1996 in rail transport

This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in 1996.

Events

January events

• January 6 – A computer-controlled Washington Metro train overruns the platform at the Shady Grove station, colliding with a parked train and fatally injuring the operator.

February events

• February 4 – The first two British passenger train operating companies begin operation of their service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: South West Trains (part of the Stagecoach Group) and Great Western Trains (Great Western Holdings). ^[1]
• February 9 - 1996 Secaucus train collision: A southbound New Jersey Transit train (Train #1254) bound for Hoboken Terminal collides nearly head-on with a northbound NJ Transit train (Train #1107) heading to Suffern. 3 People are killed.
• February 10 – Woodlands Extension of the MRT North South line in Singapore opened, adding six new stations to the current network.
• February 16 – 1996 Maryland train collision: A Chicago bound Amtrak train, the Capitol Limited , collides with a MARC commuter train bound for Washington, killing 11 people.
• February 19 – Approximately 1,000 passengers are trapped in the Channel Tunnel when two Eurostar trains break down due to electronic failures caused by snow and ice. ^[2]
• February 24 – The three British trainload freight companies, Loadhaul, Mainline Freight and Transrail, are acquired by North & South Railways, a subsidiary of Wisconsin Central, as part of the privatisation of British Rail. ^[3]

March events

• March 4 – Weyauwega, Wisconsin derailment: A Wisconsin Central freight train derails on a broken switch in Weyauwega, Wisconsin. The derailment forces the evacuation of the entire town until March 20 while fire crews work to control the resulting blaze.
• March 15 – Amtrak selects the "American Flyer" design developed by Bombardier and Alstom, based on the TGV trains of France, as the design model for its Acela rolling stock.
• March 18 – SNCF begins a construction project to renew the track ballast on the Paris-Lyon TGV line; the project is expected to last through 2006.
• March 20
  • In Seoul, South Korea:
    • A section of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened independently from Banghwa to Kkachisan (8.8 km (5.5 mi)). ^[4]
    • A branch of Line 2 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Sindorim to Kkachisan. ^[4]
• March 28
  • Muzha Line of Taipei Mass Rapid Transit, the first rapid transit line of Taiwan, opens.
  • Freight services between Higashi-Yokoze freight terminal and Shin-Akitsu on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line in Japan are discontinued.
• March 30
  • Opening of the first 4.9 km (3.0 mi) section of the Rinkai Line between Shin-Kiba and Tokyo Teleport stations in Tokyo, Japan. ^[5]
  • In Seoul, South Korea, a branch of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Macheon to Gangdong (6.9 km (4.3 mi)). ^[4] At this point, trains operate from Wangsinmi to Sangil-dong or Macheon, branching from Gangdong.
• March – Government of Guatemala suspends operation on the entire 885 km (550 mi)Ferrocarriles de Guatemala network. ^[6]

April events

• April 14 – The British trainload freight company North & South Railways Ltd becomes EWS.
• April 21 – The Jokela rail accident, a derailment in thick fog, kills 4 in Tuusula, Finland.
• April 27 – The Tōyō Rapid Railway Line, connecting Nishi-Funabashi and Katsutadai opens in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. ^[7]
• April 28 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Gatwick Express and Midland Mainline (both National Express) and Great North Eastern Railway (Sea Containers). ^[1]

May events

• May 4 – Purchase by the Dakota, Minnesota and Eastern Railroad of the former Chicago & North Western branch lines from Rapid City, South Dakota to Colony, Wyoming and Crawford, Nebraska becomes effective.
• May 12 – The Green Line of the Chicago Transit Authority elevated and subway rail system, returns to service after a 2 year reconstruction period. Many stations were still incomplete, while six other stations (including, Halsted, Homan, 58th, 61st, Racine, and University) were closed permanently.
• May 17 – Canadian National's Beachburg Subdivision between Pembroke and Nipissing, 126 miles (203 km) of track which traversed Algonquin Provincial Park, is officially abandoned. ^[8]
• May 20 – The British railway infrastructure management company, Railtrack, is privatised, being floated on the London Stock Exchange with shares worth 360p. ^[9]
• May 26 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises in England as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Connex South Central and LTS Rail (a subsidiary of Prism Rail). ^[1]

June events

• June 2 – First part of the Belgian High Speed line (HSL 1, from Antoing to the French Border) put into service, continuing the French LGV Nord.
• June 26 – The Atlanta & St Andrews Bay Railroad and the A&G Railroad merge to form the Bay Line Railroad.

July events

• July 21 – British train operating company Chiltern Railways begins operation of its passenger service franchise in England as part of the privatisation of British Rail, following a management buyout. ^[1]
• July 24 – The Dehiwala train bombing carried out by the LTTE kills 64 people.
• July 26 – Conventional rail world speed record of 443.0 km/h (275.3 mph) attained by the JR Central "300X" six-car train between Kyoto and Maibara on the Tokaido Shinkansen. ^[10]
• July 27 – Ron Burns becomes president of Union Pacific.
• July 28 – The Talleyr and Terminal Railroad (a subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming) begins operations in Jacksonville, Florida.
• July 31 – Canadian Pacific makes the last run of a grain load in a 40 ft (12 m) boxcar with the final deliveries of grain to Thunder Bay, Ontario. ^[11]
• July 31 – The first low-floor light rail car in North America is received (from its manufacturer, Siemens) by Portland, Oregon's TriMet. ^[12]

August events

• August 12 – In Seoul, South Korea, the northern section of Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is extended from Yeouido to Kkachisan (6.9 km (4.3 mi)). ^[4]
• August 19 – Metra's North Central Service commuter rail line begins operations on the Milwaukee District/West Line and on the Wisconsin Central Railroad between Union Station in downtown Chicago and Antioch.

September events

• September 11 – Union Pacific finishes the acquisition that was effectively begun almost a century before with the purchase of the Southern Pacific. ^[13] The merged company retains the name "Union Pacific" for all railroad operations.
• September 14 – The York–Durham Heritage Railway begins operations on Canadian National's former branch between Uxbridge and Stouffville, Ontario. ^[14]

October events

• October 1 – The Norwegian Railway Inspectorate is created.
• October 11 – In Seoul, South Korea, Line 7 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Jangnam to Koknuk University (19.0 km (11.8 mi)). ^[4]
• October 13 – Further British train operating companies begin operation of their passenger service franchises as part of the privatisation of British Rail: Cardiff Railway Company (operating as Valley Lines) and Wales & West (both subsidiaries of Prism Rail); Connex South Eastern; Island Line, Isle of Wight (Stagecoach Group); and Thames Trains (Go-Ahead Group). ^[1]
• October – The first stage of Cairo Metro's Line Two (the Yellow line) opens.

November events

• November 18 – Channel Tunnel fire seriously damaging 200 m of the tunnel's lining.
• November 21 – Limited freight service in the Channel Tunnel resumes while construction crews make repairs at the location of the fire three days earlier.
• November 23 – In Seoul, South Korea, Line 8 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is opened from Jamsil to Moran (13.1 km (8.1 mi)). ^[4]

December events

• December 1 – Norwegian State Railways is split into the Norwegian National Rail Administration and Norges Statsbaner.
• December 4 – Passenger service resumes through the Channel Tunnel.
• December 5
  • BNSF reopens Stampede Pass in Washington and resumes operating freight trains over the line. ^[15]
  • Canadian National operates its last train of grain to be hauled in 40 ft (12 m) boxcars; CN SD40s numbered 5256 and 5051 depart Canora, Saskatchewan, with a train of 114 such boxcars bound for Winnipeg, Manitoba, and Thunder Bay, Ontario. ^[11]
• December 11 – Opening of the second phase of the Osaka Rapid Electric Tramway Line No. 7 (高速電気軌道第7号線) (Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line) between Kyōbashi and Shinsaibashi. ^[16]
• December 16 – Opening of Malaysia's first metro line, the LRT STAR Line (Chinese :实达轻快铁) from Ampang to Sultan Ismail in the Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.
• December 30
  • Dallas Area Rapid Transit opens the first line of Trinity Railway Express between Dallas and Irving, Texas. ^{[17] [18]}
  • The Brahmaputra Mail train bombing: a bomb explodes a train travelling in Lower Assam in Eastern India, totally destroying three carriages of the train and derailing six more, killing at least 33 people.
  • In Seoul, South Korea, Line 5 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway is extended from Wangsimni to Yeouido (14.1 km (8.8 mi)). ^[4] This would be the line's fouth expansion in ten months, connecting the two pre-existing sections in the process.
• December 31 – Burlington Northern and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway merge to form BNSF.

Deaths

January deaths

• January 3 – Terence Cuneo, British railway artist (born 1907).

May deaths

• May 9 – Carl Fallberg, cartoonist who created Fiddletown & Copperopolis (born 1915). ^[19]

References

Footnotes

1. "Passenger train operating companes: who bought what". The Railway Magazine : 20. April 1997.
2. Wolmar, Christian (22 February 1996). "Wrong kind of snow in tunnel..." . The Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-01. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
3. WC group buys British freight services Railway Age March 1996 page 24
4. "개요 및 연혁" [Overview and History]. seoulmetro.co.kr (in Korean). Archived from the original on 5 February 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
5. "企業情報" [Company Information]. twr.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 30 November 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
6. Williams, Glyn (July 2006). "Railways in Guatemala" . Retrieved 2010-01-12.
7. Terada, Hirokazu (January 19, 2013). データブック日本の私鉄[Databook: Japan's Private Railways]. Japan: Neko Publishing. p. 56. ISBN   978-4-7770-1336-4.
8. "Significant dates in Ottawa railway history". Colin Churcher's Railway Pages. 2006-04-28. Archived from the original on 27 April 2006. Retrieved 2006-05-17.
9. Left, Sarah (2002-01-15). "Key dates in Britain's railway history". The Guardian . Retrieved 7 July 2007.
10. プロトタイプの世界 – Prototype World (in Japanese). Japan: Kotsu Shimbunsha. December 2005. p. 60. OCLC   170056962.
11. McDonnell, Greg (April 1997). "In Canada, finis for 40-footers". Trains Magazine. 57 (4): 17–18.
12. Oliver, Gordon (August 1, 1996). "MAX takes keys to cool new model". The Oregonian , p. D1.
13. "Union Pacific Railroad Chronological History". Union Pacific . Archived from the original on 10 August 2006. Retrieved 22 July 2005.
14. "York-Durham Heritage Railway". Archived from the original on 2007-07-03. Retrieved 2007-07-20.
15. "Burlington Northern Sante Fe Railroad reopens Stampede Pass line on December 5, 1996". HistoryLink.org. Retrieved 5 December 2005.
16. Subway 2018, p. 44.
17. Trinity Railway Express, Significant dates in Trinity Railway Express history Archived 2012-02-04 at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved December 27, 2005.
18. DART, DART history. Retrieved December 27, 2005.
19. "Obituary". Trains . 57 (2): 18A. February 1997.

Citations

• "Significant dates in Canadian railway history". Colin Churcher's Railway Pages. Archived from the original on 5 September 2005. Retrieved 13 September 2005.
• "長堀鶴見緑地線の歴史を辿る" (PDF). SUBWAY (in Japanese). Vol. 8, no. 218. Japan: Japan Subway Association. 31 August 2018. pp. 42–45. ISSN   0289-5668 . Retrieved 31 January 2024.