Passenger rail news – Page 68
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NewsFour companies launch Spanish passenger operators’ association
SPAIN: Independent high speed operator Iryo, regional railways FGC and Euskotren, and national incumbent RENFE have joined forces to launch a national association of passenger train operators.
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NewsBattery trains ordered for tourist services in Argentina
ARGENTINA: Governor of Jujuy province Gerardo Morales has signed a contract for CRRC Tangshan to supply battery-powered ‘new-energy light rail’ trainsets for use on a tourist service between Volcán and Tilcara. The two-car articulated trains will have lithium batteries charged using solar power, a maximum speed ...
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NewsBOB park-and-ride EMUs to relieve valley roads
SWITZERLAND: Berner Oberland-Bahnen has announced a SFr66m order for six Stadler ABeh 4/8 three-car electric multiple units to enter service in winter 2025-26. The order will enable a 15-min headway service to be provided at the proposed Matten station between Interlaken Ost and Wilderswil, where a ...
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NewsCisalpino trainsets enter service in Greece
GREECE: ETR470 tilting trainsets which were formerly used on Cisalpino services from Italy to Switzerland entered passenger service in Greece on May 15, operating two trains a day in each direction between Thessaloniki and Athens. The journey time on the 502 km ...
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NewsSotetsu progresses railway investment programme
JAPAN: Sotetsu Holdings is making progress with a ¥16·4bn programme of investment in its Sagami Railway network west of Yokohama and is investing ¥600m in its bus operations.
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NewsTest running starts on Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen
JAPAN: Test running has started on the isolated Nishi-Kyushu Shinkansen between Nagasaki and Takeo Onsen, which is scheduled to open for revenue service on September 23.
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NewsWien rail infrastructure enhancement package agreed
AUSTRIA: A financing agreement for rail infrastructure enhancements in the region around Wien has been signed by the Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation & Technology, the city of Wien and Austrian Federal Railways. The overall aim is to further increase the already ...
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NewsSuburban railway planned as alternative to Plovdiv’s congested roads
BULGARIA: Plans for a suburban rail network to relieve road congestion in Plovdiv are to drawn up shortly, Minister of Transport & Communications Nikolay Sabev said during a visit to the city in April. The ministry said 45 000 people travel to work by car in ...
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Rail Business UKHS1 Ltd deploys passenger flow monitoring technology at stations
UK: High speed line concessionaire HS1 Ltd is using OpenSpace Group’s counting and flow monitoring technology to improve passenger flows at its London St Pancras, Stratford, Ebbsfleet and Ashford stations. The technology will provide a real-time visual representation of the location of all people in the ...
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Rail Business UKCrossrail Elizabeth Line to open on May 24
UK: Elizabeth Line services on the Crossrail route across central London will finally begin on May 24, Transport for London has announced. ‘The opening day is set to be a truly historic moment for the capital and the UK, and we look forward to showcasing a ...
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Rail Business UKAssisted travel booking time shortened but accessibility works have some way to go
UK: The time to required to book Passenger Assist services such as help with navigating a station or boarding a train has been reduced from 6 h to a minimum standard of 2 h ahead of travel. However, campaigners have expressed concern at the slow pace ...
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NewsSão Paulo plans rail revival
BRAZIL: The São Paulo state government has drawn up a Strategic Railway Plan which aims to revitalise much of the network of underused or moribund lines that have been left to decay in many parts of the state. The plan has been developed by the Logistics ...
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NewsCape Town to study commuter rail devolution
SOUTH AFRICA: Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana has authorised the city of Cape Town to undertake a detailed feasibility study for the potential devolution of control of suburban rail services from the national government. ‘This is a big deal, because up until now, the national government ...
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NewsNiederrheinbahn reopening funding confirmed
GERMANY: The Land of Nordrhein-Westfalen has confirmed €17m of funding to enable the introduction of a passenger service on the 10 km Niederrheinbahn route between Moers and Kamp-Lintfort from 2026. ‘By reactivating the old tracks, Kamp-Lintfort, the third largest German town without a rail connection, will ...
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Metro Report InternationalSecond ‘pop-up metro’ battery train arrives in the USA
USA: British company Vivarail has sent a second two-car battery multiple-unit produced from former London Underground vehicles to the USA, where shareholder Railroad Development Corp will use the unit to demonstrate its ‘pop-up metro’ concept for providing ‘lower cost, lower risk, faster start’ passenger services on ...
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NewsBaton Rouge to New Orleans passenger service planned
USA: Louisiana state officials including Governor John Bel Edwards have inspected the 130 km route of a long-proposed Baton Rouge to New Orleans passenger service. This would use Kansas City Southern tracks between Baton Rouge and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, and then Canadian National ...
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NewsÖresundståg terminates SJ operating contract
SWEDEN: Regional authorities in the south of the country have awarded a two-year emergency contract for Transdev to operate Öresundståg services from December 10, having agreed to terminate an eight-year contract with SJ after just two years.
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Rail Business UKRefurbished Pendolino returns to service with more seats and an updated interior
UK: Avanti West Coast has returned to service the first of its 56 Pendolino trainsets to be modernised in a £117m refurbishment programme.
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In depthPortugal: Algarve electrification gets up to speed
Award of the second main contract for the 25 kV 50 Hz electrification of IP’s east-west Algarve Line should see the wires stretching from one end of the country to the other by the end of 2024, explains Andre Pires.
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NewsDB warned over market abuse in digital mobility platforms
GERMANY: The Federal Monopolies Commission has reached a preliminary conclusion that Deutsche Bahn has committed ‘an abuse of market power’ in relation to digital mobility platforms designed to offer passengers integrated route planning and ticket purchasing. Announcing this on April 20, the Commission said that it ...