bakewell Road, Peterborough PE2 6XU, UK 172 ASSOCIATE EDITOR Tony Streeter E-mail: [email protected] WORLDWIDE EDITOR Michael Taplin Flat 1, 10 Hope Road, Shanklin, Isle of Wight PO37 6EA, UK. E-mail: [email protected] NEWS EDITOR John Symons 17 Whitmore Avenue, Werrington, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffs ST9 0LW, UK. E-mail: [email protected] SENIOR CONTRIBUTOR Neil Pulling WORLDWIDE CONTRIBUTORS 180 Tony Bailey, James Chuang, Paul Nicholson, Richard Felski, Ed Havens, Bill Vigrass, Andrew Moglestue, NEWS 164 SNOW CLEARANCE... RUSSIAN STYLE 180 Mike Russell, Nikolai Semyonov, Vic Simons, St Petersburg bomb kills 14 and injures Mike Russell looks at how tramway Herbert Pence, Alain Senut, Thomas Wagner. 55 more; ‘Skinny budget’ presents a bleak operators cope when snow, ice and serious PRODUCTION Lanna Blyth future for future US rail funding; TfWM to sub-zero temperatures are a way of life. Tel: +44 (0)1733 367604 E-mail: [email protected] bring Midland Metro operations in house DESIGN in 2018; LA confirms CRRC metro order. SYSTEMS FACTFILE: CHARLEROI 184 Debbie Nolan Neil Pulling visits one of the world’s more ADVERTISING TRAM-TRAIN UNDER SCRUTINY 169 bizarre LRT systems – a hybrid light metro COMMERCIAL MANAGER The latest developments from the UK’s developed from a chaotic programme. Geoff Butler most high-profile light rail project. Tel: +44 (0)1733 367610 E-mail: [email protected] WORLDWIDE REVIEW 189 PUBLISHER LA LIGHT RAIL REVISITED 172 Montreal edges closer to full light metro Howard Johnston Vic Simons returns to LA to explore the funding; Foshan signs up for fuel cell- Tramways & Urban Transit is jointly published by the LRTA and LRTA Publishing on the third Friday of each latest Streetcar and Metro progress. powered trams; CRRC orders in Shijiazhuang, month preceding the cover date. Mashhad and Philadelphia; Olsztyn LRTA WEBSITE AND DIARY WHY THE WEATHER MATTERS 176 confirms plans for two new tram routes. Brian Lomas Scott McIntosh considers how climate E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] change is forcing a rethink on rail operations. MAILBOX 195 LRTA MEMBERSHIP (with TAUT subscription) Tram glazing, tram-train and technology. Tramways & Urban Transit is sent free to all paid-up MAGDEBURG REBUILDS 178 members of the Light Rail Transit Association. Tony Streeter revisits the German tramway CLASSIC TRAMS: WASHINGTON PT. 2 196 SUBSCRIPTIONS AND MEMBERSHIP ENQUIRIES devastated by flooding in 2013 – and finds Mike Russell continues his review of Yakima, LRTA Membership Secretary (Dept T06), 38 Wolseley Road, Sale M33 7AU, UK. that much is still to be done. which has now gained national recognition. Tel: +44 (0)117 951 7785 BACK ISSUES Tel: +44 (0)117 951 7785 Keeping moving in the worst of circumstances PRINT AND DISTRIBUTION It is with a heavy heart that the opening theme of the May 2017 edition is Warners (Midlands) plc, The Maltings, West Street, Bourne, Lincs PE10 9PH, UK. Tel: +44 (0)1778 391000. the same as that of May 2016 – terror attacks on a major urban rail system. LRTA REGISTERED OFFICE Although the city may have changed, the effects remain the same – 14 lives c/o 138 Radnor Avenue, Welling, Kent DA16 2BY, UK. were lost and countless more were changed forever by the events on the St Private company limited by guarantee, No. 5072319 Petersburg Metro on 3 April. Yet again the operator was powerless to stop it. in England and Wales. Terrorism is far from a modern phenomenon, but packed cities bring with them LRTA CHAIRMAN greater opportunities for wreaking havoc. Maintaining ease of access is a prerequisite Andrew Braddock for all mass transit, but without tighter security how else do you prevent such attacks? E-mail: [email protected] The last month has also seen transport services around the world cancelled or delayed LRTA DEPUTY CHAIRMAN by a very different kind of disruption – the weather. Planning for such events is a tricky Paul Rowen business as one day the sun can be shining and 24 hours later powerful winds, heavy rain LRTA PUBLISHING REGISTERED OFFICE c/o 8 Berwick Place, Welwyn Garden City, Herts AL7 4TU, and storms can be tearing timetables apart. This issue we have a number of case studies UK. Private Limited Company, No. 06169422 of the effects of extreme weather and also offer a few solutions – some involve advanced in England and Wales. technology, others just someone with a warm coat, strong boots and a big shovel... © LRTA Publishing 2017 Lastly, this month we were extended an invitation to meet with the project team Articles are submitted on the understanding they may also delivering the UK’s tram-train pilot. Here’s a little of what we learned: the vehicles are later be used on our websites or other media. A contribution is accepted on the basis that its author is responsible for the undergoing daytime testing on Sheffield’s tramway, so far with no major issues; the opinions expressed in it, and such opinions are not those of worksites we visited showed that large sections of infrastructure are nearing completion; LRTA Publishing or the LRTA. All rights reserved. operational planning and scheduling with heavy rail services are being fine-tuned. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in When it came to discussing where the delays have come in this long-running any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and programme to blend tramway and heavy rail, many of the answers could be predicted, retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from but a few were surprising. After nearly eight years of development, we look forward the copyright owner. Multiple copying of the contents of the to sampling the first operations in 2018 – and hope beyond hope that now the most magazine without prior written approval is not permitted. complex hoops have been navigated we will see a real future for the mode in the UK soon. The industry is watching with interest... Simon Johnston, Editor COVER: Magnitogorsk snowbroom hard at work at ulitsa Sovyetskaya on 7 February 2016. Maxim Zasov www.tautonline.com . www.lrta.org MAY 2017 / 163 News St Petersburg Metro attacks kill 14 Devastating terror attack hits early afternoon M2 service, second device disarmed ourteen passengers were aftermath and security was killed and another 55 increased at major transportation injured in an explosion facilities across the country. on a St Petersburg M2 Surface transportation in Fmetro train travelling between St Petersburg was declared free Tekhnologischevsky Institut for the remainder of the day. and Sennaya Ploschad stations Although no immediate claim at 14.40 on 3 April. The train of responsibility was made, had just entered a tunnel Russian President Vladimir Putin between the two stations, when emphasised that it is likely it was the homemade bomb, filled a terrorist attack. A 22-year-old with shrapnel, exploded. The native of former Soviet state explosion was not powerful Kyrgystan was later named as the enough to derail the train, but principal suspect in the attacks. Following the closure of the St Petersburg metro following an explosion on 3 was designed for maximum The last major terrorist April, all surface transport was declared fare-free for the remainder of the day – casualties, authorities reported. attacks in a Russian city were in 71-631 low-floor tram 7412 is seen picking up crowds in Ulitsa Sadovaya.