All Suburban & Commuter Rail articles
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Rail Business UKRelief for Southeastern passengers as train toilets to be installed
UK: Southeastern has announced that a toilet is to be retrofitted to the Class 707 City Beam electric multiple-units used on London suburban services. Agreements for the multi-million pound investment are to be finalised with leasing company Angel Trains in the coming weeks, the operator said ...
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NewsRER NG trains launched on Line D as Paris fleet renewal accelerates
FRANCE: The renewal of the rolling stock fleet used on the RER suburban network around Paris is continuing, with the latest generation RER NG trainsets entering service on Line D in December. The RER NG fleet comprises two subclasses, Z58000 for Line E and Z58500 for ...
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Metro Report InternationalDelhi RRTS extension opens as India targets second spot in world metro rankings
INDIA: The 13 km Sahibabad to New Ashok Nagar extension of the Delhi – Ghaziabad – Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System line was opened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 5. The Rs46bn extension takes Namo Bharat (commuter) services into central Delhi; there is an ...
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Rail Business UKSoutheastern Class 376 EMU fleet to get mid-life refresh
UK: Contracts have been awarded for a mid-life refresh of the Class 376 electric multiple-units used on Southeastern’s London suburban services since 2004. The work is be undertaken in collaboration with leasing company Eversholt Rail and Alstom, the successor to Bombardier Transportation which originally built the ...
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NewsService agreement ‘paves way’ for suburban rail devolution in Cape Town
SOUTH AFRICA: Following months of negotiations, the city of Cape Town and Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa have signed a Service Level Plan which Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says will ‘lay the foundation for future rail devolution’.
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NewsChicago commuter rail network upgrades communications
USA: Chicago commuter operator Metra’s legacy 900 MHz communications system is to be upgraded to the dot16 standard, in what suppliers Siemens Mobility and Ondas Networks say is a ‘milestone’ first for a major railway. Designed for mission-critical private industrial networks, dot16 provides an upgrade path ...
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Metro Report InternationalNorth America: Bringing more rail to Mexico’s metropolis
Two major suburban rail projects are well into the phase of delivery in the state of Mexico, which borders Mexico City. But plans to extend metro and light rail beyond the capital’s boundaries are yet to be finalised as policymakers continue to flirt with non-rail modes, which are often perceived as cheaper to deliver.
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NewsTeresina suburban rail renewal makes progress
BRAZIL: The state of Piauí has reported progress on a series of investments to enhance the metre-gauge diesel suburban line in its capital, Teresina. On November 11, Governor Rafael Fonteles inaugurated a 2·5 km, one-station eastern branch from Boa Esperança to Colorado. The project included the ...
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NewsDouble-deckers enter service on Chuo Rapid line
JAPAN: East Japan Railway is to launch regular operation of double-deck cars on its busy Chuo Rapid line services between Tokyo, Shinjuku, Nakano and the capital’s western suburbs.
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NewsAlstom awarded California Metrolink operation and maintenance contract
USA: Southern California Regional Rail Authority has awarded Alstom a combined Train Operation & Maintenance Services contract for its Metrolink passenger rail services. Alstom is to take over on July 1 2025 when its current fleet maintenance contract and the separate operating contract with Amtrak expire. ...
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NewsRBS orders tailor-made Stadler trains
SWITZERLAND: Bern suburban operator Regionalverkehr Bern-Solothurn has awarded Stadler a SFr190m contract to supply 20 custom electric multiple-units to replace its oldest vehicles and increase capacity on Solothurn – Bern RegioExpress route RE5. It is the third order RBS has placed with Stadler. The new EMUs ...
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NewsSecond Melbourne loop tunnelling contract awarded
AUSTRALIA: The A$1·7bn Tunnels North contract for Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop East was announced by Victorian Infrastructure Delivery Authority on November 9. The Terra Verde consortium of Webuild, GS Engineering & Construction and Bouygues Construction Australia will bore twin tunnels from Glen Waverley to Box Hill, ...
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NewsStadler trains ordered to expand TEX Rail fleet
USA: Trinity Metro has ordered four more Stadler Flirt diesel multiple-units to increase capacity on the TEX Rail line from central Fort Worth to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. They are to be delivered from Stadler’s Salt Lake City factory in 2027, as an option on the ...
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Rail Business UKNext London Overground operator sought
UK: Transport for London has invited requests to participate in the procurement of the next London Overground operating concessionaire. The TfL-managed inner-suburban services running on the main line rail network are currently operated by Arriva Rail London under a contract running to May 3 2026. ...
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NewsIstanbul’s Marmaray service to be extended west to Çerkezköy
TURKEY: Plans to extend the Marmaray suburban rail service to Çerkezköy 75 km west of Istanbul have been announced by Minister for Transport & Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu. This would take the cross-city route to 152 km in length. Uraloğlu was speaking at a ceremony in early ...
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Metro Report InternationalMetro Trains Melbourne invests in facilities for female staff
AUSTRALIA: Metro Trains Melbourne is investing A$1m in toilets, showers and changing rooms to accommodate the increasing number of women in its workforce. Minister for Public & Active Transport Gabrielle Williams said this ‘demonstrates a commitment to recruiting more women into the railways, taking up fulfilling, ...
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NewsLegal changes aim to streamline Californian rail electrification projects
USA: The Governor of California has signed legislation designed to accelerate electrification by exempting zero-emission railway projects on existing lines from requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act, which can lead to legal delays. The bill passed with bipartisan support was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom ...
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Rail Business UKLondon Overground line branding roll-out begins
UK: Transport for London began rolling out new line names and colours on the London Overground network on November 20. This will replace the previous system where the various routes on the complex inner-suburban rail network were not distinguished with individual branding. The names and colours ...
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Rail Business UKNew Elizabeth Line operator aims to offer ‘the best of Tokyo and London’
UK: Transport for London has selected the GTS Rail Operations Ltd joint venture of rail and bus operator Go-Ahead Group (65%), recently part-privatised operator Tokyo Metro (17·5%) and diverse Japanese business group Sumitomo Corp (17·5%) for the next concession to operate Elizabeth Line services. The preferred ...
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Metro Report InternationalLima to launch commuter rail service with withdrawn Caltrain fleet
PERU: Lima municipality is to launch a commuter train service on the railway between Callao on the Pacific coast and Chosica in the capital’s eastern suburbs in 2025, using a fleet of diesel locos and double-deck coaches withdrawn from service by California’s Caltrain. The 19 EMD ...