MEARP E-NEWSLETTER APRIL 2022

E-NEWSLETTER

APRIL ISSUE 2022

MIDDLE EAST ASSOCIATION

OF RAILWAY PROFESSIONALS

1-SAUDI ARABIA SEEKS PRIVATE PARTNERS FOR FUTURE RAILWAY INVESTMENT 2-RAIL SAFETY WEEK AT A GLANCE

Middle East Rail News Rail Safety week

Rail Technology Global Autonomous Train Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecast (2022 - 2027)

Rail Industry Events 2022 Global

Opinion’s Rail Innovation 2022 20 Rail Projects 2022

ETHIHAD CONFIRMS

plans plans for for

RAIL FREIGHT TERMINAL AT DUBAI INDUSTRIAL CITY .

The Dubai Industrial City will be served by Stage 2 of the Etihad Rail network.

The Dubai Industrial City will be served by Stage 2 of the Etihad Rail network.

ETIHAD Rail and Dubai Industrial City (DIC) have announced plans to establish a rail freight terminal on the 51 hectare DIC site to the southwest of Dubai.

DIC is located within the vicinity of Jebel Ali Port, Al Maktoum International Airport, and Dubai’s road network, and will be served by Stage 2 of the Etihad Rail network, which will run from the border with Saudi Arabia at Ghuweifat to Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman via Abu Dhabi and Dubai. A ceremony was held last month to mark the completion of track laying on the Abu Dhabi - Dubai section of the railway.

Etihad Rail says establishing the terminal will contribute to cementing the UAE’s position as an international trade hub and boost Dubai’s global competitiveness in manufacturing, logistics, transport, trade, and investment.

DIC is home to more than 780 companies including more than 240 factories, which will be able to access Etihad Rail’s services. DIC also has a range of logistics facilities and a substantial storage area covering 40 hectares.

“The terminal will contribute to strengthening the supply chain and freight logistics services, in line with the UAE’s efforts to develop the country’s transport and logistics sector,” says Mr Shadi Malak, CEO of Etihad Rail. “With a capacity of 5 million tonnes, the terminal will connect the industrial and manufacturing centres in the UAE, open new trade routes, and support the country’s sustainable development.”

SAUDI ARABIA SEEKS PRIVATE PARTNERS FOR FUTURE RAILWAY INVESTMENT

The country hopes engaging with international partners will improve local knowledge. .

SAUDI Arabian minister of transport and Saudi Railways Company (SAR) chairman, Mr Saleh Bin Nasser Al-Jasser, has unveiled a raft of economic and industrial opportunities worth more than Riyals 1bn ($US 266.6m) as the country looks to attract private partners to its expanding rail sector.

Al-Jasser outlined the opportunities during the launch of the virtual Railway Industrial Opportunities Forum on March 17 as part of the National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NDLP). The minister says the forum aims to expand partnership opportunities between the public and private sectors, including the devel opment of rail infrastructure. He also indicated that the network could be opened to private freight and passenger operators in the future.

During the forum, Al-Jasser announced plans to expand the Saudi network by more than 8000km, double freight and passenger capacity, and adopt modern technology and advanced technical solutions to reduce rail’s environmental impact. He said the country’s 5500km network had already carried more than 33 million passengers and more than 70 million tonnes of freight over the past 10 years.

The CEO of SAR, Dr Bashar bin Khalid Al-Malik, encouraged the private sector to invest in opportunities as partners, saying that it was now a strategic objective to improve the localization of the railway industry supporting the network.

He added that since the merger of Saudi Railways Organization and Saudi Railways in 2021, SAR has focused on developing local industrial capabilities by encouraging partnerships and knowledge transfers with international manufacturers.

SAR has also called for expressions of interest to design, supply and maintain its next generation of inter-city passenger trains. The first trains are due to enter service in 2025, and will increase capacity on the Riyadh - Dammam line. A further batch could be ordered for the Riyadh - Hail section of the North-South Railway. The trains will be equipped with ETCS, with the contract to includes 10 years’ maintenance.

On March 14, SAR awarded CAF a five-year, €200m service contract including technical support for the Saudi operator’s 18 CAF-built push-pull trains, which operate on the Riyadh Dammam and Riyadh - Qurayyat lines.

The contract also includes an agreement to establish the Engineering Excellence Centre, a joint engineering department. The department will train SAR staff with the necessary operating and maintenance skills for the train fleet, as well as adapt SAR’s facilities for the overhaul of the trains, which were delivered in 2015.

RAIL SAFETY WEEK AT A

Glance Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative focusing on rail safety for all. Whether your career lies within the rail industry, or whether you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Safety affects us all. Rail Safety Week aimsto address, engage, promote and bring rail safety to the forefront of people’s minds across a dedicated week.

Working in partnership with leading names in the rail industry, health and safety conferences, site briefs and school safety based events will be held across the UK in order to promote the vital importance of rail safety to each and every one of us – “Building Safety Together”

HOW CAN YOU PARTICIPATE?

· Rail Safety Week signature block on emails. · Posters displayed in the offices, depots, site offices. · Visiting schools to conduct Rail Safety presentations.

· Posters displayed in the offices, depots, site offices.

· Encourage employees and members of the public to tweet a photo holding up a sign either pledging their commitment to rail safety or telling us what they will do to stay safe around trains and tracks.

· Visiting schools to conduct Rail Safety presentations.

· Dedicated company champions/Ambassadors

· Safety stand-down day/morning/afternoon.

Intranet, LinkedIn and social media campaigns

· Additional safety briefs across the RSW week

· Supplying RSW posters and information packs to offices & depots

· NR Safety Trucks to visit sites across the UK

· Running a coloring in competition for the children of employees to win RSW prize packs.

· Rail Safety Week signature block on emails.

· Pushing out a safety reminder internally regarding work injuries (posters, toolboxes, etc.) · Regular Twitter updates throughout the week. · Meet the People events on stations and on trains – TOC’s

·

Rail Safety Rabbit dressed in PPE visiting schools across the UK throughout the week promoting safety.

ROLLING OUT

digital workspace

ALSTOM: During the pandemic DXC Technology implemented digital workspaces from Citrix to provide Alstom’s engineers with secure and reliable remote access to essential apps.

These include a critical in-house CAD tool that requires powerful graphics workstations and a low-latency, high-performing local network.

‘The cost of an engineer who cannot work is €800 per day. That’s before you factor in the penalties imposed for late delivery of a product’, said Mehdi Belahcen, Compute & Cloud Manager at Alstom.

‘Within four days, our 1 000 European CAD engineers were able to work from home on projects using their own computers, while retaining the same flexibility and speed that they enjoy on-site.’

‘Within four days, our 1 000 European CAD engineers were able to work from home on projects using their own computers, while · retaining the same flexibility and speed that they enjoy on-site.”

App assists visually impaired passengers through the full rail journey

UK: London Overground operator Arriva Rail London has funded a trial of an audio navigation app from Waymap which is designed to help people with visual impairments travel more independently.

The app has previously been tested at Birmingham International and stations in Los Angeles and Washington DC, but this was the first trial of navigation throughout a full journey, with 10 blind volunteers travelling from Shepherd’s Bush to Willesden Junction.

They used Waymap to enter the station, make their way to the platform, board, alight and exit at the destination. all said they would be more likely to use public transport if Waymap were available, and most said it would make them more confident to travel on their own and to navigate around unknown places.

Waymap will use the results of the trial to further understand the needs of its users and the challenges they face, and to validate its current technical approach.

Waymap works both indoors and outdoors, and does not rely on external signals such as GPS, wi-fi, Bluetooth or mobile data, Ethan Brooks, Director of External Affairs of Waymap, told Rail Business UK. Instead, it uses data from the internal sensors of the user’s smartphone to determine their position within a predefined map and to provide accurate audio navigation instructions.

‘Navigation apps are essential to life in cities and on public transport, but the existing apps out there don’t work for everyone and don’t work inside for anyone’, said Waymap CEO Dr Tom Pey, who is himself blind. ‘Without Waymap, the potential for cities to thrive as spaces for everyone will be limited and people with disabilities will continue to be excluded, need extra help and resources to make a journey, or remain isolated at home.’

Charlotte Whitfield, Customer Experience Director at Arriva Rail London, said ‘it was important to us to support this unique trial and show there are cost-effective solutions available to make travelling on public transport more accessible. Waymap’s technology needs to be rolled out across entire transport networks and in public spaces to provide a seamless experience for users, so we are hopeful the results of our trial will help them secure more support for their rollout.’

Swedish start-up develops sound damping modules to mitigate railway noise.

SWEDEN: Lerum-based start-up Wavebreaker has developed a passive sound damping module designed to mitigate traffic and railway noise in urban environments.

SHOW FULLSCREEN Tested in a pilot project with Stockholm transport authority SL last year, the Wavebreaker modules are based on the principle of destructive interference. Sound waves entering the unit are rerouted via a circuitous path, delaying them and causing them to interfere with unaltered waves, cancelling out the noise generated by a passing train.

The modules are designed to be installed on top of noise barriers, and can provide an extra reduction of up to 7 dB(A); this is equivalent to raising the height of the barrier by between 1 m and 2 m.

The company suggests that could allow the use of lower screens, reducing the overall cost of noise protection. It believes that the modules would be particularly useful in dense urban environments, where noise concerns are greatest but high barriers can create a visual obstruction.

AUTONOMOUS TRAiN MARKET

- Growth, Trends,

COVID-19 Impact, and Forecast (2022 2027)

The Autonomous Train Market was valued at USD 7.89 billion in 2021, and it is expected to reach USD 11.09 billion by 2027 by registering a CAGR of 5.85% during the forecast period (2022 - 2027).

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the railway industry. Major construction of railway projects was stopped due to the pandemic, which is likely to be a challenge for the autonomous train market. Due to the pandemic, personal transportation witnessed major growth.

However, with the rising concerns over emissions, the need for using public transportation and pooling is expected to help the trains market grow. Growing electrification in the transportation sector is likely to provide major growth for the autonomous train market. Introduction to the internet of things (IoT) in transportation is a major driver for the autonomous train market. For instance, in October 2021, German Rail Corporation and Siemens Mobility developed the world’s first train that operates by itself in rail traffic. The train is

controlled by digital technology and is fully automated. The driver remains on the train to supervise the journey with passengers on board.

Major governments across developed countries, including China, the United States, and Japan, are investing in connected mobility, which is likely to provide significant growth opportunities for the autonomous train market. Asia-Pacific and North America are likely to dominate the autonomous train market during the forecast period. Asia-Pacific has one of the largest rail networks across the world and is expected to show major growth in the autonomous train market.

Key Market Trends Metro/Monorail Dominating the Global Autonomous Train Market Metro/Monorail is dominating the global autonomous train market owing to the increase in an efficient, safe, and affordable mode of transport. The rise in penetration of GoA 4 technology in metro rail is likely to witness major growth for the market. GoA 4 is an unattended train operation (UTO) where starting and stopping, operation of doors, and handling of emergencies are fully automated without any on-train staff. Rail is considered one of the safest modes of land transport and more attractive to the customer as this offers a much better service to potential passengers and drives an increase in passenger numbers. The demand for safer and efficient transport is increasing from consumers across the world, highlighting the importance of the adoption of advanced technology-based transport, i.e., autonomous trains for commuting purposes.

Growing electrification of metro/monorail due to the enactment of stringent emission norms across the globe is also witnessing major growth for the market. Introduction to connected metro rail is also creating a challenge for the autonomous train market across th e globe. Currently, rail has been identified as one of the most energy-efficient transport modes, accounting for 8% of global motorized passenger movements and 7% of freight but consuming only 2% of transport energy.

Major industries are jointly working on rail projects to develop advanced technology for autonomous metro rail. Latest developments like testing driverless passenger cars are expected to further propel the growth of the market. For instance, • In September 2021, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering partnered in a new concession of Dubai Metro and Dubai Tram in a joint venture with Keolis and Mitsubishi Corp.

• In March 2021, by SNCF and its partners, a prototype was put to the test in the northern region of Hauts-de-France. The company has set a goal to provide fully automated prototypes running by 2023 and to fully expand the train operation by 2025.

Can you explain your approach to clients and to delivering business growth for the UK rail industry?

Asia-Pacific Region Expected to Witness Significant Growth During the Forecast Period Asia-Pacific has one of the largest rail networks globally, which is likely to dominate the autonomous train market across the globe. The growing investment by governments across the region, including China, India, and Japan, for rail infrastructure development, is likely to witness major growth in the autonomous train market.

The growing popularity of metro travel as public transportation in India is also witnessing major growth in the market. Due to this, the railway network plays a very significant role in the economic development of countries in Asia-Pacific. For instance, in February 2022, the Hangzhou metro opened two new lines and an extension adding more than 59 route km to the network. The installed base of metro-rail rolling stock in India is expected to increase to 5,458 railcars by 2023, owing to the huge demand for commuter the infrastructure sector, transportation in metropolitan cities. A total of 3,343 railcars are planned to be added to the metro-rail network over a period of five years, from 2018 to 2023.

Asia-Pacific is also characterized by the presence of both developed and developing economies, such as Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh.

For instance, The Malaysian Industry-Government Group for High Technology (MIGHT) signed a memorandum of understanding with Bombardier Transportation, outlining their collaboration on developing home-grown rail industry expertise over the coming years. The Malaysian government ordered 252 driverless vehicles for the Kuala Lumpur metro Line LRT3 from a consortium of Siemens China, CRRC Zhuzhou, and a Malaysian partner, Tegap Dinamik.

The government also ordered 108 Innovia Metro 300 vehicles from a consortium of Hartasuma and Bombardier that are likely to be used for Kuala Lumpur’s Kelana Jaya Line.

Major industries are planning to establish rail projects in Asia-Pacific, which is witnessing significant growth in the market. For instance, CRCC also entered into an MoU with the government of Maharashtra, India, for setting up a manufacturing facility in the Multimodal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur (MIHAN). With these players, expansion into the country is likely to boost the development of autonomous trains at a fast pace over the coming years.

Competitive Landscape The autonomous train market is a highly consolidated market owing to the presence of a few major players such as Bombardier, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Alstom, Thales, and Siemens AG. Major players are investing in R&D of the equipment to meet international standards, which is likely to witness significant growth for the market.

Some of the major players in the market are adopting various growth strategies such as mergers, acquisitions, collaborations, and agreements to strengthen their position in the market. For instance,

• In August 2021, Hitachi Rail STS (Ansaldo) entered an agreement with the Thales Group to acquire the Ground Transportation System business of the Thales Group company. As a result of this agreement, Hitachi Rail is expected to drive growth by expanding the scale of its rail signaling systems business and further advancing its rail automation systems business globally.

• In March 2021, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Engineering Ltd (MHI-ENG) and KEOLIS SA announced that they formed a consortium (“the Consortium”) and signed a 15-year contract to operate and maintain Dubai’s world-class driverless metro in Dubai and tram networks with the Roads & Transport Authority of Dubai (”RTA”).

• In January 2021, Alstom completed the acquisition of Bombardier Transportation, thereby creating a competitive manufacturer on a global scale in mobility and rail transport, moving toward greener transportation globally.

RAIL INDUSTRY

Events 2022 APRIL Heavy Haul Rail 6 - 7 April Perth, Australia Track Access Charges Summit 20 - 21 April Riga, Latvia RIA Innovation Conference 26 - 27 April Nottingham, UK Wheelsets: Life Extension, Maintenance Reduction and Sustainability 26 April London, UK ERTMS 2022 Conference 26 - 28 April Valenciennes, France Rail Modernization Summit 28 - 29 April New Delhi, India

The one reason most people fail at virtual presentations and how to fix it.

Virtual presentations aren’t going away anytime soon, so it’s best you learn how to do it effectively, explains business storytelling expert, Gabrielle Dolan.

Over the last two years, we have endured more virtual presentations than we ever would have expected. I say ‘endure’ deliberately because in many cases, perhaps most cases, it has required both stamina and patience. Whether it is a team meeting, formal training, conference presentations or any other experience that we would typically conduct in person, the COVID pandemic has required the switch to a virtual world.

In this time, I have seen many people present whom I would consider very good live presenters, yet they have been terrible in a virtual setting.

There are numerous tips and techniques you can adopt to make your virtual presentations better. Many people don’t know these, so I will get to a few in a moment. But the biggest reason people suck at virtual presentations occurs well before they even start… and the cause is mindset.

Some people go into virtual presentations thinking, ‘It’s just virtual’. They know that people’s expectations are lower for virtual presentations, which leads them to believe they don’t need to prepare or practise as much.

For others, experience has also shown that presenting virtually is much harder.

“It’s so hard to read the room virtually” is a common cry I hear. And yes, it is. I have been speaking and training people for over 25 years and there is absolutely no doubt that virtual presentations are harder.

There are various reasons why this is the case. It can be extremely difficult to read the room; it is harder to maintain your energy; engagement and interaction can feel like drawing blood from a stone; monitoring the chat can be both distracting and exhausting; breakout rooms can be problematic… the list goes on.

Just because it is harder and everyone else sucks at it, it’s no excuse for incompetence.

Virtual presentations are challenging, as demonstrated by the issues mentioned above, so we must therefore work harder.

Here are my top four tips to help improve virtual presentations: • Change your mindset. People are giving you their time to hear you speak, so make it worth their while.

• If your presentation would normally be delivered to a live audience while you are standing, then stand and deliver when you present virtually. You will be amazed what this does for your energy.

• Always have the camera at eye length, regardless of whether you are standing or sitting. No-one wants to look up your nose for an hour.

• Look at the camera. This is perhaps one of the hardest adjustments when presenting virtually as our tendency is to look at the faces on the screen. When you do that, you are breaking eye contact with your audience.

Virtual presentations are not going away anytime soon. While they may be harder than face-to-face presentations, there are also several benefits that mean many companies will continue to use them. Consequently, it’s worth our while to get better at presenting in a virtual world.

WHY ZOOM OVERTOOK SKYPEAS THE

the video chat app of choice

The COVID-19 lockdown should have been Skype’s big moment, but instead its young challenger Zoom has dominated video communications over the past two years. So where did Skype go wrong?

For two decades Skype was a verb, like ‘to hoover’ or ‘to google something’. In 2011 it was bought by the might of Microsoft. So with years of honing its craft and decent capital behind it, when people started working from home, Skype should have become the videoconferencing platform.

Two years on, though, we now ‘zoom’ people rather than ‘skype’ them.

Take away the history and the reason for Zoom’s recent prominence is quite simple: it’s a very stable and reliable video platform, and it’s easy to access, easy to use and free from unnecessary features.

They were actually some of the reasons that persuaded Microsoft to pay US$8.5 billion for Skype a decade ago. By that stage Skype had already been through a few owners, including its ill-fitting purchase by eBay in 2005. Arguably, that lack of continuity in ownership would prove part of its downfall.

Despite being a fairly straightforward videoconferencing platform, Skype was quite a sexy brand – it had 100 million users, eight million paying customers and, well, talking to people on a video screen was the new thing.

With business use still for the elite, anyone with an overseas relative can remember the excitement of actually being able to see and talk to them via the internet. In those early days, Skype was well ahead of its competitors for quality and service. You’d ‘skype’ your mum on her birthday, rather than the standard Sunday phone call.

Despite such mundane uses, Microsoft hoped that some of that perceived halo of sexiness would rub off on its own grey brand. However, when it failed to transfer across, the company set about creating some sparks. In a bid to compete with the rapidly emerging WhatsApp and Snapchat offerings, Skype began to introduce hip features and emojis aimed at a younger audience.

In jazzing up the interface, Microsoft started to take its eye off the ball in terms of the

basic core service that Skype had been bought to provide. Zoom, on the other hand, was working hard at making its platform more stable and reliable.

If not publicly acknowledging that it had a problem with Skype, Microsoft certainly started hedging its bets internally. Teams, which was launched in 2016 as a workplace rival to Slack, had video calls integrated into it. The following year, Microsoft did go public, announcing that Teams would replace Skype in the business sphere. Two years later, it was announced that Teams would replace Skype for consumers as well..

If the pandemic had hit before 2017, Skype might have won out despite its increasingly apparent limitations, but by early 2020 Zoom had gained traction in the mainstream.

Pre-pandemic, WFH was not populated by numerous Zoom calls – instead, it was regarded by most as a quiet day of undisturbed work on a report or presentation; a bit of a mental health day, with the odd phone call and plenty of emails.

But when everyone suddenly went home to work in 2020, things changed. Like most areas of business, COVID-19 wasn’t the sole reason for the change, but it was certainly the catalyst for acceleration. People had been slowly shifting away from Skype for the previous five years, and the virus washed it away like a tsunami, as multiple-user calls, multiple times a day, became the norm.

While Eric Yuan’s Zoom now dominates the market, both Microsoft Teams and Google Meet still sit ahead of Skype in terms of market share. Zoom is certainly the preferred choice for the less tech literate, who want something that is easy to set up, free from spam and doesn’t drop out too often.

Really, it’s a lesson in a big organisation acquiring a company for good reasons, and then trying to change the product into something else. It lost focus on the basic values that made the product so popular in the first place, and tried to emulate the competition rather than lead it.

SEVEN BIG BRANDS THAT Kodak

blew it

Many think the camera film company was caught completely unaware by digital photography but, in fact, Kodak invented it. Steven Sasson, a Kodak engineer, invented the first filmless camera in 1975. However, the company went into denial about the threat to its film-based business. Unwilling to transform to a digital model, Kodak instead used digital technology to try and enhance its film cameras. acquiring a company for good reasons,

BlackBerry

Yahoo!

An early corporate leader in the smartphone revolution, BlackBerry stopped making phones in September 2018, when Apple, Samsung and others left it with just 0.3 per cent of the market. Failing to embrace touchscreen technology led to clunky designs with unnecessary and inflexible keyboard space. Lack of innovation is not something you can maintain in the dynamic mobile market.

Once the world’s most popular website, Yahoo! missed the opportunity to purchase Google twice, had a failed bid to acquire Facebook, and also experienced a data breach to 500 million of its users. In fact, it failed to focus on its users in general, with a lack of interface innovation and intrusive advertising. If you want to read the full story, google it…

Hummer

MySpace

Like the Jeep, the Hummer was a civilian incarnation of a military vehicle – the Humvee, used widely during the 1991 Gulf War. With its oversized boxy shape and celeb owners such as Britney Spears, it became an icon of the late 90s. Anti-war sentiment, environmental groups and a backlash to excess began its demise. It was phased out in 2010, however, a new Hummer EV is slated to be released later this year..

One of the first social media platforms of the early 2000s, not only was it overtaken

by Facebook’s superior product offering, but its attempt to compete was hamstrung

by News Corp’s US$580 million acquisition.

Bogged down by the corporate politics and revenue demands of the media giant, it lost its nimble and creative roots. News Corp sold it to Time for around US$35 million in 2011.

Nokia

Blockbuster

The Finnish giant overtook Motorola in 1998 as the world’s largest mobile phone maker.

It had already released the first internet-enabled mobile phone and a touchscreen prototype. Like BlackBerry, though, Nokia failed to embrace the Android revolution and stuck with a keyboard. After realising it had misjudged the market trends, the reaction with its own Symbian system arrived too late to catch Apple and Samsung.

Documentary The Last Blockbuster is well worth a watch, telling the story of how the video rental store went from 9,000 shops to just one, although obviously, you need to stream it on Netflix, rather than rent the video or DVD. In fact, Blockbuster had the opportunity to buy Netflix for US$50 million in 2000 (it’s now worth around US$270.9 billion), but literally laughed at the proposal.

THE RAiLWAY INNOVATiON AWARDS

2022 The judging panel of the Railway Innovation Awards is looking forward to receiving your entries to the 2022 awards. We are looking for up to 2,000 word descriptions, plus any relevant pictures or other supporting material, about the innovations you are introducing with the aim of pushing the rail industry forward. We will be assessing the degree of innovation, evidence of research, delivery and practicability to show that the idea your are putting forward has worked and enhanced what you offer. The business context and strategic relevance of what you offer will also be considered. Please ensure you make clear what is new, innovative and novel about the entry you submit. Further details can be found on the ENTRY INFORMATION that you can download using the link at the bottom of this page.

The deadline for entries to be received for the awards is 30 April 2022.

The awards luncheon, when the winners

Entry

will be announced, takes place at the Hilton Canary Wharf on Friday 1 July 2022, noon to 16.00.

For all enquiries please contact David Lane on 07795 031051 or email david.lane@keypublishing.com.

20 GLOBAL RAIL watch over the next 12 months.

Projects

to

expected to be more than 95,000 passengers per day and journey times are expected to decrease by up to 40 minutes on some routes due to improved connections.

The line is currently 34.5km long.

JAKARTA BANDUNG HSL

MOSCOW BIG CIRCLE LINE Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative Country: focusing onRussia rail safety for all. Whether your Type: lies Metro career within the rail industry, or whether you use the railways get from A to B – Rail Construction Start:to2011 Safety affects us all.

Rail Safety Week aims Completion: 2022 or 2023

Length: 70km Cost: $US 6.79bn

The 21km Mnyovniki - Kakhovskaya section of the Moscow Big Circle Line (BCL) was opened on December 7 2021 by Russian president Mr Vladimir Putin. When the BCL is complete it will be one of the longest metro lines in the world, with 31 stations and three maintenance depots, interchanging with metro services at 20 stations on 11 radial lines, three stations on the Moscow Central Circle (MCC) system, 13 stations on the Moscow Central Diameters and 11 railway stations. Overall ridership is

Country: Indonesia Type: High-speed Construction start: 2018 Completion: 2022 Length: 142.3km Cost: $US 8.0bn Two tunnels were completed in the summer of 2021, including the 2190m-long Number 8 tunnel in the West Bandung Regency’s Cikalong, West Java province, and the 1230m-long Number 10 in West Bandung Regency’s Padalarang West Java province.

The first of 11 CR400AF Yawan trains built for the line has been completed by CRRC. The 350km/h high-speed line will start at a new four-track terminal station in Jakarta at Halim and will run parallel to the Jakarta Cikampek highway exit from the city.

There will be two intermediate stations at Karawang and Padalarang (where there will be a connection to conventional services) and a terminal at Tegalluar in southeast Bandung. More than 80km of the line will be elevated and there will be 13 tunnels. The HSL was due to have opened in 2019, but has been delayed.

EAST SIDE ACCESS

SHATIN - CENTRAL LINK (SCL)

Country: United States Type: Commuter rail Construction Start: 2007 Completion: 2022 Length: 9.8km Cost: $US 11.1bn The East Side Access project, one of the largest transport infrastructure projects in New York, is scheduled to open in December 2022. The 9.8km railway will connect the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) from its main line in Queens to a new station under Grand Central Terminal on Manhattan’s east side. The project will double the number of LIRR trains running into Manhattan with up to 24 trains per hour while reducing commute times by 40 minutes.

Country: Hong Kong Type: Metro Construction Start: 2012 Completion: 2022 Length: 17km Cost: $US 12.48bn The Shatin - Central Link (SCL) comprises an east-west section from Tai Wai to Hung Hom, as an extension of the Ma On Shan Line, and a north-south cross-harbour section from the Hung Hom terminal of East Rail to Admiralty on Hong Kong Island. The 6.8km Tai Wai Diamond Hill - Kai Tak section opened in February 2020, however the 4.2km Kai Tai Hung Hom section of the SCL, which was due to open in the third quarter of 2021, is now scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2022 along with the final 6km section from Hung Hom to Admiralty.

LONDON ELIZABETH LINE (CROSSRAIL)

BRIGHTLINE FLORIDA PHASE 2 EXTENSION

Country: Britain Type: Metro Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative Construction 2009 focusing on railStart: safety for all. Whether your Completion: 2022 career lies within the rail industry, or whether Length: 117.5km you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Cost: affects $US 23.32bn Safety us all. Rail Safety Week aims Crossrail merges the Great Western Main Line (GWML) and the Great Eastern Main Line (GEML) with 21km of new twin-bore tunnel beneath central London, connecting Reading and Heathrow Airport in the west with Abbey Wood and Shenfield in the east. Trial operation finally began in November 2021, with passenger operations expected to start in the central tunnel section in the first half of this year, nearly four years late, and at $US 23.328bn, more than $US 3.73bn over budget.

Country: United States Type: Main line Construction Start: 2019 Completion: 2022 Length: 273.6km Cost: $US 4.2bn Brightline described progress on the Florida Phase 2 line as “nearly there” at the end of September, by which point around 60% of the project was complete while the first new Siemens trains have been delivered to Florida for testing. The extension will connect the existing Miami - Fort Lauderdale West Palm Beach line to Orlando via south and central Florida. The extension uses a mixture of existing tracks and a new right-of-way to the new South Terminal at Orlando International Airport (MCO). A $US 100m maintenance facility is being constructed south of the airport.

PRO TRILHOS PROGRAMME Length: 3506km Cost: $US 8.877bn The construction of nine freight lines was authorised by the Brazilian government on December 9 as part of the Pro Trilhos Programme which aims to expand the national rail network based on private investment.

The new lines are located in the states of São Paulo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Maranhão, Minas Gerais, Espírito Santo, Piauí and Pernambuco. Contracts for the construction work were signed by Bracell, Ferroeste, Grão Pará, Macro Desenvolvimento, Petrocity and Planalto Piauí Participações. Apart from Ferroeste, they are all new operators. The projects vary from a Reais 40m ($US 7.05m) 4.29km line connecting a factory in Lençóis Paulistas to the Port of Santos, to a Reais 14.2bn 1108km line between Petrocity Portos SA Barra de São Francisco and Brasília that aims to transport products from the Brazilian midwest to the dry port of Barra de São Francisco.

Railway (TAR) project, which aims to create an integrated rail freight network across Europe and Asia

TAORMINA - GIAMPILIERI LINE Country: Italy Type: Main line Construction Start: 2022 Completion: 2027-28 Length: 28.3km Cost: $US 2.16bn

PADMA RAIL LINK (DHAKA - JESSORE) Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative Country:on Bangladesh focusing rail safety for all. Whether your Type: Main line the rail industry, or whether career lies within Construction Start: 2018 you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Completion: Safety affects 2022 us all. Rail Safety Week aims Length: 215km Cost: $US 4.12bn Construction of the 120km/h 215km line from Dhaka to Jessore via the 6.2km road-rail Padma Bridge was approved by the Bangladeshi government in July 2016. In August 2016, the government signed a contract with China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) to build the line,which is due to be completed by June. The project is funded by the Bangladeshi government and through a soft loan from China. The project includes the construction of 66 major bridges, 244 minor bridges, 14 stations and the procurement of 100 passenger coaches. The line is part of the Trans-Asian .

new 28.3km double-track line, will double capacity between Messina and Catania on the island of Sicily.

Italian Rail Network (RFI) awarded a Webuild-led consortium a €1bn contract in March 2021 to construct a new 28.3km double-track line between Giampilieri and Taormina, which will double capacity between Messina and Catania on the island of Sicily. This is the first stage of a project that will eliminate the last remaining single track bottleneck on the Messina - Catania main line. Of the new alignment, 25km will be in tunnels. A new underground station will be built to serve Taormina. The existing station at Letojanni will be remodelled.

TRANS-ECOWAS RAILWAY Country: Ghana Type: Main line Construction Start: 2022 Completion: 2025 Length: 550km Cost: $US 3.80bn The proposed 550km east-west, mixed-traffic line will run from Aflao on the Togo border to Elubo on the border with Côte d’Ivoire, with plans for a branch line to Keta.

The 550km line is one of 16 projects across various infrastructure disciplines that the government believes will help it achieve the United Nation’s (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the African Union Agenda 2063. The project is due to be completed through a public-private partnership (PPP) and will be funded through debt.

PADMA RAIL LINK (DHAKA - JESSORE) Country: Ecuador Type: Metro Construction Start: 2013 Completion: 2022 Length: 22.5km Cost: $US 2bn The first test train operated from the depot in the Quitumbe sector to El Labrador station in October 2020 and the first two stations, Iñaquito and Jipijapa, were handed over to Quito Metro Metropolitan Public Company (EPMMQ) on May 3 2021.

Trial passenger operation was due to begin by the end of 2021. The 22.5km 37km/h Quitumbe - El Labrador line will have 15 stations and run underground for 19.49km. Ridership is expected to be around 369,000 passengers per day in the first year of operation. .

MINDANAO RAILWAY PHASE 1 Country: Philippines Type: Main line Construction Start: 2022 Completion: 2024 Length: 102km Cost: $US 1.6bn Construction is expected to begin in the first half of 2022. In September 2021, the Department of Transportation (DOTr) awarded the consortium of China Railways Design and Guangzhou Wanan Construction Supervision a contract for project management consultancy services for Phase 1. The first phase will link Tagum, Davao and Digos and is the first part of the 1550km Mindanao Railway Project (MRP) designed to connect the key cities on the southern island of Mindanao. Three bidders have been shortlisted to construct the single-track, non-electrified line which will be designed for passenger trains to run at 120km/h and freight trains to operate at 80km/h. Two-car DMUs will operate passenger trains initially, with scope to lengthen the trains. The full MRP is expected to be completed by 2037.

AHMEDABAD METRO PHASE 1 Country: India Type: Metro Construction Start: 2015 Completion: 2022 Length: 40km Cost: $US 1.47bn Gujarat Metro Rail Corporation (GMRC) plans to open the line for public service by August 2022. By August 2021, GMRC had completed construction of 6.5km tunnels, a bridge over the Sabarmati railway yard and the metro river bridge connecting eastern and western Ahmedabad. The remainder of the line, which has 32 stations, is elevated.

Phase 1 consists of two lines: Line 1 (Blue Line) is a 21.16km east-west corridor which will run from Vastral Gaam to Thaltej Gaam with 17 stations of which four will be underground. Line 1 will interchange with Line 2 (Red Line), an 18.87km north-south line that will run from Motera Stadium to APMC with 15 stations.

WENDLINGEN - ULM HSL

MELBOURNE SUBURBAN RAIL LOOP

Country: Germany Type: High-speed Construction Start: 2012 Completion: 2022 Length: 59.6km Cost: $US 4.76bn Testing of the new line commenced in mid-December 2021, one year ahead of DB Regio beginning operation of initial regional services in December 2022. The 250km/h line will cross the Swabian Alb mountain range, connecting with the existing Neu-Ulm station in the east and the Stuttgart 21 project in the west. The line is designed to accommodate freight and regional traffic as well as long-distance trains, reducing the journey time for inter-city trains between Stuttgart and Ulm from 54 minutes to 28 minutes. Approximately 30.4km will be in tunnels, with the 8.8km Bossler tunnel the longest.

Country: Australia Type: Metro Construction Start: 2022 Completion: 2035 Length: 90km Cost: $US 36.45bn

KOLKATA LINE 2

Laing O’Rourke has been awarded the construction contract for the first phase of the Melbourne Suburban Rail Loop.

Country: India Type: Metro Construction start: 2016 Completion: 2022 Length: 9.1km Cost: $US 1.15bn Kolkata Metro Line 2 Phase 2 (Phoolbagan to Howrah Maidan) is part of the 16.6km east-west section, of which 7.5km began operating in February 2020, and the remaining 9.1km is under construction. The project includes the first transport tunnel to be built under the river Ganges. The under-construction section covers the underground Sealdah to Howrah Maidan section, including the operational Phoolbagan station. The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (Jica) is partially funding the project. Delays have been caused by land acquisition issues and campaigning by environmental and heritage conservation activists. The project was envisaged as long ago as 1971, finally securing approval in 2008. .

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The Victoria State government committed $A 9.3bn ($US 6.55bn) to the first stage of the project on December 3. Trains are expected to be operating on the eastern section by 2035 and the line is expected to carry around 70,000 passengers per day. Laing O’Rourke has been awarded the construction contract for the first phase. The initial stage will comprise a 26km twin-track tunnel and six stations between Cheltenham and Box Hill. Eventually the loop will run from Cheltenham in the southeast in a sweeping arc to Werribee in the west, with large sections underground. The second section to be built will be Box Hill - Melbourne Airport.

Three transport super hubs at Clayton, Broadmeadows and Sunshine will connect with regional services.

WEST KYUSHU SHINKANSEN

RENNES METRO LINE B

Country: Japan Type: High-speed Construction Start: 2012 Completion: 2022 Length: 66km Cost: $US 1.02bn Construction began on the West Kyushu Shinkansen from Takeo Onsen to Nagasaki in 2012 and the line is due to open in autumn 2022 following the completion of all civil engineering work in July 2020. The new line will initially be isolated from the rest of Japan’s 1435mm-gauge high-speed network, with the 54km gap between Takeo Onsen and Shin-Tosu on the Kyushu Shinkansen plugged by 1067mm-gauge Limited Express services. Journey times from Hakata to Nagasaki will be 1h 12min including the change of trains. The new line has 31 tunnels with a combined length of more than 40km.

Another 21km will run on bridges and viaducts, leaving just 5.3km at grade. The line will include two new stations at Ureshino Onsen and Shin-Omura.

Country: France Type: Metro Construction Start: 2014 Completion: 2022 Length: 14km Cost: $US 1.3bn In April 2021 it was confirmed that the planned September 2021 opening would be delayed due to Siemens being unable to deliver 19 Cityval trains ordered in 2013 on time. The 14km Line B mainly runs in tunnels along a northeast-southwest axis from Cesson-Viasilva to Saint-Jaques-Gaîte. There will be 15 stations, two of which will interchange with Line A at Sainte-Anne and Gares, the city’s mainline station. The project includes the construction of 8.6km of bored tunnel, 2.4km of cut-and-cover tunnel, and 2.4km of viaduct. Siemens is also providing system engineering, project management, CBTC, track, electrification, the control centre and the depot. The line is forecast to carry 113,000 passengers per day.

PEARL RIVER DELTA Country: China Rail Safety Type: MainWeek line is an industry lead initiative focusing on rail safety for all. Whether your Construction Start: 2022 career lies within the rail industry, or whether Completion: N/A you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Length: 174km Safety affects us all. Rail Safety Week aims Cost: $US 14.32bn

Work will commence on two separate projects and continue on a third, which together form part of the $US 68bn inter-city plan for the Pearl River Delta, which itself has a total of 13 separate projects. Local media in November reported that construction had begun on the 133km Shenzhen - Huizhou line that will connect Xili, Shenzhen North station, Longhua, Longgang, Lilin and Huicheng South. This project is expected to cost $US 11.248bn. A $US 1.97bn project to construct the 26km Guangqing inter-city line is due to start next year, alongside the $US 1.10bn 15km line that will connect Guangzhou and Guangzhou South stations, which are both to be redeveloped. .

MONTREAL METROPOLITAN ELECTRIC NETWORK (REM) Country: Canada Type: Metro Construction start: 2018 Completion: 2024 Length: 67km Cost: $US 5.57bn

REM will link Greater Montreal with Downtown Montreal via Central station.

The Metropolitan Electric Network (REM) project is a 67km automated light metro system serving 26 stations. REM will link Greater Montreal with Downtown Montreal via Central station. A partial service from the South Shore to Bonaventure-Central station is expected to start in 2022. The project includes the conversion of the existing Montreal - Deux-Montagnes commuter line to a metro, which will be extended from Central station across the St Lawrence River to Brossard, and in the west to Trudeau Airport and Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue. Construction began in April 2018, with full service expected to start in 2024.

Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative focusing on rail safety for all. Whether your career lies within the rail industry, or whether you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Safety affects us all. Rail Safety Week aims

ISTANBUL METRO M11 AIRPORT LINE Country: Turkey Type: Metro Construction Start: 2016 Completion: 2022 Length: 37.5km Cost: $US 1.1bn The M11 Airport Line will connect Gayrettepe on the existing Line 2 with Istanbul’s new main airport which opened in 2019.

End-to-end journey times will be 35 minutes.

Trains will operate automatically (GoA 4) at five-minute headways at a maximum speed of 120km/h. There will be nine stations including three at the airport. The line has a design capacity of 70,000 passengers per hour. The line, which is being built by the Kolin-Senbay joint venture, is envisaged as Phase 1 of a Gayrettepe - Halkali metro line, which will offer main line connections with the Marmaray Line .

For more details please contact www.mearp.org

Rail Safety Week is an industry lead initiative focusing on rail safety for all. Whether your career lies within the rail industry, or whether you use the railways to get from A to B – Rail Safety affects us all. Rail Safety Week aims