2020 in rail transport

This article lists events related to rail transport that occurred in 2020.

Years in rail transport

2019 in rail transport 2020 in rail transport 2021 in rail transport

Passenger rail ridership plummeted worldwide amid the COVID-19 pandemic; many services were reduced in frequency or discontinued outright.[1][2]

Events

January

• January 5 – The Carlingford Line in Sydney was permanently closed after 132 years of service for conversion to light rail.[3]
• January 10 – The chords connecting Changsha–Zhuzhou–Xiangtan intercity railway and Shimen–Changsha railway opened.[4]
• January 10 – Metro Express (Mauritius) is commercially opened, being the first tram system in the island stated of Indian Ocean.
• January 20 – Northern section of Shijiazhuang Metro Line 3 opened.[5]
• January 26 – SEPTA temporarily discontinues the Girard Avenue Trolley in Philadelphia for a period of at least 18 months due to rolling stock maintenance issues as well as track repairs and highway expansion.[6]
• January 29 – NZR V class steam locomotive no. 127 (built in Manchester, England, 1885) is recovered from the Oreti River in New Zealand by the Lumsden Heritage Trust.[7]
• January 31
  • – Thomson–East Coast MRT Line Stage 1 opened.[8]
  • – Opening of Taipei Metro Circular Line (First Section).[9]

February

• February 6 – Livraga derailment: A Frecciarossa train derails at speed at Ospedaletto Lodigiano on the Milan–Bologna line, killing two drivers and injuring 31 passengers.[10]
• February 14 – Tuen Ma Line Phase 1 opened.[11]
• February 20 – Wallan derailment: An XPT derailed while passing a turnout near Wallan, Victoria.[12] There were 2 fatalities and 39 injuries, 3 of which were serious injuries.[13]
• February 29 – Luxembourg introduces free travel on internal public transport, including 2nd class on Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois rail services.[14]

March

• March 1
  • – 700 Series Shinkansen retired from the Tokaido Shinkansen.[15]
  • – Northern Trains, a publicly owned operator of last resort, takes over the Northern passenger train operating franchise in England from Arriva Rail North.[16]
• March 5 – 2020 Ingenheim derailment.
• March 13 – last day of operations for Super View Odoriko services. JR East phasing out the 251 series
• March 14
  • – Takanawa Gateway Station in Tokyo commences operation on the Yamanote and Keihin Tohoku Lines.
  • – JR East begins Saphir Odoriko limited express services between Tokyo or Shinjuku and Izukyū Shimoda Station, using the new E261 series.
• March 22 – Manchester Metrolink Trafford Park Line opened.[17]
• March 27
  • – the northern section of the Nekrasovskaya line of the Moscow Metro opened, with 6 new stations.[18]
  • – 2020 New York City Subway fire.
• March 30 – Train T179 from Ji'nan to Guangzhou derailed in Chenzhou, Hunan after hitting a landslide rubble, causing 1 person dead and 127 persons injured.[19]

April

• April 3 – CBD and South East Light Rail Kingsford branch opened.[20]
• April 23 – Hangzhou Metro Line 16 and two extensions of Line 5 (Jinxing to Liangmulu, Shanxian to Guniangqiao) opened.[21]
• April 29 – First phase of Shenyang Metro Line 10 opened.[22]

May

• May 8 – Aurangabad railway accident
• May 22 – Hooghalen train crash
• – Agreement to operate steam locomotives from Wolsztyn expires – it was the final mainline passenger steam locomotive service left in the world.[23][14]

June

• June 13 – The Berryessa segment of the Silicon Valley BART extension opened to the public.[24][25]
• June 28
  • – Hefei – Hangzhou segment of the Shangqiu–Hangzhou high-speed railway opened to passenger services.[26]
  • – Line 3 and Line 5 of Changsha Metro opened to the public.[27]
• June 30
  • – Tongmi line service and the western extension of Sub-Central line service of Beijing Suburban Railway began operation.[28][29]
  • – Chifeng–Harqin Zuoyi high-speed railway and the Golmud–Korla railway Qinghai section began operation.[30][31]

July

• July 1
  • – Shanghai–Suzhou–Nantong railway began passenger and freight services.[32]
  • – N700S trains began operation on the Tokaido and Sanyo Shinkansen lines.
• July 7 – Three new stations open on the Athens Metro.[33]
• July 8 – Anshun–Liupanshui intercity railway opened to passenger services.[34]
• July 7, July 15 – 2 train crashes with fatalities in one week.[35][36]
• July 31 – Soure train crash

August

• August 12 – Stonehaven derailment
• August 18
  • – Line 6 and Line 10 of the Shenzhen Metro opened.[37]
  • – Phase 1 of Zhuji intercity railway (Zhuhai to Zhuhai Changlong section) opened.[38]
• August 19 – Carnate derailment
• August 26
  • – Line 2 of the Shijiazhuang Metro opened.[39]
  • – Line 3 of the Sofia Metro opened.[40]
  • – Llangennech derailment
• August 29 – two new stations of the Tashkent Metro opened.[41]
• August 30 – the first section of the Circle line of the Tashkent Metro officially opened.[42]

September

• September 4 – Official opening of Ceneri Base Tunnel;[43][44][45][46][47] further testing and certifications continue before full operations start in December.[48][49][50]
• September 12 – Line 3 in the Guadalajara light rail system opened.[51][52]
• September 15 – Line M5 of the Bucharest Metro opened.[53]
• September 16 – two stations of Brasília Metro opened, 106 Sul Cine Brasília and 110 Sul.[54]
• September 21 – N Line commuter rail in Denver, Colorado opened.[55]
• September 23 – Line 4 and Line 6 (Phase 2) of the Kunming Metro opened.[56]
• September 27
  • – Line 18 of Chengdu Metro (South Railway Station to Sancha section) opened.[57]
  • – The remaining section of Yinfeng line of Ningbo Rail Transit opened.[58]

October

• October 1 – Line 2 of the Hohhot Metro opened.[59]
• October 5 – Amtrak begins reducing frequencies on most long-distance routes from daily to tri-weekly.[60]
• October 25 – The first line of the Lahore Metro, the Orange Line, opened for revenue service. It is the first metro system in the country.[61]
• October 26 – Berlin Brandenburg Airport railway station opens to passengers.[62]
• October 27 – The Madrid–Galicia high-speed rail line is opened to passengers between Zamora and Pedralba de la Pradería (110 km).[63]
• October 28
  • – The Shenzhen Metro opens the east extension of Line 2, the southern extension of Line 3, the northern extension of Line 4 and the Phase 1 of Line 8.
  • – The Wuxi Metro opens the Line 3 (Sumiao–Shuofang Airport segment).
  • – Opening of the Istanbul Metro Line M7.[64]

November

• November 2 – De Akkers metro station crash: an empty metro train on the Rotterdam Metro crashed through the buffer stop at De Akkers metro station in the city of Spijkenisse, the Netherlands. The lead car of the train came to rest partially on a sculpture erected in front of the station, preventing the train from falling to the street below.[65]
• November 7 – The Zelenaluzhskaya line of the Minsk Metro opens, with automated Stadler trains.[66]
• November 15 – Danhai light rail extension to Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf.[67]
• November 23 – The Nanning Metro opened extension segment of Line 2 and Line 4.
• November 26 – Opening of the northern extension of Line 8 of Guangzhou Metro.[68]
• November 28 – The Xuzhou Metro opened Line 2.
• November 30 – The Guangdong Intercity Railway opens Guangzhou–Qingyuan intercity railway (Huadu–Qingcheng segment) and Guangzhou–Foshan circular intercity railway (Huadu–Baiyun Airport North segment).

December

• December 1 – The Yanqing Branch of Beijing–Zhangjiakou intercity railway began operation,[69] the Badaling–Yanqing segment of Beijing Suburban Railway Line S2 resumed its operation.[70]
• December 4 – U5 and U55 lines of Berlin U-Bahn merged with three new stations opening.[71]
• December 11 – The southern segment of Lianyungang–Zhenjiang high-speed railway began operation.
• December 12 – The Taiyuan–Jiaozuo high-speed railway begins operation.
• December 13 – Lund tramway opened.[72][73]
• December 14
  • – First segment of the Grand Paris Express opened, as Paris Métro Line 14 is extended to Saint-Ouen.[74]
  • – Open-access operators able to start passenger operations in Spain.[14]
• December 16 – Gold Line (Bangkok) opened.[75]
• December 18 – Chengdu Metro opens Line 6, Line 8, Line 9, Line 17 and the extension of Line 18.
• December 19 – Taichung Metro Green Line opened.[76]
• December 21 – E235 series trains enter service on the Sōbu Rapid and Yokosuka Lines.[77]
• December 22 – The Hefei–Anqing segment of Hefei–Jiujiang high-speed railway begins operation.
• December 23 – The Ningbo Rail Transit opens Line 4.
• December 24 – The Qingdao Metro opens Line 1 and Line 8.
• December 26
  • – Shanghai Metro Line 10 (Phase 2) and the first section of Line 18,[78] Taiyuan Metro Line 2, Nanchang Metro Line 3, Zhengzhou Metro Line 3 and Line 4, Hefei Metro Line 5 opens.
  • – Wuzhong to Xi'an North segment of Yinchuan–Xi'an high-speed railway,[79] Fuzhou–Pingtan railway[80] and Wuhan–Xiantao intercity railway[81] begins operation.
• December 27 – The southern segment of Beijing–Xiong'an intercity railway, and the southern extension of Fuzhou Metro Line 1 began operation.
• December 28 – The Xi'an Metro opened Line 5, Line 6, Line 9;[82] The extension of Guangzhou Huangpu Tram Line 1 began operation.
• December 30 – The Dali–Lincang railway began operation,[83] the Hangzhou Metro opened the Line 1 extension to Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport, Line 6 and Line 7.[84]
• December 31
  • – Elektrozavodskaya (Bolshaya Koltsevaya line) in Moscow opened as a one-station extension of Nekrasovskaya line.[85]
  • – The Deux-Montagnes line closed to be converted from commuter rail to light metro as part of the Reseau express metropolitain network.[86]
  • – Deadline for mainline American railroads to implement positive train control systems on their networks.[87]

Industry awards

Japan

Awards presented by Japan Railfan Club

• 2020 Blue Ribbon Award: Seibu Railway 001 series Laview
• 2020 Laurel Prize: JR Shikoku 2700 Series

Deaths

October

• October 18 – Alan S. Boyd, First United States Secretary of Transportation (1967–1969) and later President of Amtrak until 1982 (born 1922).

References

1. Wilson, Bill (April 28, 2020). "UPDATED APRIL 28: Rail Group Staff Report—Global railway industry response and impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic". Simmons-Boardman. RT&S. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
2. Gnuse, Brian (October 8, 2020). "Amtrak will again be using the Holdrege location in a slightly different spot". KHGI-TV. Retrieved October 11, 2020.
3. Ward, Mary (January 3, 2020). "A train for Ruse goers and racegoers, the Carlingford to Clyde closes". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
4. "1月10日起，龙山北站增开多趟动车组列车". 龙山在线. January 4, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
5. "石家庄地铁开通 河北正式迈入"地铁时代"".
6. "SEPTA taking Girard Ave. trolley off the rails; 78 percent of fleet can't pass inspection". January 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
7. Harding, Evan (January 29, 2020). "Rare locomotive pulled from river bank in Northern Southland". Stuff. Fairfax. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
8. "交通部28日定環狀線履勘日 確定無法年底通車". 中央社. December 23, 2019.
9. "捷運環狀線 1月31日通車". January 21, 2020.
10. "Milan train crash". The Independent. London. February 6, 2020. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
11. "屯馬線下月局部開通 觀塘線更迫 港鐵稱加班次保暢順 新站「因社會情况」增保護 – 20200118 – 要聞". 明報新聞網 – 每日明報 daily news (in Chinese). Retrieved January 27, 2020.
12. "Train driver and rail worker dead after Sydney-to-Melbourne train derails near Wallan – ABC News". www.abc.net.au. February 20, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
13. "Investigation: RO-2020-002 – Derailment of XPT ST23, Wallan, Victoria, on 20 February 2020" (PDF). Australian Transport Safety Bureau. April 3, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
14. "Where to go, what to see in 2020". Today's Railways Europe (289): 42–5. January 2020.
15. "新幹線700系の8日ラストラン取りやめ 感染拡大防止で 1日が最後の運行に" [700 Series Shinkansen Last Run Cancelled]. mainichi.jp (in Japanese). Mainichi. March 2, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
16. "No immediate changes to follow Northern nationalisation". Railway Gazette International. January 30, 2020.
17. Britton, Paul (March 21, 2020). "People in Greater Manchester urged not to use public transport for anything other than 'essential journeys, with services to be 'stepped down' from Sunday". Manchester Evening News.
18. "В Москве заработал второй участок Некрасовской линии метро". Интерфакс (in Russian). March 27, 2020. Retrieved March 27, 2020.
19. "Passenger Train Derails in Hunan, Killing One and Injuring 127". Caixin. March 30, 2020.
20. "Final stage of Sydney's CBD light rail opens". Sydney Morning Herald. April 3, 2020.
21. "New line and two extensions add 72km to Hangzhou metro". International Railway Journal. April 27, 2020.
22. "Shenyang Metro opens Line 10". International Railway Journal. May 1, 2020.
23. Devereux, Nigel (January 7, 2020). "Last few months for Polish scheduled steam?". The Railway Hub. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
24. Kelliher, Fiona (May 19, 2020). "Opening day set for long-awaited BART stations in Milpitas, San Jose". The Mercury News. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
25. Meacham, Jody (June 12, 2020). "Subdued ceremonies mark BART's station openings in Santa Clara County". Silicon Valley Business Journal. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
26. "商合杭高铁合肥至湖州段开通 豫皖浙三省实现高铁"无缝对接"". 人民网. June 28, 2020.
27. "长沙地铁3、5号线今日正式开通载客初期运营". 潇湘晨报. 华声新闻. June 28, 2020.
28. "市郊铁路城市副中心线西延今开通，良乡到北京西节省半小时". 北京日报客户端. June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
29. "市郊铁路"通密线"今日开通，连接通州、顺义、怀柔、密云四区". 北京日报客户端. June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
30. "把铁路建在"壮美"之上，格库铁路青海段通车！". 中国铁建. July 1, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
31. "辽宁 喀赤高铁今天正式开通运营". 辽沈晚报. June 30, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020. 30日上午，该条线路的首班高铁G8382次列车，即将从赤峰站出发
32. "沪苏通铁路7月1日开通运营 上海至南通最快1小时6分钟". 新华网. June 29, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
33. "PM to inaugurate three new Athens metro stations". Kathimerini. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
34. "新建安顺至六盘水高速铁路7月8日开通运营". 中国新闻社. July 7, 2020. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
35. "При столкновении пассажирских поездов в Чехии погибли три человека и десятки ранены". Komsomolskaya Pravda (in Russian). July 7, 2020.
36. "В Чехии произошло столкновение пассажирского и грузового поездов". Izvestia (in Russian). July 15, 2020.
37. "深圳地铁6号线和10号线正式通车". August 18, 2020.
38. "明起，拱北到长隆只需30分钟！将来还要对接澳门轻轨". Macau Daily.
39. "石家庄地铁2号线一期8月26日开通运营". August 24, 2020.
40. "Откриват третата линия на столичното метро на 26 август". Economy.bg (in Bulgarian). August 20, 2020.
41. "Две станции метро Юнусабадской линии открыты для пассажиров". Afisha (in Russian). August 29, 2020.
42. "Об открытии участка новой линии надземного метро "Ду́стлик-2" – "Куйлюк"" (in Russian). Uzbek Railways. August 29, 2020.
43. "Swiss complete trans-European rail route with Ceneri Tunnel under the Alps". September 4, 2020 – via www.reuters.com.
44. Newly completed Swiss tunnel to transform European rail travel | DW | 04.09.2020
45. Ceneri Base Tunnel inaugurated
46. "Ceneri Base Tunnel is officially open". SWI swissinfo.ch.
47. "Ceneri Base Tunnel inaugurated". September 4, 2020.
48. "CBT: Switzerland's Third Largest Railway Tunnel Project | Blend Plants". Railway-News. August 27, 2020.
49. "Ceneri Base Tunnel set for December opening". August 8, 2020.
50. "Ceneri Base Tunnel: The First Tracks | Blend Plants". Railway-News. August 27, 2020.
51. "Recorren autoridades, empresarios y líderes de opinión la Línea 3 del Tren Ligero de Guadalajara FOTOS Y VIDEO" (in Spanish). Heraldo de México. September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
52. Ríos, Julio (September 8, 2020). "Confirman inauguración de Línea 3 del Tren Ligero: operará gratis ocho días" (in Spanish). XHUDG-TDT. Retrieved September 10, 2020.
53. Banila, Nicoleta (September 15, 2020). "Romania inaugurates 3.2 bln lei (659 mln euro) metro line in Bucharest". seenews.com. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
54. "Metrô-DF entrega estações da 106 Sul e 110 Sul" (in Portuguese). Metrô-DF. September 16, 2020. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
55. Padilla, Anica (September 21, 2020). "All Aboard: RTD's N Line Starts Rolling From Denver To Thornton". CBS Denver. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
56. "昆明轨道交通4号线、6号线二期 开通初期运营公告". September 22, 2020.
57. "9月27日，成都地铁18号线首开段开通运营（附时刻表）". September 26, 2020.
58. "3号线鄞奉段、机场快速路南延南段、三官堂大桥9月27日开通". September 26, 2020.
59. "呼和浩特市地铁2号线10月1日起开通初期运营". October 1, 2020.
60. https://www.amtrak.com/alert/service-adjustments-due-to-coronavirus.html
61. Adnan, Imran (September 2, 2020). "Orange Line Metro Train to create 2,000 jobs in Lahore". The Express Tribune. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
62. Smith, Kevin (October 26, 2020). "Berlin Brandenburg Airport railways finally open". International Railway Journal. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
63. Cuenca, Oliver (October 27, 2020). "Spain opens new high-speed rail section". International Railway Journal. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
64. "Istanbul Bülteni Ekim 2020, 16. sayfa" (PDF). Istanbul Bülteni. October 2020.
65. "Sculpture of whale's tail saves train from plummeting 30 feet off railway platform". ABC News. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
66. Minsk’s third metro line opens
67. "New Danhai Light Rail section launches today". Taipei Times. CNA. November 15, 2020. Retrieved November 15, 2020.
68. "广州地铁八号线北延段正式开通 同德围"解围"-新华网". www.gd.xinhuanet.com. Retrieved November 27, 2020.
69. "京张高铁延庆支线今晨通车 清河到延庆只用26分钟". December 1, 2020.
70. "北京市郊铁路S2线延庆站12月1日恢复运营". 北京日报客户端. November 30, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
71. "Bautagebuch – Projekt U5" (in German). BVG PROJEKT GmbH. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
72. "Lund tramway gets revised launch date". Railway Gazette International. Metro Report. February 26, 2020. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
73. "Lunds första dag som spårvagnsmetropol" (in Swedish). Sveriges Television. December 13, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
74. "Alstom's new automatic MP14 metro enters commercial service on the Line 14 extension in Paris and its region" (Press release). Alstom SA. December 14, 2020. Retrieved December 15, 2020.
75. ฝันสลาย!!คนกรุงฯอดทดลองนั่งรถไฟฟ้า “สายสีทอง” ฟรี
76. 郝雪卿、蘇木春 (November 15, 2020). "台中捷運綠線試營運16日起1個月免費搭 市民興奮終於等到了[影]". 中央通訊社.
77. "【JR東】横須賀・総武快速線用E235系1000番台営業運転スタート" [[JR East] Yokosuka, Sōbu Rapid Line E235-1000 series began operation]. December 21, 2020.
78. Chen Huizhi (December 24, 2020). "World's largest subway system set to expand". Shine.cn. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
79. "银西高铁正式开通运营 银川至西安仅需约3小时". 中国新闻社. December 26, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
80. "官宣！这条跨海铁路明天开通运营！". mp.weixin.qq.com. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
81. "湖北第五条城铁，通了！湖北广电融媒体记者现场直击". 湖北广电融媒体新闻中心. December 26, 2020. Retrieved December 26, 2020.
82. "西安一天开通三条地铁线". Retrieved January 3, 2020.
83. "大临铁路12月30日正式开通运营 从昆明到临沧只需3小时37分". 云南信息港. December 29, 2020. Retrieved December 29, 2020.
84. "官宣！明天上午11点 杭州4条地铁线齐开". 浙江新闻客户端. December 29, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
85. "В Москве открыта станция БКЛ "Электрозаводская"". vesti.ru (in Russian). December 31, 2020.
86. Magder, Jason (September 18, 2020). "Trains to stop running on Deux-Montagnes line Dec. 31, ahead of schedule". Montreal Gazette. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
87. "Freight Railroads & Positive Train Control (PTC)". Association of American Railroads. Retrieved March 7, 2019.