Main line rail industry news – Page 51
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NewsAvelia Horizon high speed train order confirmed
MOROCCO: National railway ONCF has formally signed a €781m contract for Alstom to supply 18 Avelia Horizon high speed trainsets. These additional trainsets will support the extension of the 200 km Tanger – Kénitra high speed line by 430 km to Casablanca and Marrakech. An initial ...
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NewsTrain to the plane partnership
AUSTRIA: The Star Alliance of 25 airlines has integrated Austrian Federal Railways services between Wien airport and Graz, Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck into its booking processes. Air passengers can check in online or at ÖBB travel centres and receive boarding passes for both flight and train ...
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NewsSlovaks welcome government backing for rail, but funding shortfall remains
SLOVAKIA: International co-operation and more funding for infrastructure were key themes emerging from the 19th FKD railway conference held in Bratislava on March 18-19. Toma Bačić reports.
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NewsMinister orders urgent measures to enhance railway safety
BULGARIA: Minister of Transport & Communications Grozdan Karadzhov has ordered urgent action to enhance railway safety within six months, following the receipt of a report commissioned from an industry working group.
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NewsSouth Coast Rail commuter services launched
USA: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and operator Keolis Commuter Services have launched passenger services on Phase 1 of the South Coast Rail project, providing Fall River and New Bedford with trains to Boston for the first time in more than 65 years.
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NewsEnhanced braking system raises speed on rack-and-pinion line
SWITZERLAND: Matterhorn Gotthard Railway and Stadler have unveiled a jointly-developed v+ braking system, which they say will enable operation of the ’world’s fastest’ rack-and-pinion rail service. One of MGBahn’s Stadler Orion metre-gauge electric multiple-units used on the Andermatt – Göschenen branch has been fitted with v+ ...
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NewsSemmering Base Tunnel slab track contract awarded
AUSTRIA: ÖBB-Infrastruktur has awarded a consortium of Rhomberg Sersa Rail Group and Porr Group a €76m contract to install slab track in the 27·3 km twin-bore Semmering Base Tunnel. The contract covers 55 km of slab track, as well as additional ballasted track, noise protection, substructure ...
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NewsGemini announces cross-Channel passenger train ambitions
EUROPE: Gemini Trains becomes the latest company to set out plans to take on Eurostar on the cross-Channel route linking London with Paris and Brussels.
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NewsFreight operator orders 30 locos to modernise fleet
SLOVENIA: Freight operator SŽ Tovorni Promet has awarded Alstom a contract to supply 30 Traxx Universal multisystem electric locomotives for hauling heavy trains in central Europe. Deliveries under the €152m+VAT contract signed on March 21 are scheduled between April 2027 and September 2028. ...
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NewsOradea tram-train plan firms up
ROMANIA: Tenders worth €250m are scheduled to be called in the coming weeks covering work to build a 32 km tram-train network around Oradea. Feasibility studies for the project were approved by Bihor county council and Oradea municipality in November 2023. The procurement plans were announced ...
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NewsCounty Line Rail acquires Sabine River & Northern Railroad
USA: Gulf Coast area yard operator County Line Rail has acquired the Sabine River & Northern Railroad. The 64 km short line runs from Bessmay to Echo in Texas, with a branch line from Buna to Evandale and connections to Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Union Pacific ...
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NewsRocky Mountaineer’s US operation to become Canyon Spirit
USA: Canadian and US luxury rail operator Rocky Mountaineer is to expand its Rockies to the Red Rocks route for the 2026 season, and rebrand its US operation from Rocky Mountaineer to Canyon Spirit. The Rockies to the Red Rocks service launched in 2021 runs from Denver ...
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NewsMomentum builds behind Gdańsk suburban rail expansion
POLAND: A 7·5 km southwestern extension of the SKM suburban service that links Gdańsk with Wejherowo via Gdynia has received environmental permit. Branded as PKM Południe, the extension would run from Gdańsk Śródmieście to Kowale, serving six new stations in the growing southwestern neighbourhoods of Gdańsk. ...
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NewsAmtrak CEO Gardner leaves as operator pushes back against Musk’s privatisation drive
USA: Amtrak CEO Stephen Gardner announced on March 19 that he was stepping down from the national passenger operator with immediate effect.
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NewsBulgaria selects Alstom to supply EMUs
BULGARIA: Following a prolonged procurement process, a consortium of Alstom and RVP Invest has been selected to supply 35 single-deck electric multiple-units. The order — which is awaiting signature — is worth €445m, including 15 years of maintenance. The national Recovery & Resilience Plan had allocated ...
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NewsStadler profits hit by ‘environmental disasters’
INTERNATIONAL: Rolling stock and signalling supplier Stadler Rail has cited ‘environmental disasters’ as the main reason behind a fall in its profit margin. The Swiss-headquartered group issued its annual financial results on March 19, reporting a drop in EBIT margin of two percentage points to 3·1%. ...
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NewsAdvanced EMUs refresh the Tobu fleet
JAPAN: Tobu Railway has put its first Series 80000 EMU into revenue service on the Urban Park Line. Kinki Sharyo is supplying 25 Series 80000 trainsets, which are intended to operate as five-car formations. Seven are being built as such, but the other 18 will be supplied as four-car units to be augmented by one vehicle transferred from existing Series 60000 units, which are to be shortened from six to five cars.