Business news from the world rail freight market.
The first international ‘rail motorway’ service linking Spain and Portugal departed from the port of València bound for Entroncamento on the night of January 25-26. The operators were Tramesa and Transitalia, with haulage provided by MSC company Medway, and the journey time was just under 24 h. A regular service of two train pairs per week is planned.
On January 20 Pinsly Railroad Co restarted services on a 60 km short line in Alabama which is now operated by Georgiana & Andalusia Railroad. The line serving customers Shaw Industries Group and Arclin was previously out of service and has been rehabilitated at cost of $6m. ‘These investments reflect our belief in the region’s long-term growth and our commitment to delivering safe, reliable, customer-focused rail service’, said Cassie Dull, Chief Commercial Officer at Pinsly.
EP Logistics International has launched its Central European Rail Express service on the Dresden (Friedrichstadt) – Děčín – Kúty – Štúrovo route, primarily carrying industrial chemicals, petroleum products and steel with both regular flows and spot trains depending on demand. There are initially two or three train pairs per week between Germany and Slovakia, with five planned by March. ‘CEREx is being developed as a service with a clear timetable and guaranteed capacity. Predictability is key for our customers, which is why we have prepared train paths for 2026 to minimise the impact of restrictions on transit via Passau and to maintain stable operations through the Czech Republic and Slovakia’, said Marius Marscholl, Project Manager at EP Cargo Deutschland.
TX Logistik has increased the frequency of its intermodal connection between Duisburg’s Ziel terminal and Milano from six to 10 trains per week in each direction. Transshipment in Italy is now at the Milano Smistamento terminal, rather than Segrate, providing increased shunting capacity for faster processing and greater flexibility.
The supervisory board of PKP Cargo has appointed Zbigniew Prus as CEO from February 2.
Matthew Igoe has joined US short line group RJ Corman Railroad Co as President & Chief Operating Officer, succeeding Raymond Goss who retired as President on January 30. Igoe was previously EVP of Operations at BNSF. ‘His proven track record in the railroad industry is unparalleled, and we are confident that his vision and expertise will accelerate our growth and enhance our service offerings across the board’, said Justin Broyles, President & CEO of parent company RJ Corman Railroad Group.
Leasing company Railpool has awarded Alstom a contract to deploy ETCS Baseline 3 across 50 locomotives used in Italy. The work will be undertaken from the second half of 2026 to the end of 2027.
As part of its ongoing senior management succession planning, Canadian Pacific Kansas City has appointed Gordon Trafton as Vice-Chair of the board, and Marc Parent has been appointed to the board. Kate Stevenson has been nominated to stand for election as a director at CPKC’s AGM in April.