Railway policy news – Page 32
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NewsNational control centre approved
IRELAND: The construction of a €135m National Train Control Centre to manage the entire Iarnród Éireann network was approved by the Irish government on July 17. The new centre is to be delivered by IÉ, with government funding provided through the National Transport Authority as part of Project Ireland ...
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Rail Business UK
Industry comments on Williams Rail Review
UK: Organisations from across the rail sector have responded to Keith Williams’ speech in Bradford on July 16 during which he provided an update on the strategic review of the rail sector which he is undertaking for the government. Rail Delivery Group ‘Businesses, communities and passengers across the country ...
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NewsStudy considers how to assess ‘green’ investment in rail
EUROPE: The European Commission has published a study into criteria used to classify railway assets and activities as environmentally sustainable, and to provide insights into potential ‘greenwashing’. This is intended to facilitate the rail sector’s access to ‘green’ bonds, which the Commission believes could be used to finance a significant ...
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Rail Business UKWilliams reiterates call for UK franchising changes
UK: Greater accountability and a clear customer focus are the principal requirements for reform of the UK rail sector, according to Keith Williams, the independent chairman of the rail review established by Secretary of State for Transport Chris Grayling in the wake of the May 2018 timetable change debacle. ...
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NewsStudy considers how to assess ‘green’ investment in rail
EUROPE: The European Commission has published a study into criteria used to classify railway assets and activities as environmentally sustainable, and to provide insights into potential ‘greenwashing’. This is intended to facilitate the rail sector’s access to ‘green’ bonds, which the Commission believes could be used to finance a ...
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NewsBulgaria launches fleet renewal plan ahead of market liberalisation
test1 BULGARIA: National operator BDZ needs to focus on service quality, sustainability and long-term performance in order to ‘convince the public that it is developing in an upward trend’ and remain the state’s main passenger service provider when the market is liberalised in 2024, Minister of ...
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NewsSBB halts court battle with BLS
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways has asked the Federal Administrative Court to suspend its appeal lodged in July 2018 against the decision by the Federal Office of Transport to allocate two routes in the national long-distance passenger service concession to BLS. The Bern – Biel and Bern – Burgdorf – Olten ...
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NewsERA issues its first vehicle authorisation
EUROPE: The EU Agency for Railways has issued its first vehicle authorisation, three weeks after becoming the European authorising entity for rail traffic on June 16. ERA said the authorisation covering conformity-to-type of 30 wagons for operation in multiple countries was an ‘historic step to break down barriers in Europe’. ...
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NewsOberösterreich railway investment programme agreed
AUSTRIA: The Land of Oberösterreich and Austrian Federal Railways have agreed an €725m programme of route modernisation, station upgrading and electrification works for 2019-30. This agreement includes the retention of all branch lines, and the roll-out of new singalling and safety systems. ÖBB is to retain ownership of all lines ...
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NewsCP and EMEF to merge ahead of market opening
PORTUGAL: The government has approved a €45m capital investment programme for both national operator CP and rolling stock maintenance business EMEF. To be funded from the state budget, the 2019-22 plan approved on June 27 has two parts. The first covers investment of €9m in 2019, primarily to enable EMEF ...
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NewsFinnish passenger tendering plan put on hold
FINLAND: Recently-appointed Minister of Transport & Communications Sanna Marin has suspended plans to call tenders for the operation of regional passenger services in southern Finland. On June 27 the ministry said that the preparatory process had shown that it would not be possible to proceed as planned. A fair and ...
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NewsRENFE seeks to take on the TGV
FRANCE: On July 1, RENFE Operadora confirmed its intention to enter the French high speed passenger market, saying it had lodged the relevant applications with regulator Arafer, safety authority EPSF and infrastructure manager SNCF Réseau. The Spanish national operator would compete with incumbent SNCF on high speed routes initially using ...
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NewsSão Paulo state seeks to relaunch passenger network
BRAZIL: A state-wide X-shaped network of passenger services could be reintroduced to the main line network in São Paulo under plans being developed by Governor João Doria. The initial service would link São Paulo with Campinas, a distance of around 100 km. The proposals envisage adapting existing ...
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NewsChina out in front with the world’s fastest trains
INTERNATIONAL: China now has the fastest regular timetabled trains in the world, significantly faster than any other country, according to Railway Gazette’s biennial World Speed Survey, which appears in the July 2019 issue of Railway Gazette International magazine. Compiled by Jeremy Hartill of the Railway Performance Society, using data for ...
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NewsSwitzerland: Competitive stress
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways CEO Andreas Meyer believes that SBB could be forced into a position where it became a residual operator if the federal government were to pursue further its policy of on-rail competition. In an interview with Neue Zürcher Zeitung on May 29, Meyer reiterated ...
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NewsEast Norway passenger operating contract plan announced
NORWAY: Railway agency Jernbanedirektoratet has announced its preferred option for tendering the operation of passenger services around Oslo and southeast Norway. This follows a study of eight options for grouping the routes which it undertook on behalf of the Ministry of Transport & Communications. The two operating contracts would be ...
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NewsSwitzerland approves SFr13bn infrastructure investment package
SWITZERLAND: The upper house of Parliament (Ständerat) voted unanimously on June 21 in favour of a further phase of rail infrastructure expansion to eliminate bottlenecks, allow more frequent services and make stations more accessible. Worth SFr12∙89bn, the investment package known as STEP 2035 (Strategische Entwicklungsprogramm Bahninfrastruktur) covers around 200 large ...
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NewsDavenne takes over at UIC
INTERNATIONAL: The appointment of François Davenne as Director General of the International Union of Railways was formally confirmed at the UIC General Assembly in Budapest on June 25. Taking over with effect from July 1, he succeeds Jean-Pierre Loubinoux, who has served as UIC Director General since ...
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NewsFehmarn Belt link financing investigation opens
DENMARK: The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to determine whether the public financing model for the Fehmarn Belt fixed link is aligned with EU state aid rules. Under the intergovernmental agreement between Denmark and Germany, Denmark will be the sole owner and will bear the full risk for ...
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NewsChina Railway Corp becomes China State Railway Group Co
CHINA: China Railway Corp was officially restructured as China State Railway Group Co on June 18, with China Railway and CR as its official English-language short name and abbreviation. China Railway is a solely state-owned enterprise with registered capital of 1·74tr yuan, established in accordance with company law. Its responsibilities ...