Coronavirus news – Page 12
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NewsUIC shares ways to restore confidence in rail travel
COVID-19: The International Union of Railways has published a summary of potential steps that could be adopted to increase customer confidence in rail transport following the coronavirus pandemic.
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Rail Business UKTransport Select Committee calls for changes to season ticket refunds
UK: Chair of the Transport Select Committee Huw Merriman MP has written to the Secretary of State for Transport calling for changes to the refund rules for season ticket holders whose journeys have been cancelled as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. The Committee said there was ...
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Metro Report InternationalTransport for London furloughs 25% of employees as fares income drops 90%
UK: Transport for London placed 7 000 staff or around 25% of its employees on furlough for an initial period of three weeks from April 27, reporting that its main source of income ‘has almost disappeared’ in the light of government advice not to travel because of ...
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Rail Business UKSupply chain’s views on Covid-19 recovery sought
UK: The Rail Supply Group has launched a survey seeking views on the operational impact of Covid-19 on the rail supply chain and the path to recovery. Information from the survey, which opened on April 30, will inform the work of a coronavirus taskforce established by RSG ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
Network Rail provided logistics and project management expertise to help deliver the NHS Nightingale Hospital North West in Manchester. Volunteers specialising in supply chain and logistics worked with the Army Reserve and NHS to get the temporary hospital at the Manchester Central conference centre open over the ...
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Rail Business UKTransport Support Unit formed
UK: The government has announced the formation of a UK-wide Transport Support Unit which is ‘dedicated to fighting this pandemic’ by making use of spare transport capacity for logistics services to assist frontline responders while ridership is significantly reduced. Network Rail has the eighth largest commercial vehicle ...
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Metro Report InternationalUrban transport news round-up
Amsterdam transport operator GVB is to strengthen its current basic timetable in stages from April 29, May 4 and May 11. Although the Dutch government has extended its coronavirus restrictions until at least May 19, there has been a slight increase in the number of public transport ...
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Rail Business UKGin distillery supplies Network Rail with hand sanitiser
UK: Network Rail’s Central route has bought 300 bottles of hand sanitiser produced by the Piston Gin distillery in Worcester. The hand sanitiser is being used in signal boxes across the route, as well as at the main signalling centre in Birmingham where signallers are working 2 ...
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NewsAccelerated delivery of medical supplies from China to Russia by rail
RUSSIA: RZD Logistics has organised the accelerated delivery of personal protective equipment and medical supplies from China to various Russian cities. The first container train departed from Shanghai on April 19, taking the northern transit route through Zabaikalsk to the Vorsino and then Yekaterinburg where customs-clearance was ...
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Rail Business UKUK announces support for light rail during the pandemic
UK: The Department for Transport has confirmed that a ‘multi-million pound’ package of emergency funding will be provided for light rail networks as part of measures aimed at keeping essential transport services running during the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement covers the light rail networks in Sheffield, Greater ...
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Rail Business UKGBRf trials EMU to move medical supplies
UK: GB Railfreight has trialled the use of a commuter EMU for express delivery of parcels, with a view to delivering urgent medical supplies to major hospitals during the Covid-19 pandemic.
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NewsPandemic scuppers Amtrak’s hopes of breaking even
USA: Amtrak has lost close to 95% its ridership since the advent of the coronavirus pandemic, just as the national passenger carrier was projecting that it would finally break even for the first time in almost 50 years. Ridership has all but disappeared because of the ...
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NewsRail freight offered with air cargo style pricing to highlight cost saving
INTERNATIONAL: Davies Turner has added a pricing mechanism based on air freight practice for its weekly Express China Rail rail, road and sea service from Xi’an to the UK. This is intended to demonstrate the potential cost savings to importers who have traditionally used aviation. The company ...
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Rail Business UKGreat Anglia temporarily closes ticket offices during lockdown
UK: With its passenger numbers down by more than 90%, Greater Anglia temporarily closed 34 ticket offices with effect from April 19 and reduced opening hours at a further seven. Offices consistently selling less than 20 tickets/day have been closed, except for those near big hospitals. Tickets ...
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NewsWorld rail freight news round-up
The number of trains between Bro, 30 km from Stockholm, and Malmö which TX Logistik operates for retailer Coop has been doubled to 20 per week, to ensure the delivery of food to supermarkets in the south of the country. ‘Even for goods that were previously transported ...
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Metro Report InternationalBART increases opportunities for small businesses
USA: San Francisco Bay Area metro operator BART says it is taking ‘unprecedented steps’ to increase the opportunities available to small businesses during the coronavirus outbreak. ‘We are actively soliciting as many small businesses as possible to help us with essential work’ said Fei Liu of BART’s ...
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Rail Business UKUK government planning increase in rail services from May 18
UK: Despite an explicit denial of any proposals to increase passenger rail services when First Secretary of State Dominic Raab was questioned at the government’s daily coronavirus press briefing on April 22, industry sources confirm that train operating companies have been asked to prepare to reinstate a ...
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NewsRolling stock leasing companies exposed to effects of prolonged lockdowns
Government support for train operators will protect the short-term cash generation of rolling stock leasing companies during coronavirus lockdown periods, but there could be pressure on their revenue base once the restrictions are lifted, warns Christian Kuendig, Senior Director, Non-Bank Financial Institutions, at Fitch Ratings.
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Rail Business UKManchester Metrolink faces financial crisis and Merseyrail struggling to survive, mayors warn
UK: Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has warned that services on the region’s Metrolink light rail system could be suspended unless government funding is provided, while his Liverpool City Region counterpart Steve Rotheram said Merseyrail suburban rail services also need help. Urgent action needed At a ...
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NewsTesting resumes in Ceneri Base Tunnel
SWITZERLAND: Test running has restarted in the 15∙4 km Ceneri Base Tunnel at the southern end of the Gotthard corridor. Agreement for the tests to resume on April 20 was reached after tunnel contractor AlpTransit Gotthard AG concluded discussions with medical specialists at operator SBB and the ...