Europe rail industry news
Latest railway industry news from Europe, including operations, infrastructure, rolling stock and policy.
Withdrawn Helsinki trams to be tested in Poland
POLAND: Two of the 40 Variotrams which have been withdrawn from service in Helsinki are to be tested in Łódź this summer, with the city’s transport operator potentially looking to acquire further vehicles if the trials prove successful.
Rack railcars ordered for the Dolderbahn
SWITZERLAND: Zürich public transport operator VBZ has awarded Stadler Bussnang a SFr10·6m + VAT contract to supply two rack railcars for the metre-gauge Dolderbahn, which starts at Römerhof in the city suburbs and climbs 162 m in 1 328 m.
Paris – Edinburgh route proposed under French start-up Midnight Trains’ hotel train plan
EUROPE: A Paris – Edinburgh service is among the most eye-catching proposals for a network of premium overnight sleeping car services set out by French start-up Midnight Trains on June 16.
Night train start-ups European Sleeper and Moonlight Express join forces
EUROPE: Night train start-up companies European Sleeper and Moonlight Express have decided to join forces rather than develop competing initiatives to launch overnight services from Belgium and the Netherlands.
German operating contracts awarded
GERMANY: Rhein-Main-transport authority RMV has awarded Hessische Landesbahn a contract to operate Lahntal, Vogelsberg and Rhönbahn regional passenger services for 15 years from December 10 2023, and with its Rheinland-Pfalz Nord counterpart has awarded VIAS the next contract to operate Rheingau services.
Elastic project stretches tram technology
ITALY: Three trams and three tram stops in Firenze have been equipped with sensing, computation and communication capabilities as part of the Software Architecture for Extreme-ScaLe Big-Data AnalyticS in Fog CompuTIng ECosystems project to develop autonomous tram technology.
Cross-border line to be electrified
Europe: Reviving the overnight network
ICM Mobility acquires mobile ticketing and payment specialist Unwire
Station refurbishment at Santiago de Compostela to go ahead
Wagons delivered for wood chip import service
France: Report presages night train renaissance
Design of Moscow’s next tram unveiled
Shift2Rail, CEN and CENELEC sign standardisation co-operation agreement
RZD places order for 200 diesel locomotives
FlixTrain enters the overnight market
Olsztyn tram extension contract finalised
Left bank of the Rhein operating contract awarded
Interim diesel contracts awarded pending switch to zero-emission operation
Brussels M7 metro trains launched
LDz launches semitrailer service with Stena Line
Trento tramway approved
CAF Oaris EMUs enter service with Flytoget
EU transport ministers call for modal shift, so rail can grow faster than the wider economy