February 2009 in rail transport

This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in February 2009.

Events

February 1–7

February 1

• – Railway officials in India announce that the Kangra Valley Railway in Himachal Pradesh and the Matheran Light Railway in Maharashtra are both being considered for inclusion on UNESCO's World Heritage Sites list. The two railways are among several nominations from India for 2009. In 2008, the Kalka Shimla Railway, also in Himachal Pradesh, was designated a World Heritage Site.^[1][2]

February 8 –14

February 11

• – Operation along the River Street Streetcar heritage line starts in Savannah, Georgia, United States.^[3]

February 13

• – At 19:45 local time (14:15 UTC), in the eastern state of Orissa, India, the Howrah–Chennai Coromandel Express derails, killing nine and injuring 150 others. Fourteen of the 27 coaches of the express train derailed approximately 110 kilometres (68 mi) from the state's capital, Bhubaneswar. The cause of the derailment is under investigation. See also: 2009 Orissa train derailment.^[4][5][6]

February 15–21

February 21

• – Construction begins on the Chengdu-Lanzhou railway in China. Special care is planned for the section that runs through a giant panda conservation area with additional tunnels and bridges to be built specifically to reduce the danger of harming the pandas during regular operation of the route. Also, trains are not planned to be scheduled during evening hours so as not to disturb the pandas. The project is expected to be completed in 2015.^[7]
• – A collision between a tourist coach and train occurred in central Slovakia, twelve people were killed and at least twenty injured.

February 22–28

February 26

• – Construction begins on the Shanghai-Hangzhou Maglev Train in China. The total length of the railway is 159 km (99 mi) and is estimated to cost CN¥29.68 billion. The design speed of the line is 350 km/h (220 mph) and trains will finish the trip from Shanghai to Hangzhou in 38 minutes. The project is expected to be completed in 15 months, before the World Expo.^[8]

References