Foreword - Jane's World Railways 2000-2001
 

Foreword - Jane's World Railways 2000-2001

During 2000, there was more striking evidence of the seemingly relentless process of consolidation in the railway supply industry, especially in the vehicle building sector.
In June, Alstom announced it was to acquire a majority shareholding in Fiat Ferroviaria, the rail subsidiary of the Italian carmaking giant. In global market terms Fiat was not a major force, taking just an estimated 1.5 per cent of the rail vehicle market in 1999-2000. Fiat’s importance to Alstom, however, is significant for two main reasons. First, it will strengthen Alstom’s position in the Italian market and open up opportunities in Switzerland, where the Italian company has its Fiat-SIG operation. A second, and more significant, reason is that the merger will establish Alstom as the world leader in tilting train technology, an increasingly important sector of the market but one in which, until now, the company has played no great part.

Fiat Ferroviaria pioneered the successful application to high-speed rail vehicles of active tilting systems and has now claimed more than half the market with this technology. By the end of 2002, Alstom estimates that there will be over 4,100 tilting cars in service or under construction worldwide. Of these, no fewer than 433 will be for Virgin Trains in the UK supplied, by happy coincidence, under a joint venture contract by Alstom and Fiat.


The ink on the accord covering the Alstom-Fiat merger was barely dry when, in August, Bombardier Transportation in Canada announced that it had reached agreement with DaimlerChrysler to acquire its Adtranz subsidiary for US$725 million. At the time these remarks were written, approval of the deal by various regulatory and competition authorities was still awaited: few doubted that the takeover would be rejected. Adding the considerable resources of Adtranz to its portfolio will more than double the size of Bombardier Transportation’s business, boosting its annual revenues from US$2.3 billion to US$5.7 billion, based on sales in 2000, and increasing the number of its employees from 16,000 to 38,000 in 23 countries. The move will also take Bombardier into new areas of expertise, including the supply of propulsion systems and electric locomotive manufacture, and will increase the company’s worldwide presence through Adtranz’s strength in markets such as Australasia, the Indian subcontinent and the Nordic countries.

Bombardier is clear on why it moved to acquire Adtranz. It believes that strong global suppliers will best be able to meet the changing requirements of the market and that taking over Adtranz, which has recovered from a loss-making business to one breaking even, will strengthen its ability to fulfill that role. The company is also very confident about business prospects. Speaking at last October’s InnoTrans 2000 exhibition in Berlin, Jean-Yves Leblanc, president and chief operating officer of Bombardier Transportation, told journalists: "Even though certain countries are currently experiencing a softening of the market, overall we anticipate continued substantial investments in transportation in the coming years. In fact, over the next five years, we expect the market to grow by 20 to 25 per cent."
It is perhaps too early to assess the impact of this consolidation on the industry’s customers. True, their choice of potential suppliers will, in some instances, be reduced, although in reality there should remain enough competition to temper any tendency to exploit a dominant position. But we hope that vehicle builders will now draw on the strengths conferred by this global expansion to' continue investing in ways of achieving faster deliveries of new vehicles which are fully fit for service.
Rail is often criticised for being too slow to react to changing patterns of demand. To some extent, that is a problem inherent in the mode, especially where the provision of new infrastructure is needed.


In several countries in Europe, though France, Germany and the United Kingdom are by no means the only examples, there have recently been high-profile instances where delays to the commissioning and acceptance of new locomotives and rolling stock have reflected badly on an industry where detractors are only too ready to exploit its shortcomings.
In our foreword to the last edition of Jane's World Railways, we urged train operating companies to co-operate more closely with vehicle builders in accepting greater standardisation and modularity when specifying new equipment. We have no hesitation in reiterating this plea, this time adding encouragement to manufacturers to demonstrate more clearly that, with increasing global strength, they can meet the challenge of supplying vehicles which function as intended when delivered and enable operators to fulfill their commitments to customers and those who fund their services.

Building bridges

Since their revolutionary 19th century emergence as the leading means of mass transportation for people and goods, railway systems have shaped both the economic and social characteristics of the nations they serve. Now rail is increasingly assuming a more prominent international role. Two significant events during 2000 illustrate the vital part that railways now play in economic and political development, not just on a national basis but also regionally, and, perhaps globally.
In July, the 0resund fixed link between Denmark and Sweden was opened after 10 years of planning and construction. Completed at a cost of DKrl4.8 billion the new link, which also handles road traffic, promises benefits that extend far beyond offering a quick link across a body of water separating two countries. From the start, the project has been viewed as an engine for economic, social and cultural development'for the entire region.

Copenhagen’s Kastrup airport now serves as a regional hub, equally accessible to the people of Sweden as it is to Danes. Business investment in development sites on both sides of the water has received a boost, and access to the rest of western Europe has been substantially improved, with the prospect of even greater benefits if the proposed Fehmarn link between Denmark and Germany is built.
The region’s two main rail operators, Danish State Railways (DSB) and Swedish State Railways (SJ), have responded admirably to the new link, successfully collaborating, not only to develop and procure a new fleet of trains capable of working on the networks of both countries, but also to integrate their own fare structures and services with those of buses on both sides of the 0resund. Regional and intercity trains feature in the timetable of services using the link. In the longer term, and demonstrating the international significance of the new link, X2000 tilting trainsets operated by the Linx consortium formed by SJ and its Norwegian counterpart NSB will cross the 0resund, providing international services between Copenhagen. Stockholm and Oslo. Nor have the needs of freight traffic been overlooked. The impressive Class EG electric freight locomotives supplied by Siemens to DSB’s freight subsidiary, DSB Gods, are equipped to operate under the power supply and signalling systems of both Denmark and Sweden.

The contrast between Denmark and Sweden, models of international partnership, and idealogically opposed North and South Korea could hardly be greater, but it was here in Asia that, in 2000, work started on the restoration of a rail link of a very different kind. Following an historic agreement between the governments of the two countries, the severed railway between North and South Korea is to be reopened. Until recently, such a move was unthinkable. Now, following an easing of the tensions which have led to a cross-border military stand-off for more than 50 years, some US$128 million is to be spent reinstating the 20 fan section of line between Munsan in South Korea and Pongdong-ni in its northern neighbour and on upgrading associated feeder lines. Trains could be running as early as 2003.
Both countries will benefit economically from the scheme. For North Korea, transit traffic will generate much needed income, estimated at US$100 million annually. The line will provide South Korea with a direct connection to the Trans-China and Trans-Siberian railways, boosting the competitiveness of the country's industry by cutting the cost of shipping goods to Europe by up to 30 per cent. However, the real winners should eventually be the population of the two nations and perhaps the international community in general, if this highly symbolic step contributes to a reduction in regional tensions.
Tn their separate ways, both the 0resund Link and the Korean project bear witness to the enduring ability of rail to unite people and to contribute to prosperity in a way not possible with other modes of transport.

Acknowledgments

No foreword to Jane’s World Railways would be complete without acknowledging the many contributors, correspondents and friends who have assisted in various way in the preparation of this latest edition. Their specialised skills, local knowledge and photographic contributions have done much to enrich this book.
In particular, special thanks are again due to Tony Pattison, who has undertaken the compilation of much of the Manufacturers section while also shouldering responsibility for the editorship of this book’s sister publication, Jane’s Urban Transport Systems. As usual, Tony has gone beyond the call of duty to ensure the accuracy of many company entries.
Our thanks for updated information and illustrations in this new edition are especially due to numerous friends and correspondents around the world. They include Eddie Barnes, Colin Boocock,

Chris Bushell, Roger Carveil, Tom Ellett, Bruce Evans, Angel Ferrer, Aharon Gazit, John Gough, Norman Griffiths, К К Gupta, David Haydock, Tony Heywood, Michal Malek, Brian Perren, Wilhelm Pflug, Marcel Vleugels, Frank Valoczy, Quintus Vosman, Brian Webber and John Westwood. The efforts of many other photographic contributors are also acknowledged. Regrettably, not all material submitted can be used, but all is appreciated.


It is a pleasure again to offer thanks to Samuel Rachdi of the Fahrplancenter in Winterthur, Switzerland. He has continued to undertake much valuable research to allow us to update existing maps and add new ones for the few remaining countries that lacked them in the last edition, as well as providing details of developments on numerous railway systems in Africa and South America. Mr Rachdi’s work has been skillfully interpreted by our graphic artist, Barrie Compton, to whom thanks are also due, to create the maps in the pages which follow.
Continuing moves within Jane’s towards an expansion of our capabilities to deliver information electronically, most notably the development of the Internet-based Jane’s Online project, has added this year to the burden of the in-house editorial and production team. Processing the substantial volume of material that makes up Jane’s World Railways is very much a team effort involving many people, but we would like to make special mention of Diana Barrick, Melanie Ro very and Janet Seymour, who have all made light of a sometimes difficult task.
As usual, this year’s edition of Jane’s World Railways has been extensively updated. In particular, we have heavily amended the Railway Systems section coverage of Argentina, Australia and Brazil, where concessioning and privatisation have led to major restructuring, China and the independent railways in Italy. The updating process is now a year-round activity and amended entries will be published on the Jane’s Online version of Jane’s World Railways as new information becomes available.
Updating Jane’s World Railways would be impossible without the co-operation of the railway undertakings and companies featured in it. We, therefore, thank the many industry organisations which have responded so generously to our requests for the data that enables Jane’s World Railways to retain its position as a leading information provider in this fast-changing market.
Ken Harris, Editor Brighton, October 2000