Rail 2000

Rail 2000 (German: Bahn 2000; French: Rail 2000, Italian: Ferrovia 2000) is a large-scale project of the Swiss Federal Railways (SFR) established in 1987 to improve the quality of the Swiss rail network. It includes measures to accelerate a number of existing connections and the modernisation of rolling stock. The federal government decision to support the project in 1986 was approved by a referendum in 1987. In 2004 the first phase was completed consisting of around 130 projects with a budget of around CHF 5.9 billion.

History

Background

After years of heavy investment in roads in the postwar years, the share of rail in the total passenger market in Switzerland had been significantly reduced by the end of the 1960s. At this time SFR decided that changes were necessary to increase rail patronage. More trains were operated in order to increase frequencies; this led to a 75% increase in passengers between 1971 to 1983 on the Bern–Zürich route. In the 1970s the Swiss government and SFR decided to make further improvements in rail services. In 1972, the SFR introduced a regular interval timetable (German: Taktfahrplan). Under this timetable trains arrive and leave each station at the same minute past every hour. Services at Zurich station were reorganised so that trains arrived on each line before the hour or half-hour and left after the hour or half-hour, making it easier to change to trains on other lines. This required the provision of additional platforms to allow every train to be in station simultaneously. The Rail 2000 project was intended to enhance the regular interval timetable.

Rail

Rail or rails may refer to:

Rail transport

Science, technology, biology, and medicine

Batten (theater)

In theater, a batten (also known as a bar or pipe) is a long metal pipe suspended above the stage or audience from which lighting fixtures, theatrical scenery, and theater drapes and stage curtains may be hung. Battens that are located above a stage can usually be lowered to the stage (flown in) or raised into a fly tower above the stage (flown out) by a counterweighted fly system or automated, motor-driven lift.

Types

Electric

An electric is a batten that incorporates electrical cables above the pipe, often enclosed in a raceway. It typically has power cables for lights and DMX512 data cable for lighting control, and may also have audio cables for microphones. The cables emerge from one end of the batten and continue through a snake to dimmers, control boards, or patchbays. All cable plugs have identifying numbers printed on them so that they can be easily referenced by the lighting control system. Loaded electrics are among the heaviest types of battens, often weighing more than a thousand pounds. Consequently, electrics must be properly balanced to avoid catastrophic runaways.

RAIL (magazine)

RAIL is a UK magazine on the subject of current rail transport in Great Britain. It is published every two weeks by Bauer Consumer Media and is available in the transport sections of many British newsagents. It is targeted primarily at the enthusiast market (those whose hobby is railways, rather than their occupation), but also covers business issues, often in depth.

RAIL is more than three decades old, and was known as Rail Enthusiast from its launch in 1981 until 1988. It is one of only two railway magazines that increased its circulation in 2012 (the other being The Railway Magazine, published monthly, which RAIL outperforms overall). It has had roughly the same cover design for at least a decade, with a capitalised italic red RAIL along the top of the front cover.

Editorial policy

RAIL is customarily critical of railway institutions, including the Rail Delivery Group, the Office of Rail Regulation, as well as, since it assumed greater railway powers, the Department for Transport. RAIL's continuing campaigns include one against advertising and media images showing celebrities and others walking between the rails (an unsafe practice) and another against weeds on railways.