2005 in rail transport - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

January events

Main article January 2005 in rail transport
January 2005 in rail transport
-January 1:January 1* – ÖBB, the national railway of Austria, is reorganized into ÖBB-Holding AG, a holding company to manage subsidiaries ÖBB-Dienstleistungs GmbH, ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG and Rail Cargo Austria AG .-January 2–8:January 3* – Kansas City Southern names Arthur Shoener, formerly a...

January 6 – Graniteville train disaster

Graniteville train disaster

The Graniteville train disaster was an American rail disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina.At roughly 2:40 am Eastern Standard Time, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near an Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. Norfolk Southern train No. P22 was parked on...

– A Norfolk Southern train carrying a few carloads of hazardous materials (including chlorine

Chlorine

Chlorine is the chemical element with atomic number 17 and symbol Cl. It is the second lightest halogen, found in the periodic table in group 17. The element forms diatomic molecules under standard conditions, called dichlorine...

gas) collides with a parked train in Graniteville, South Carolina

Graniteville, South Carolina

Graniteville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It lies along U.S. 1, five miles west of Aiken. The town lies in Horse Creek Valley which originates in the nearby town of Vaucluse....

, causing the deaths of 9 people and the injury of over 250 more. January 12 – General Motors announces that it has agreed to sell its Electro-Motive Division

General Motors Electro-Motive Division

Electro-Motive Diesel, Inc., also referred to as "EMD", is a wholly owned subsidiary of Progress Rail Services Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc., that designs, manufactures and sells diesel-electric locomotives and diesel power engines worldwide under the Electro-Motive...

to a partnership led by Greenbriar Equity Group and Berkshire Partners

Berkshire Partners

Berkshire Partners, the Boston-based private equity firm, has invested in leading mid-sized companies for over twenty-five years through eight investment funds with aggregate capital of $11 billion. Berkshire has developed specific industry experience in several areas including retailing, consumer...

. January 17 – Two Bangkok Metro

Bangkok Metro

The MRT , sometimes referred to as the Bangkok Metro, is Bangkok's underground metro system in Thailand. It was constructed under a concession concept...

trains collide, injuring nearly 200 people. January 26 – Glendale train crash

Glendale train crash

The 2005 Glendale train crash is the second deadliest incident in the history of Metrolink, the commuter railroad in the Los Angeles, California, area. It was overtaken as the deadliest by the 2008 Chatsworth train collision.On January 26, 2005, at 6:03 a.m...

– In what police call a suicide attempt, a Metrolink

Metrolink (Southern California)

Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track....

train in Glendale, California

Glendale, California

Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...

, (a suburb of Los Angeles) hits a car parked on a grade crossing and then derails into another Metrolink train and a parked Union Pacific Railroad

Union Pacific Railroad

The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....

locomotive

Locomotive

A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...

resulting in 11 fatalities and 200 injuries. January 29 – Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

's third LRT Line, Punggol LRT Line

Punggol LRT Line

The Punggol LRT Line is the third line of the LRT system in Singapore. Its first phase comprises a 10.3km line with 15 stations. Similar to the Sengkang LRT Line, its rolling stock and line operator are the Crystal Movers and SBS Transit respectively....

opened.

February events

Main article February 2005 in rail transport
February 2005 in rail transport
-February 1–5: February 3 – Nagpur level crossing disaster – A crowded trailer being towed by a tractor was hit by a train near the village of Kanan, 20 km from Nagpur in Maharashtra, India...

February 3 – Nagpur level crossing disaster

Nagpur level crossing disaster

The Nagpur level crossing disaster was an accident that occurred on 3 February 2005, when a crowded trailer being towed by a tractor was hit by a train near the village of Kanan, 20km from Nagpur in Maharashtra, India...

kills 55 people. February 25 – Bombardier

Bombardier Transportation

Bombardier Transportation is the rail equipment division of the Canadian firm, Bombardier Inc. Bombardier Transportation is one of the world's largest companies in the rail-equipment manufacturing and servicing industry. Its headquarters are in Berlin, Germany....

is awarded a contract to build 361 passenger cars for a new Chinese rail line to Lhasa

Lhasa

Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...

, Tibet; due to the destination's altitude the cars will include special UV

Ultraviolet

Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays, in the range 10 nm to 400 nm, and energies from 3 eV to 124 eV...

-filtering glass and a unique oxygen

Oxygen

Oxygen is the element with atomic number 8 and represented by the symbol O. Its name derives from the Greek roots ὀξύς and -γενής , because at the time of naming, it was mistakenly thought that all acids required oxygen in their composition...

enriching system.

March events

Main article March 2005 in rail transport
March 2005 in rail transport
-March 1–5:* March 2 – Citing disputes in paid leave policies, around 200 BNSF Railway dispatchers walk off the job for nearly three hours, causing traffic delays over the entire system from Chicago to the Pacific coast...

March 2 – Citing disputes in paid leave policies, around 200 BNSF Railway

BNSF Railway

The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...

dispatchers walk off the job for nearly three hours, causing traffic delays over the entire system from Chicago to the Pacific coast. March 14 – Canadian Pacific Railway

Canadian Pacific Railway

The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...

purchases 35 new Green Goat hybrid locomotives, becoming the first railroad to order this type of locomotive.

April events

Main article April 2005 in rail transport
April 2005 in rail transport
-April 1–2:* April 1** All former BC Rail systems and operations are fully integrated into those of the purchasing railroad, Canadian National Railway...

April 1
- – All former BC Rail systems and operations are fully integrated into those of the purchasing railroad, Canadian National Railway
  Canadian National Railway
  The Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
  
  . http://cn.ca/productsservices/BCRail/en_BCRail.shtml
- – Kansas City Southern Railway
  Kansas City Southern Railway
  The Kansas City Southern Railway , owned by Kansas City Southern Industries, is the smallest and second-oldest Class I railroad company still in operation. KCS was founded in 1887 and is currently operating in a region consisting of ten central U.S. states...
  
  completes its controlling interest purchase of TFM
  Grupo Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana
  Kansas City Southern de México , formerly Transportación Ferroviaria Mexicana , is the name of a company dedicated to freight transportation using rail in the North Eastern part of Mexico...
  
  ; Vicente Corta is named interim CEO of TFM. April 7 – Railways Act 2005
  Railways Act 2005
  The Railways Act 2005 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerning the regulatory structure for railways in the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
  
  (UK) http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/14/contents provides for abolition of Strategic Rail Authority
  Strategic Rail Authority
  In existence from 2001 to 2006, the Strategic Rail Authority was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom set up under the Transport Act 2000 to provide strategic direction for the railway industry....
  
  . April 13 – The transport ministry of Bulgaria
  Bulgaria
  Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
  
  issues the first freight transport license to a private company, Bulgarian Railroad Company
  Bulgarian Railroad Company
  Българска железопътна компания АД , in English, The Bulgarian Railway Company is the first privately held railfreight company to obtain a license in Bulgaria....
  
  , to operate on the nation's rail network.

April 25 – .Amagasaki rail crash

Amagasaki rail crash

The Amagasaki rail crash occurred on 25 April 2005 at 09:19 local time , just after the local rush hour. The Rapid Service came off the tracks on the West Japan Railway Company Fukuchiyama Line in Amagasaki, Hyōgo Prefecture, near Osaka, just before Amagasaki Station on its way for Dōshisha-mae...

– A JR West commuter train derails and strikes an apartment building in Amagasaki, Hyogo

Amagasaki, Hyogo

is an industrial city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on April 1, 1916. Its population is around 460,000, below its peak of over 554,000 in 1971.-History:...

, Japan, killing 106 and injuring more than 460 others.Japanese commuter train derails, apartment building smashed. April 28 – Swiss

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

engineers blast through the last section of rock on the first bore of the Lötschberg Base Tunnel

Lötschberg Base Tunnel

The Lötschberg Base Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the BLS Lötschbergbahn's Lötschberg Line cutting through the Alps of Switzerland some below the existing Lötschberg Tunnel. It is currently the world's longest land tunnel and accommodates passenger and freight trains. It runs between Frutigen,...

project under the Alps

Alps

The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....

. See also Swiss finish drilling world's longest overland tunnel

May events

Main article May 2005 in rail transport
May 2005 in rail transport
-May 1–7:May 3* – The Iranian president Mohammad Khatami leads the ceremony inaugurating passenger rail service between Mashhad and Bafq, Iran....

May 3 – The Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

ian president Mohammad Khatami

Mohammad Khatami

Sayyid Mohammad Khātamī is an Iranian scholar, philosopher, Shiite theologian and Reformist politician. He served as the fifth President of Iran from August 2, 1997 to August 3, 2005. He also served as Iran's Minister of Culture in both the 1980s and 1990s...

leads the ceremony inaugurating passenger rail service between Mashhad

Mashhad

Mashhad , is the second largest city in Iran and one of the holiest cities in the Shia Muslim world. It is also the only major Iranian city with an Arabic name. It is located east of Tehran, at the center of the Razavi Khorasan Province close to the borders of Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. Its...

and Bafq

Bafq

Bafq is a city in and the capital of Bafq County, Yazd Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 30,867, in 7,919 families....

, Iran. May 26 – Genesee and Wyoming (G&W) announce that they have agreed to purchase the railroad operations of Rail Management Corporation

Rail Management Corporation

Rail Management Corporation , based in Panama City Beach, Florida, was a holding company of short line railroads in the southeastern United States.- History :...

(RMC). G&W will pay US$243 million in cash and assume $1.7 million in company debt to gain control of 14 short line railroads from RMC across the southeastern United States, as of June 1, 2005. G&W already controls 24 other railroads in North America, South America and Australia.

June events

Main article June 2005 in rail transport
June 2005 in rail transport
- June 1 – June 4 :June 1* – Genesee and Wyoming takes ownership and begins operations of 14 railroads from Rail Management Corporation. * – Joseph H. Boardman, former Commissioner of New York State Department of Transportation, begins his duties as Administrator for the United States Federal...

June 1 – Joseph H. Boardman

Joseph H. Boardman

Joseph H. Boardman is the president of Amtrak and formerly Administrator of the United States Federal Railroad Administration.He was nominated by President George W. Bush on March 17, 2005 and confirmed by the United States Senate on April 28, 2005. He was the eleventh Federal Railroad...

, former Commissioner of New York State Department of Transportation, begins his duties as Administrator for the United States Federal Railroad Administration

Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...

(a division of the USDOT

United States Department of Transportation

The United States Department of Transportation is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with transportation. It was established by an act of Congress on October 15, 1966, and began operation on April 1, 1967...

). June 2 – Railroad workers across France go on strike to demand better wages and jobs. The strike, which began at 18:00 GMT on Wednesday, is expected to last through 6:00 GMT Friday. Nearly 40% of all TGV

TGV

The TGV is France's high-speed rail service, currently operated by SNCF Voyages, the long-distance rail branch of SNCF, the French national rail operator....

schedules are dropped for the duration of the strike. June 4 – Lalu Prasad, India's Railway Minister, presents his Rs.

Indian rupee

The Indian rupee is the official currency of the Republic of India. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India....

532 billion (US$12 billion) budget for Indian Railways

Indian Railways

Indian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....

for 2005–06. The network of more than 9,000 passenger trains will not increase passenger fares, will add 46 new trains, increase frequencies on 10 others and plans to inaugurate new high speed train

High Speed Train

There are three types of trains in Britain that have been traditionally viewed as high speed trains:* Advanced Passenger Train - Tilting trains which never entered into regular revenue-earning service....

service between New Delhi and Kolkata

Kolkata

Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...

and another between New Delhi and Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

. June 12 – At 7:10 AM local time, a bomb explodes between Uzunovo and Bogatishchevo, Russia (about 95 miles / 153 km from Moscow), derailing the locomotive

Locomotive

and first four passenger cars of the Grozny

Grozny

Grozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...

-Moscow train. Investigators found wires leading from the explosion site to a control panel and hideout about 164 ft (50 m) from the site. June 21 – A southbound passenger train collides with a coal delivery truck near Revadim

Revadim

Revadim is a kibbutz in Israel on the southern coastal plain. It is under the administration of the Yoav Regional Council and affiliated with the Hashomer Hatza'ir movement.-History:...

, about 25 miles south of Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv

Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...

; the train was bound for Beersheba

Beersheba

Beersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....

when the accident occurred. At least seven people die in the accident and more than 200 are injured. June 22 – The entire network of the Swiss Federal Railways

SBB-CFF-FFS

Swiss Federal Railways and SFR are not in official use) is the national railway company of Switzerland headquartered in Bern. Formerly a government institution, it is since 1999 a special stock corporation with all shares held by the Swiss Confederation or the Swiss cantons...

shuts down due to a power failure in its overhead wire system. The power failure is also affecting international transit through Switzerland as such intercity trains use the same system. Initial reports indicate that the power failure started with a voltage drop in Ticino

Ticino

Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language...

(in the St. Gotthard region) that then spread to the entire system.

July events

Main article July 2005 in rail transport
July 2005 in rail transport
- July 1 – July 2 :July 1* - Indian Railways is expected to inaugurate two new Shatabdi Express passenger trains, one between Chennai and Bangalore and a new Jan-Shatabdi Express between Madgaon and Mangalore.- July 3 – July 9 :July 4...

July 1 – Indian Railways

Indian Railways

is expected to inaugurate two new Shatabdi Express
Shatabdi Express
Shatabdi Express trains are a series of fast passenger trains operated by Indian Railways to connect Metro cities with other cities important for tourism, pilgrimage or business...

passenger trains, one between Chennai

Chennai

and Bangalore

Bangalore

Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...

and a new Jan-Shatabdi Express between Madgaon and Mangalore

Mangalore

Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...

July 7 – Three bombs explode in the London Underground

London Underground

The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...

killing at least 35 people. Explosions occurred between the Aldgate East

Aldgate East tube station

Aldgate East is a London Underground station located between Aldgate and Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.The station is in Travelcard Zone 1...

and Liverpool Street

Liverpool Street station

Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street, is both a central London railway terminus and a connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London, England...

stations, between King's Cross St Pancras

King's Cross St. Pancras tube station

King's Cross St. Pancras is a tube station in the London Borough of Camden, on the London Underground network, serving both King's Cross and main line stations. It is in Travelcard Zone 1. It is the fourth busiest station on the system and serves more lines than any other...

and Russell Square

Russell Square tube station

Russell Square is a London Underground station on Bernard Street, Bloomsbury in the London Borough of Camden. It is a small but busy station, often used by office workers and by tourists who are staying in Bloomsbury's numerous hotels. The station is a Grade II listed building.-History:The station...

, and at Edgware Road

Edgware Road tube station

Edgware Road station is a London Underground station on the corner of Chapel Street and Cabbell Street Road in Travelcard Zone 1 serving the Circle, District and Hammersmith & City lines. The separate Edgware Road tube station is about 150 metres away on the opposite side of the Marylebone Road...

. A further bomb on a bus in Tavistock Square

Tavistock Square

Tavistock Square is a public square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden with a fine garden.-Public art:The centre-piece of the gardens is a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, which was installed in 1968....

killed 13 people. A statement claiming responsibility was posted to a website known to be operated by associates of Al Qaeda. July 13 – A passenger train stopped at the Ghotki, Pakistan, train station was hit from behind by a train that missed a signal

Railway signal

A signal is a mechanical or electrical device erected beside a railway line to pass information relating to the state of the line ahead to train/engine drivers. The driver interprets the signal's indication and acts accordingly...

. The derailed cars were subsequently hit by a third train, resulting in a total of seventeen wrecked train cars, which carried over 3,000 passengers. More than 100 people are dead from the Ghotki rail crash

Ghotki rail crash

The Ghotki rail crash occurred on July 13, 2005, at around 3:40am local time in Ghotki, Pakistan. A train stopping at the Sarhad rail station was hit from behind by a train that missed a signal. The collision caused several of the cars to derail...

. Pakistani railroad officials have called this the worst railroad accident there in 15 years. July 29 – Iarnród Éireann

Iarnród Éireann

Iarnród Éireann is the national railway system operator of Ireland. Established on 2 February 1987, it is a subsidiary of Córas Iompair Éireann . It operates all internal intercity, commuter and freight railway services in the Republic of Ireland, and, jointly with Northern Ireland Railways, the...

, the Irish state railway operator, ceases all container freight traffic on the network

Rail transport in Ireland

Rail services in Ireland are provided by Iarnród Éireann in the Republic of Ireland and by Northern Ireland Railways in Northern Ireland.Most routes in the Republic radiate from Dublin...

. Freight yards at Limerick

Limerick

Limerick is the third largest city in the Republic of Ireland, and the principal city of County Limerick and Ireland's Mid-West Region. It is the fifth most populous city in all of Ireland. When taking the extra-municipal suburbs into account, Limerick is the third largest conurbation in the...

and Dublin will be closed.

August events

Main article August 2005 in rail transport
August 2005 in rail transport
- August 1 – August 6 :August 1* – Kilkis, northern Greece: A truck driver is killed after he ignored grade crossing warning signs and his truck is hit by an oncoming passenger train of the Hellenic Railways Organization. The train's crew are only slightly injured, and all of the train's...

August 4 – Argentinian

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

railroad workers across the country (except for the subway

Rapid transit

A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...

operators in Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

) go on strike for 24 hours demanding higher wages. The strike comes after 100 days of failed negotiations between the railroads and the engine driver unions; if an agreement cannot be reached within a week, the unions have threatened a subsequent 36-hour strike. The railroad employees strike coincides with a 72-hour health care workers strike that is still occurring. August 15 – All America Latina Logistica

All America Latina Logistica

América Latina Logística is a Brazilian holding company that operates railway lines in Argentina and Brazil and provides transportation services such as logistics, intermodal transport, port operations, movement and storage of merchandise, administration of storage facilities and general storage...

SA (ALL) of Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

announces that it has formed a partnership with Besco Engineering and Services Private Limited of India to build new railroad car

Railroad car

A railroad car or railway vehicle , also known as a bogie in Indian English, is a vehicle on a rail transport system that is used for the carrying of cargo or passengers. Cars can be coupled together into a train and hauled by one or more locomotives...

s in Brazil. The new enterprise, to be named Santa Fe Vagoes SA, will be located in Brazil and 40% owned by ALL. August 24 – Chinese railroad workers in Tibet

Tibet

Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...

laid rails on the Tanggula Mountain Pass in Tibet at 5,072 m (16,640 ft) above sea level, surpassing the altitude of the highest Peru

Peru

Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....

vian railway by 255 m (837 ft). This section of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway is now the highest railway in the world. The railway also includes the highest railway station

Train station

A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...

in the world at Lhasa

Lhasa

, 5,068 m (16,627 ft) above sea level. The railway is expected to open later in 2005. August 27 – The first section of the Asker Line, from Asker

Asker Station

Asker is a railway station located in downtown Asker in Akershus, Norway. The station serves as the main public transportation hub for the municipalities located around the Asker Line, the Drammen Line and the Spikkestad Line. The station was opened with the Drammen Line in 1872...

to Sandvika

Sandvika Station

Sandvika Station is a railway station located in downtown Sandvika in Bærum, Akershus, Norway. The station serves as a local public transport hub and is located on the Asker Line and the Drammen Line. The station was opened with the Drammen Line in 1872. In 2005 the Asker Line opened allowing...

, is opened.

September events

Main article September 2005 in rail transport
September 2005 in rail transport
- September 1 - September 3 :September 1* - Kansas City Southern Railway reopens its Meridian Speedway railway line between Meridian, Mississippi, and Shreveport, Louisiana, after clearing debris and repairing damage caused by Hurricane Katrina. The line is also used by Norfolk Southern as a...

September 2 – In a letter to the governors of Louisiana

Louisiana

Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...

, Mississippi

Mississippi

Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...

and Alabama

Alabama

Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...

, BNSF Railway

BNSF Railway

(headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth, Texas

Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...

) pledges a contribution of US$1 million, and offers rail transportation to aid in relief efforts for the areas affected by Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...

. The monetary contribution would come from the Bulington Northern Santa Fe Foundation as a donation to the American Red Cross

American Red Cross

The American Red Cross , also known as the American National Red Cross, is a volunteer-led, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief and education inside the United States. It is the designated U.S...

relief efforts, while the transportation assistance is currently being organized by the Association of American Railroads

Association of American Railroads

The Association of American Railroads is an industry trade group representing primarily the major freight railroads of North America . Amtrak and some regional commuter railroads are also members...

, Federal Emergency Management Agency

Federal Emergency Management Agency

The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...

, Federal Railroad Administration

Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...

and the other railroads that serve the area. The letter also states that repairs to the Bayou Boeuf bridge are now complete and BNSF's mainline was reopened as originally planned at 6:00 PM Central Time on September 1. September 6 – Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

n transport officials at a meeting in Bandar Lampung

Bandar Lampung

- External links :*...

announce plans to build a trans-Sumatra

Sumatra

Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...

n railway to connect Banda Aceh

Banda Aceh

Banda Aceh is the provincial capital and largest city in the province of Aceh, Indonesia, located on the island of Sumatra, with an elevation of 35 meters. The city regency covers an area of 64 square kilometres and according to the 2000 census had a population of 219,070 people...

to Bakauheni, a distance of 2151 km (1,336.6 mi). A Feasibility Study

Feasibility study

Feasibility studies aim to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of the existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats as presented by the environment, the resources required to carry through, and ultimately the prospects for success. In its simplest...

performed after the 2004 tsunami

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...

by SNCF

SNCF

The SNCF , is France's national state-owned railway company. SNCF operates the country's national rail services, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network...

, the national rail carrier of France, showed that such a line could be built. Construction is expected to commence in seven stages; the first stage would connect Banda Aceh to Besitang (484 km / 301 miles). (Indonesia Relief) September 13 – The Nigerian Railway Corporation

Nigerian Railway Corporation

Nigerian Railway Corporation is the government body operating railways in Nigeria.- Infrastructure and operations :Nigerian Railway Corporation operates a network of of single track lines, all have gauge....

(NRC), the national rail carrier of Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

, announces that it has laid off 5,980 of its nearly 12,000 employees, answering a call from the Nigerian government to downsize. The government first asked NRC for a 50% reduction in the last quarter of 2003; NRC waited until there was sufficient funds from the government for severance packages for the affected employees. In all, the government released nearly N2.1 billion (US$16 million) to NRC for severance pay. Some of NRC's layoff criteria included fraud, excessive absenteeism

Absenteeism

Absenteeism is a habitual pattern of absence from a duty or obligation. Traditionally, absenteeism has been viewed as an indicator of poor individual performance, as well as a breach of an implicit contract between employee and employer; it was seen as a management problem, and framed in economic...

, employees who had worked for more than 33 years, or who were aged 50–60, and employees with a history of disciplinary actions. (AllAfrica) September 20 – Japanese officials announce the government's intentions to pay former World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

prisoners of war

Prisoner of war

A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

involved in the construction of the Death Railway

Death Railway

The Burma Railway, also known as the Death Railway, the Thailand–Burma Railway and similar names, was a railway between Bangkok, Thailand, and Rangoon, Burma , built by the Empire of Japan during World War II, to support its forces in the Burma campaign.Forced labour was used in its construction...

between Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

and Burma. Compensation amounts have not been announced; some estimates place the number of construction survivors at 1,800, most now aged in their 80s and 90s. The compensation for laborers who have died either during construction or afterward would be sent to their next of kin. September 29 – Sixty years after World War II

World War II

, Nederlandse Spoorwegen

Nederlandse Spoorwegen

Nederlandse Spoorwegen , or NS, is the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands.Its trains operate over the tracks of the Dutch national railinfrastructure, operated by ProRail, which was split off from NS in 2003...

issues a statement formally apologizing for transporting Jewish people to Nazi

Nazism

Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...

concentration camps in Germany and Poland during the war. Aad Veenman, the railway's chief executive stated "On behalf of the company and from the bottom of my heart, I sincerely apologise for what happened during the war." The railway made the decision to issue the formal apology after the largest Dutch Jewish organization, CJO, proposed an awareness campaign to take place at the railway's stations nationwide. Reaction among the survivors is mixed.

October events

Main article October 2005 in rail transport
October 2005 in rail transport
- October 2 - October 8 :October 3* - Datia train crash - Six coaches of Indian Railways' Bundelkhand Express from Varanasi derail about north of Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh. The derailed cars struck a nearby signal box before coming to rest on top of one another, killing 18 people and...

October 6 – Amtrak

Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

announces that the City of New Orleans
City of New Orleans
The City of New Orleans is a nightly passenger train operated by Amtrak which travels between Chicago, Illinois and New Orleans, Louisiana. Before Amtrak's formation in 1971, the train was operated by the Illinois Central Railroad along the same route . The train currently operates on a 19½ hour...

and Crescent
Crescent (Amtrak)
The Crescent is a passenger train operated by Amtrak in the eastern part of the United States. It runs daily from Pennsylvania Station in New York City to New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal in New Orleans, Louisiana as train 19 and returns, on the same route, as train 20. Most of the route of...

passenger trains will again serve New Orleans Union Station beginning on Sunday October 9. Before Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina

made landfall, Amtrak suspended City of New Orleans service south of Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis, Tennessee

Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....

, and suspended Crescent service south of Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta, Georgia

Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...

, in anticipation of damage to the tracks

Rail tracks

The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...

and signal

Railway signal

systems surrounding New Orleans. The first departure from New Orleans will be the northbound Crescent at 7:20 AM, followed by the northbound City of New Orleans at 1:45 PM; the first corresponding southbound trains are scheduled to arrive in New Orleans later that afternoon. Amtrak's announcement did not mention service restoration on the transcontinental Sunset Limited
Sunset Limited
The Sunset Limited is a passenger train that for most of its history has run between New Orleans, Louisiana and Los Angeles, California, and that from early 1993 through late August 2005 also ran east of New Orleans to Jacksonville, Florida, making it during that time the only true transcontinental...

.

October 14 – The concession for operation of the Kenya-Uganda Railways is awarded to Rift Valley Railways Consortium

Rift Valley Railways Consortium

The Rift Valley Railways Consortium is a consortium that was established to manage the parastatal railways of Kenya and Uganda. The consortium won the bid for private management of the century-old Kenya-Uganda railway in 2005.-History:...

(RVRC), headquartered in South Africa. In announcing the bid, officials state that Rift Valley was selected over RITES Ltd.

RITES Ltd.

RITES Limited is an engineering consultancy company, specializing in the field of transport infrastructure. Established in 1974 by the Government of India, the company's initial charter was to provide consultancy services in rail transport management to operators in India and abroad...

of India, the only other bidder, by a factor of two to one. The new operator is expected to begin management of the combined railway on March 30, 2006. RVRC will not be expected to take up the railways 20.9 billion shilling

Kenyan shilling

The shilling is the currency of Kenya. It is divisible into 100 cents.-Coins:The first coins were issued in 1966 in denominations of 5, 10, 25 and 50 cents, and 1 and 2 shillings. Twenty-five cents coins were not minted after 1969; 2 shillings coins were last minted in 1971...

(US$282 million) debt, but will repay the Kenya

Kenya

Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...

n government 3 billion shillings ($40.5 million) that was spent to subsidize the railway for the last three years. October 15 – Chinese officials announce the completion of the Qingzang railway

Qingzang railway

The Qinghai–Xizang railway, Qingzang railway, or Qinghai–Tibet railway , is a high-elevation railway that connects Xining, Qinghai Province, to Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, in People's Republic of China....

connecting Xining

Xining

Xining is the capital of Qinghai province, People's Republic of China, and the largest city on the Tibetan Plateau. It has 2,208,708 inhabitants at the 2010 census whom 1,198,304 live in the built up area made of 4 urban districts.-History:...

, Qinghai Province

Qinghai

Qinghai ; Oirat Mongolian: ; ; Salar:) is a province of the People's Republic of China, named after Qinghai Lake...

, to Lhasa

Lhasa

, Tibet Autonomous Region. The line's construction, which has been criticized by some who say the new railway will dilute Tibetan culture, had to overcome technical challenges that included building a railway on top of permafrost

Permafrost

In geology, permafrost, cryotic soil or permafrost soil is soil at or below the freezing point of water for two or more years. Ice is not always present, as may be in the case of nonporous bedrock, but it frequently occurs and it may be in amounts exceeding the potential hydraulic saturation of...

and boring tunnels through solid ice while construction workers breathed bottled oxygen

Oxygen

. October 17 – British railway ministers announce that Scottish Ministers will soon take control of railway administration within Scotland. The powers will include decisions over operations and infrastructure (such as tracks

Rail tracks

The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...

and stations

Train station

) as well as oversight of the First ScotRail

First ScotRail

ScotRail Railways Ltd. is the FirstGroup-owned train operating company running domestic passenger trains within Scotland, northern England and the cross-border Caledonian Sleeper service to London using the brand ScotRail which is the property of the Scottish Government...

franchise. The British government will also supply a multi-million pound

Pound sterling

The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...

grant to fund the Scottish rail operations, money that is needed in order to move the Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

station improvement project forward, for example. British ministers will retain train driver licensing as well as other safety obligations. October 24 – World's first biogas train makes maiden voyage. October 29 – Veligonda rail disaster near the town of Veligonda, south of Hyderabad in the Indian State of Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...

. A flash flood swept away a small rail bridge, and a "Delta Express" train travelling on it derailed at the broken section of the line, killing at least 114 people and injuring over 200. October 31 – Rapid transit

Rapid transit

workers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

, go on strike. SEPTA

Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority is a metropolitan transportation authority that operates various forms of public transit—bus, subway and elevated rail, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolley bus—that serve 3.9 million people in and around Philadelphia,...

, the fifth largest transit agency in the United States, is forced to temporarily close several lines due to a lack of trained employees. Union negotiators walked out of contract negotiations minutes before the midnight deadline when they failed to come to a conclusion; disputes were centered around employee pay and benefits agreements. All operators on the City, Victory, and Frontier Divisions walked off the job. SEPTA services on the regional rail division continue according to contingency plans, and all bus, trolley, and subway lines are suspended until the conclusion of the work stoppage.

November events

Main article November 2005 in rail transport
November 2005 in rail transport
- November 1 - November 5 :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...

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 market

Stock market

A stock market or equity market is a public entity for the trading of company stock and derivatives at an agreed price; these are securities listed on a stock exchange as well as those only traded privately.The size of the world stock market was estimated at about $36.6 trillion...

s. The strategy is to raise money for improvements and expansions to the network, which would increase the amount of track by about 27000 km (16,777.1 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

Ministry of Railways

Ministry of Railways may refer to:* Ministry of Railways * Ministry of Railways * Ministry of Railways * Ministry of Railways * Ministry of Railways...

, especially in regard to the newly independent railways' abilities to raise prices to cover costs. (BBC News) November 4 – The United States Federal Railroad Administration

Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...

(FRA) announces a requirement for increased and more detailed inspections of around 90000 miles (144,840.6 km) of track

Rail tracks

The track on a railway or railroad, also known as the permanent way, is the structure consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers and ballast , plus the underlying subgrade...

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

National Transportation Safety Board

The National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...

cite inadequate track inspections as the cause of three major derailment

Derailment

A derailment is an accident on a railway or tramway in which a rail vehicle, or part or all of a train, leaves the tracks on which it is travelling, with consequent damage and in many cases injury and/or death....

s since 2002, including a Canadian Pacific Railway

Canadian Pacific Railway

(CP) derailment in January 2002 near Minot, North Dakota

Minot, North Dakota

Minot is a city located in north central North Dakota in the United States. It is most widely known for the Air Force base located approximately 15 miles north of the city. With a population of 40,888 at the 2010 census, Minot is the fourth largest city in the state...

, that released a cloud of anhydrous ammonia, and an Amtrak

Amtrak

derailment in 2004 near Flora, Mississippi

Flora, Mississippi

Flora is a town in Madison County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,546 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Flora is located at ....

, in which a passenger died. CP disputes inadequate inspections as the cause of the 2002 accident. (AP/Newsday) (FRA) 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

Jacques Chirac

Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...

offered his personal guarantee that SNCF

SNCF

The SNCF , is France's national state-owned railway company. SNCF operates the country's national rail services, including the TGV, France's high-speed rail network...

would not be privatised. The strike, the sixth by French rail workers in 2005, suspended one third of all TGV

TGV

The TGV is France's high-speed rail service, currently operated by SNCF Voyages, the long-distance rail branch of SNCF, the French national rail operator....

trains across the country. (IHT) November 29 – In the Kindu rail accident

Kindu rail accident

In the Kindu rail accident on November 29, 2005, 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 the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. After speaking with local officials in his region, Koloso Sumaili, the...

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.

December events

Main article December 2005 in rail transport
December 2005 in rail transport
- December 1 - December 3 :December 1* - The National Railway Museum in York, England, announces a £3.5 million project to make the museum's archives more available to the public...

December 2 – Schnabel car

Schnabel car

A Schnabel car is a specialized type of railroad freight car. It is designed to carry heavy and oversized loads in such a way that the load itself makes up part of the car...

CEBX 800, the largest such car on North American rails, departs Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth, Minnesota

Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...

, in a special Canadian Pacific Railway

Canadian Pacific Railway

train bound for Long Lake

Long Lake, Alberta

Long Lake is a hamlet in central Alberta, Canada within the County of Thorhild No. 7. It is located approximately east of Highway 63 and northeast of Edmonton.- References :...

in northern Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

. The car is carrying what has been called the largest single-car freight load ever carried in North America, an enormous "hydro cracker" reactor built in pieces in Dubai

Dubai

Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...

and Japan. The 1.5 million pound

Pound (mass)

The pound or pound-mass is a unit of mass used in the Imperial, United States customary and other systems of measurement...

load was offloaded from the ship Stellaprima in Duluth on November 23.

December 6
- – General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
  Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
  Mohammed bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan is the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces .-Political and business career:...
  
  , Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi
  Abu Dhabi
  Abu Dhabi , literally Father of Gazelle, is the capital and the second largest city of the United Arab Emirates in terms of population and the largest of the seven member emirates of the United Arab Emirates. Abu Dhabi lies on a T-shaped island jutting into the Persian Gulf from the central western...
  
  , announces that studies
  Feasibility study
  Feasibility studies aim to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of the existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats as presented by the environment, the resources required to carry through, and ultimately the prospects for success. In its simplest...
  
  will begin on connecting all of the emirates in the United Arab Emirates
  United Arab Emirates
  The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
  
  by rail for both passenger and intermodal freight transport
  Intermodal freight transport
  Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in an intermodal container or vehicle, using multiple modes of transportation , without any handling of the freight itself when changing modes. The method reduces cargo handling, and so improves security, reduces damages and...
  
  . The 700 km (435 mi) proposed route would connect Abu Dhabi, Dubai
  Dubai
  Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
  
  , Sharjah
  Sharjah (city)
  Sharjah is the third largest and most populous city in the United Arab Emirates. It is located along the southern coast of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula.Sharjah is the seat of government of the emirate of Sharjah...
  
  , Ras Al Khaimah and Fujairah
  Fujairah
  Fujairah is one of the seven emirates that make up the United Arab Emirates, and the only one on the Gulf of Oman in the country's east instead of Persian Gulf .-History:...
  
  with Ruwais
  Ruwais
  Al Ruwais is a town located some 240 kilometers west of Abu Dhabi city. The Ruwais industrial and housing complex has been developed by ADNOC as a major contributor to the national economy and represents a series of multi-million-dollar investments by the company...
  
  and Ghowaifat. Officials hope to create a public-private partnership in order to build and operate the proposed railway. The project is part of a wider plan and a requirement of the Gulf Cooperation Council's plan to connect all Arab states by rail.
- – Opening of London's Docklands Light Railway
  Docklands Light Railway
  The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
  
  extension to King George V
  King George V DLR station
  King George V DLR station is a station on the Docklands Light Railway which opened on 2 December 2005 and named after King George V Dock, nearby. The station is in the London Borough of Newham and is located in Travelcard Zone 3. Station and on-train announcements refer to the station as 'King...
  
  , via London City Airport
  London City Airport
  London City Airport is a single-runway airport. It principally serves the financial district of London and is located on a former Docklands site, east of the City of London, opposite the London Regatta Centre, in the London Borough of Newham in east London. It was developed by the engineering...
  
  , England. December 7 – QJ 7081 pulls the world's last regularly scheduled passenger train behind a steam locomotive
  Steam locomotive
  A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
  
  on a mainline railroad when it pulls a train between Daban and Chabuga, China. December 11 – In Switzerland, all trains become officially non-smoking

December 20 – New York City Subway

New York City Subway

The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit...

workers walk off their jobs in a strike

2005 New York City transit strike

The 2005 New York City transit strike was a strike in New York City called by the Transport Workers Union Local 100 . Negotiations for a new contract with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority broke down over retirement, pension, and wage increases. The strike began at 3:00 a.m. EST on...

called by the Transport Workers Union

Transport Workers Union

Transport Workers Union may refer to:* The Transport Workers Union of America* The Transport Workers Union of Australia* The Swedish Transport Workers' Union...

at 3:00 AM local time. It is a move that may be in violation of a previous court ruling that makes subway worker strikes illegal, and MTA

Metropolitan Transportation Authority (New York)

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority of the State of New York is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the U.S...

lawyers have asked the courts to review the strike action as one that may be in contempt of court

Contempt of court

Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...

with that ruling. Fines for such a ruling of contempt could include two days pay for each striking employee per day that the strike continues. The union claims that MTA should be able to afford the health care benefit and pension levels sought by the union due to a budget surplus of nearly US$1 billion. While the strike is in progress, the city of New York City has implemented emergency statutes that include restricting private vehicles carrying less than four occupants from entering the city between 5:00 AM and 11:00 AM local time.

December 12 – The Larkhall branch of the Argyle Line
Argyle Line
The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. It connects the Lanarkshire towns of Lanark, Larkhall and Motherwell to West Dunbartonshire via central Glasgow using sub-surface running...

is re-opened. Opening Chatelherault railway station
Chatelherault railway station
Chatelherault railway station serves the village of Ferniegair on the outskirts of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire. It is named Chatelherault after the nearby Chatelherault Country Park.-History:...

and re-opening Merryton railway station
Merryton railway station
Merryton railway station is a railway station in Larkhall, Scotland. The station is managed by First ScotRail and lies on the Argyle Line.The station was officially opened on 9 December 2005, as part of the Larkhall branch re-opened at the same time....

and Larkhall railway station
Larkhall railway station
Larkhall railway station serves the town of Larkhall, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The station is the south-eastern terminus of the Argyle Line, 26 km south east of Glasgow Central railway station.- History :...

.

Unknown date events

– Construction is completed in Japan on the 26.5 km (16.5 mi) long Hakkōda Tunnel

Hakkoda Tunnel

The is a railway tunnel in located in central Aomori Prefecture, in northern Japan. It passes through the Hakkōda mountain range and links the village of Tenmabayashi with the city of Aomori....

on the Tōhoku Shinkansen

Tohoku Shinkansen

The is a Japanese high-speed Shinkansen rail line, connecting Tokyo with Aomori in Aomori Prefecture for a total length of 674 km, Japan's longest Shinkansen line. It runs through the more sparsely populated Tōhoku region of Japan's main island Honshu. It has two spur lines, Yamagata...

's extension from Hachinohe

Hachinohe, Aomori

- Neighbouring municipalities :Aomori Prefecture*Sannohe District**Hashikami**Gonohe**Nanbu*Kamikita District**OiraseIwate Prefecture*Karumai-History:...

to Shin-Aomori

Shin-Aomori Station

is a railway station on the East Japan Railway Company northern Ōu Main Line located in the city of Aomori, Aomori Prefecture, Japan. It is 480.6 rail kilometers from the southern terminus of the Ōu Main Line at Fukushima Station...

January deaths

January 23 – John H. Kuehl, editor of Private Varnish magazine, passenger car historian and photographer (b. 1938).

February deaths

February 12 – Vernon L. Smith, mechanical engineer for Lima Locomotive Works

Lima Locomotive Works

Lima Locomotive Works was an American firm that manufactured railroad locomotives from the 1870s through the 1950s. The company took the most distinctive part of its name from its main shops location in Lima, Ohio. The shops were located between the Baltimore & Ohio's Cincinnati-Toledo main line...

in the 1930s, superintendent of motive power for the Belt Railway of Chicago

Belt Railway of Chicago

The Belt Railway of Chicago , headquartered in Chicago, is the largest switching terminal railroad in the United States. It is co-owned by six Class I railroads — BNSF Railway, Canadian National Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union...

in the 1970s, and noted railroad author (b. 1912).

March deaths

March 28 – Paul H. Stringham, central Illinois

Illinois

Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...

railroad photographer and historian (b. 1913).

April deaths

April 22 – Margaret Landry Moore, "Miss Southern Belle" spokesmodel for Kansas City Southern's Southern Belle
Southern Belle (KCS)
The Southern Belle was a named passenger train service offered by Kansas City Southern Railway from the 1940s through the 1960s, running between Kansas City, Missouri and New Orleans, Louisiana.The service was inaugurated on September 2, 1940...

passenger trains (b. 1923). April 28 – Frank Turpin, CEO of Alaska Railroad

Alaska Railroad

The Alaska Railroad is a Class II railroad which extends from Seward and Whittier, in the south of the state of Alaska, in the United States, to Fairbanks , and beyond to Eielson Air Force Base and Fort Wainwright in the interior of that state...

, 1985–1993 (b. 1923).

May deaths

May 28 – Benjamin F. Biaggini, chairman and CEO of the Southern Pacific Company (parent company of Southern Pacific Railroad

Southern Pacific Railroad

The Southern Pacific Transportation Company , earlier Southern Pacific Railroad and Southern Pacific Company, and usually simply called the Southern Pacific or Espee, was an American railroad....

) 1964–1983 (b. 1916).

August deaths

August 12 – E. Spencer Miller, president of Maine Central Railroad

Maine Central Railroad

The Maine Central Railroad Company was a railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. It operated a mainline between South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada-U.S...

1952–1978.

November deaths

November 22 – Orville R. Harrold, president of Providence and Worcester Railroad

Providence and Worcester Railroad

The Providence and Worcester Railroad is a Class II railroad in the United States. The railroad connects from Gardner in central Massachusetts, south through its namesake cities of Worcester and Providence, Rhode Island, and west from Rhode Island through Connecticut and into New York City...

1980–2005 (b. 1932). (Railway Age) November 24 – Robert J. Kmieciak, chairman of the United Transportation Union

United Transportation Union

The United Transportation Union is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio. It is a broad-based, transportation labor union representing about 125,000 active and retired railroad, bus, mass transit, and airline workers in the United States....

Board of Appeals (b. 1923).

North America

2005 E. H. Harriman Awards:

Group	Gold medal	Silver medal	Bronze medal
A	Norfolk Southern Railway Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...	BNSF Railway BNSF Railway The BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...	CSX Transportation CSX Transportation CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
B	Canadian Pacific Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001... 's U.S. subsidiary (formerly Soo Line Railroad Soo Line Railroad The Soo Line Railroad is the primary United States railroad subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific Railway , controlled through the Soo Line Corporation, and one of seven U.S. Class I railroads. Although it is named for the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste... )	Kansas City Southern Railway Kansas City Southern Railway The Kansas City Southern Railway , owned by Kansas City Southern Industries, is the smallest and second-oldest Class I railroad company still in operation. KCS was founded in 1887 and is currently operating in a region consisting of ten central U.S. states...	Metra Metra Metra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
C	Florida East Coast Railway Florida East Coast Railway The Florida East Coast Railway is a Class II railroad operating in the U.S. state of Florida; in the past, it has been a Class I railroad.Built primarily in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first decade of the 20th century, the FEC was a project of Standard Oil principal Henry Morrison...	Pan Am Railways Pan Am Railways Pan Am Railways, Inc. , known as Guilford Rail System before March 2006, is a holding company that owns and operates Class II regional railroads covering northern New England from Mattawamkeag, Maine to Rotterdam Junction, New York...	Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railroad
S&T	Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis The Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis is a terminal railroad owned by railroads in St. Louis, Missouri which handles traffic through its metropolitan area.-Components:It was founded in 1889 in a deal orchestrated by Jay Gould by:...	Conrail	Belt Railway of Chicago Belt Railway of Chicago The Belt Railway of Chicago , headquartered in Chicago, is the largest switching terminal railroad in the United States. It is co-owned by six Class I railroads — BNSF Railway, Canadian National Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, CSX Transportation, Norfolk Southern Railway, and Union...

Awards presented by Railway Age

Railway Age

Railway Age is an American trade journal for the rail transport industry. It was founded in 1856 in Chicago and is published monthly by Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation. The magazine's original title was the Western Railroad Gazette, and was renamed the Railroad Gazette in 1870...

magazine:

2005 Railroader of the Year
Railroader of the Year
Railroader of the Year is an annual award presented to a North American railroad industry worker by trade journal Railway Age. The award was first presented in 1964 by trade journal Modern Railroads and has continued through the magazine acquisition in 1992 to the present.Past recipients of this...

: David R. Goode
David R. Goode
David R. Goode is the retired Chairman, President, and CEO of Norfolk Southern Corporation . Other directorships: Caterpillar Inc.; Delta Air Lines, Inc.; Georgia-Pacific Corporation; Norfolk Southern Railway, and Texas Instruments Incorporated. Goode has been a director of Caterpillar since 1993...

(NS
Norfolk Southern Railway
The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...

)
2005 Regional Railroad of the Year
Regional Railroad of the Year
The Regional Railroad of the Year is an annual award given to exemplary North American regional railroads by rail transport industry publication Railway Age...

: Red River Valley and Western Railroad
Red River Valley and Western Railroad
The Red River Valley and Western Railroad is a regional railroad operating in the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota, which began operations in 1987...
2005 Short Line Railroad of the Year
Short Line Railroad of the Year
The Short Line Railroad of the Year is an annual award presented to North American short line railroads by rail transport industry publication Railway Age.Past recipients of this award are:* 1992 - RailTex...

: Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway
Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway
The Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Railway , also known as the Crandic is a Class III railroad operating in the US state of Iowa.-History:...

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