All coronavirus articles – Page 7
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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 ...
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News
Rail 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. ...
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News
World 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 ...
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Rail Business UK
Great 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. ...
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Urban news
BART 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 ...
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Rail Business UK
UK 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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News
Rolling 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 UK
Manchester 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 ...
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News
Testing 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 ...
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News
InnoTrans 2020 moved to new date
INNOTRANS: Organiser Messe Berlin has rescheduled the InnoTrans 2020 trade fair, the biggest event in the rail industry calendar. The Messe Berlin venue has more than 3 km of outdoor tracks for rail vehicles to be displayed. InnoTrans 2020 was ...
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Urban news
Urban transport news round-up
A revised seating layout is being tested on the Praha metro. The current seats are arranged in a 2+1 transverse configuration, but in the proposed layout the single seats are turned 90º to face the aisle. Many passengers were already sitting sideways on these seats, and ...
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News
Rail investment is vital to post-Covid-19 recovery, say associations
EUROPE: Investment to ‘make rail the core element of the European transport system’ should be an intrinsic part of the EU’s plans for stimulating economic recovery after the Covid-19 pandemic, according to rail sector associations CER and UNIFE.
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Rail Business UK
Signaller training centre to keep trains moving through the pandemic
UK: Network Rail has converted former testing workshops and meeting rooms at Newport into a temporary training centre to ensure it has enough skilled signallers to keep trains in the Wales Western Region moving during the coronavirus crisis. More than ...
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News
RENFE introduces personalised tickets
SPAIN: National operator RENFE has introduced personalised tickets for passengers travelling on AVE, Larga Distancia, Avant and Alvia services and all other trains where seats reservations are obligatory. Purchasers are required to provide mobile phone numbers and other contact information, with their privacy protected under national ...
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News
Westbahn and ÖBB awarded public service contracts to secure operations during the pandemic
AUSTRIA: Both Austrian Federal Railways and open access competitor Westbahn have been awarded emergency public service obligation contracts to ensure the continued operation of Wien – Salzburg trains during the coronavirus pandemic, in a move which the ALLRAIL association of new market entrants said should provide a ...
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News
Trains ensure food supplies to Sweden’s supermarkets
EUROPE: To ensure deliveries to Sweden during the coronavirus pandemic, grocery chain ICA is transporting goods using rail services which Green Cargo normally operates for Volvo Group. The trains are run to transport goods from Sweden to Volvo’s factory at Gent in Belgium. For the last ...
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Urban news
Driver sign-on system adapted for social distancing
GERMANY: Moveo Software has provided a temporary update for the duty registration system used by München transport operator MVB, enabling drivers to sign into work using mobile devices from their vehicle instead of a using web-based terminal in a shared staff room. ‘Usually, many drivers meet ...
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News
Railway supply industry news round-up
Wabtec is working with Tronix3D to produce face shields for Pennsylvania healthcare provider Excela Health. ‘As a 150-year-old member of the greater Pittsburgh community, we have a responsibility to support our first responders during these unprecedented times’, said Wabtec President CEO Rafael Santana. ‘Wabtec ...
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Urban news
Making transport more sustainable after the coronavirus
EUROPE: Emphasising that ‘the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic cannot simply be a return to business as usual’, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe has published guidance for policy makers aiming to reduce car use in urban areas. Developed under the Transport Health ...
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Rail Business UK
Trains branded in tribute to the NHS
UK: Govia Thameslink Railway has applied special branding to three electric multiple-units in tribute to National Health Service staff fighting the coronavirus pandemic. ‘There are more than 50 hospitals across our network and we are carrying more than 200 000 key ...
