Turiz-Meidelo high-speed railway

The Turiz-Meidelo high-speed railway, colloquially known as the North Island-East Coast Alta, is a 1,540 km (956.91 mi) long high-speed railway line connecting Turiz with Meidelo in Herendoland, via Cercadas and Segura. The railway complements the conventional North Island and East Coast lines in the Herendish National Railways network. It is the first and only high-speed railway in Oceania and the fastest in the continent. The line is operated and branded as FH Alta services, with a maximum operating speed of 300 km/h (186 mph).

The initial section, between Cercadas Central and Turiz via Segura Alta station, was inaugurated on October 1, 2005. The newer section, which extended the line to Meidelo in the Elizabeth Region, opened on June 29, 2017. A new high-speed rail section that connects the two disjointed sections, which has been proposed to stop at Cercadas Ferdinand Magellan Airport and a new Alta station in Toita Square, was approved for construction in late 2022 and is expected to be completed by 2030.

History
In 1983, the state-owned Herendish National Railways (FH) began evaluating the construction of a high-speed line between Cercadas and Turiz, however it was not realised for the next few years due to the distance between the two cities and engineering issues. In 1994, the FH released a report for the construction of a high-speed network in Herendoland to relieve air travel in the country, with a main line from Turiz to Cercadas via Segura and potentially towards Meidelo. Funding was secured from the Herendish government after several delays in November 1998 and construction began in early 1999.

The FH ordered 15 TGV-derived class Z02 sets in 2002 for the line, which was delivered from mid 2004. On October 1, 2005, the high-speed railway was officially inaugurated with a FH Alta service pulling out of Cercadas Central, after a media run the day prior.

Following the success of the initial phase of the Turiz-Meidelo high-speed line, planning for the northern extension to Meidelo began in 2007. A second high-speed line to Avelar from Segura was also under preliminary studies, but work was suspended indefinitely to focus on completing the Turiz to Meidelo section. In December 2008, the Herendish government approved the extension, with work commencing the following year. On June 29, 2017, the extension to Meidelo opened to passenger service.

In 2021, a new spur line of the Turiz-Meidelo high-speed line in central Cercadas and revived plans for the line to Avelar were assessed. The spur line was approved in December 2022, while the line to Avelar is still in the final planning stage. Both lines are currently expected to be completed in the 2030s.

Services
The Turiz-Meidelo high-speed line comprises of a total of eight stations, with the four major stations being Meidelo Alta, Cercadas Central, Segura Alta and Turiz stations. The fastest service pattern, the Direct Alta, only stops at major stations, while the Express Alta stops at major and selected minor stations and the Local Alta stops at all eight stations.

The fastest travel time on the Direct Alta is 5 hours, 2 hours from Cercadas to Meidelo and 3 hours to Turiz.

Rolling stock
In October 2000, the Herendish National Railways opened tenders to build rolling stock for the initial Turiz to Cercadas section of the line. By the end of 2001, and a consortium of  and  were shortlisted, with Alstom offering a variant of the TGV similar to the Thalys PBKA and Kawasaki and Nippon Sharyo offering a variant of the 500 Series Shinkansen. In March 2002, the FH selected Alstom to build 15 trainsets, citing its compatibility with the more reliable TVM signalling system.

The initial 15 sets were known as the class Z02, entering service in 2005 alongside the introduction of high-speed rail service from Cercadas to Turiz. They were built in, and delivered to the Port of Turiz starting from mid 2004.

In 2014, was contracted to build 17  trains, classified as the class Z14 for the extension to Meidelo and added frequency on the Turiz-Meidelo high-speed line altogether. They were delivered from late 2016 and were rolled into revenue service in March 2017, ahead of the opening of the Turiz to Meidelo section.

Planned expansions to the FH Alta high-speed network have resulted in the FH looking for a third batch of rolling stock, which is to be awarded by 2025. Potential types include the, Siemens Velaro and the.