Europe – Page 256
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NewsStrasbourg becomes launch customer for Aptis
FRANCE: Compagnie des Transports Strasbourgeois has become the launch customer for Alstom’s Aptis electric bus, the manufacturer announced on March 8. The 12 buses that CTS has ordered will be the first battery electric buses in the operator’s fleet. They will be 12 m long, 2 550 mm wide ...
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NewsRail-specific insurance to mitigate cybersecurity risk
GERMANY: A novel insurance policy intended to mitigate the cybersecurity risks facing railway operators has been launched in Germany. Deutsche Verkehrs Assekuranz Vermittlungs is a bespoke insurance broker owned by national railway Deutsche Bahn (65%) and insurers DEVK and Marsh. Through DVA, policyholders will be eligible for discounts from specialist ...
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Rail Business UKLNER Azuma Class 800 authorised for passenger service
UK: InterCity East Coast operator LNER has finally received approval for its Class 800 ‘Azuma’ trainsets to enter passenger service on the East Coast Main Line, subject to the completion of final testing. In a letter to manufacturer Hitachi Rail Europe, the Office of Road & Rail has authorised the ...
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NewsLviv trolleybus renewals financed
UKRAINE: The city of Lviv is acquire up to 50 new trolleybuses and associated maintenance equipment, upgrade two depots and renew electrification equipment using a €17·5m financing package which is being arranged by the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development. This comprises a 13-year EBRD loan of up to €15m ...
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NewsMaintenance vehicles delivered
POLAND: Infrastructure manager PKP PLK has taken delivery of six maintenance vehicles which it purchased last year. A multi-purpose vehicle purchased for 4·5m złoty is equipped with tools including a welder, grinder and drill, as well as a power generator and a crane. The bidirectional 80 km/h vehicle has ...
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Rail Business UKNorthern Class 331s to serve Leeds from May
UK: Regional franchisee Northern expects to put its first CAF-built Class 331 EMUs into passenger services between Leeds and Doncaster with the May 19 timetable change, having received regulatory authorisation from the Office of Road & Rail. The approval applies to the 31 three-car sets and the 12 four-car versions. ...
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NewsRegioJet orders Elf.eu multiple-units
CZECH REPUBLIC: RegioJet has awarded Pesa Bydgoszcz a contract to supply seven two-car Elf.eu electric multiple-units for use on subsidised passenger services which it is to operate under contract to the Ústí nad Labem regional authority. The order signed on March 7 is worth more than KC500m, with deliveries scheduled ...
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NewsFlytoget Oaris lands in Oslo
NORWAY: The first of eight Oaris EMUs being built by CAF for Oslo airport express operator Flytoget was officially unveiled on March 5. Ordered in April 2015, the four-car Class 78 units will join Flytoget’s existing fleet of 16 Adtranz-built Class 71 trainsets, providing a 50% increase in capacity to ...
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Rail Business UKGemini confirms Springburn works closure
UK: Gemini Rail has confirmed that it is to close its Springburn rolling stock maintenance works in Glasgow, citing ‘severely adverse market conditions affecting its core business’ and losses of £1m per month throughout 2018. The site has work in place until July, but closure is planned by March 2020 ...
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NewsBLS Cargo acquires Crossrail to strengthen north–south corridor
EUROPE: An agreement for BLS Cargo to acquire 100% of Belgian freight operator Crossrail from Rhenus for an undisclosed price was signed on March 5. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and would be backdated to January 1. Switzerland-based BLS Cargo said it would gain a stronger position on ...
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Rail Business UKUK railway news round-up
The Railways (Interoperability) (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 were laid before Parliament on February 26, and would come into effect in the event of a no-deal Brexit to maintain the regulatory status quo for obtaining authorisation to put rolling stock and infrastructure into service. DfT is consulting on a new ...
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NewsRENFE seeks ‘pro-active’ international expansion
SPAIN: RENFE will be adopting an ‘unprecedented and pro-active’ approach to international expansion as its domestic market faces more liberalisation under the EU’s Fourth Railway Package, the Spanish incumbent’s President Isaías Táboas Suárez told the Rail Live trade show in Bilbao on March 6. Suárez highlighted RENFE’s participation in ...
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NewsProtectionism dilutes the competitive dynamic
COMMENT: Are incumbent state operators expanding their low-cost high speed offer to try and keep new entrants out of a liberalised inter-city market, and how might this fit with European competition policy, asks Railway Gazette Managing Editor Nick Kingsley.
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NewsIÉ to install hybrid train protection
IRELAND: Following a competitive tendering process, Iarnród Éireann has selected the Turas joint venture of CPC Project Services, Deutsche Bahn and Egis as Delivery Partner to assist with the introduction of a new train protection system across its 1 600 mm gauge network over the next seven years. The new ...
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Rail Business UKElectrification to reach Market Harborough
UK: The Department for Transport has confirmed that infrastructure manager Network Rail has been instructed to design an extension of the Midland Main Line electrification by around 15 km from Kettering to Market Harborough, which would enable a new connection to a power supply at Braybrooke. In a written answer ...
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NewsSNCF brings forward Ouigo expansion to Toulouse
FRANCE: Originally envisaged for 2020, Ouigo low-cost high speed services between Paris and Toulouse are now to begin running on July 6. The SNCF subsidiary has announced that ticket sales for its first trains will open on March 26. Ouigo will initially operate one train each way per day, calling ...
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NewsWestmecklenburg operating contract awarded
GERMANY: Following an tendering process, the Land of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern announced on March 1 that it had awarded incumbent Ostdeutsche Eisenbahn a contract to continue to operate Teilnetz Westmecklenburg regional passenger services for six years from the December 15 2019 timetable change, when its current contract ends. The package covers routes ...
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NewsUrban Transport Group sets out Brexit priorities
UK: The Urban Transport Group which represents city region transport authorities has set out its priorities for negotiations around the UK’s expected departure from the European Union, which is scheduled for March 29. ‘It is not in our role to take a view on Brexit one way or the other, ...
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NewsSofia orders metro trains
BULGARIA: Sofia metro operator Metropolitan EAD has ordered a further 10 three-car Inspiro trainsets from a consortium of Newag and Siemens Mobility. The latest order has been placed using an option on a September 2015 contract covering an initial 20 trains, which are currently being produced at ...
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NewsEurostar sets new ridership record
EUROPE: The introduction of direct London – Amsterdam trains and a strong increase in business travel contributed to record Eurostar ridership during 2018, the operator announced on March 5. Reporting its annual results, the cross-Channel high speed operator said 11 million passengers had used its international services during the year, ...