infrastructure upgrades Another key piece of the Rhine-Alpine Corridor to be closed in August

The railway between Novara and Domodossola, connecting Italy to Switzerland, will be closed between 9 and 30 August for infrastructure upgrades. This is a key…
war in ukraine Russia’s railway to Ukraine is already complete

Russia reportedly already completed a railway running from Rostov-on-Don, in the country’s southwest, to Mariupol, in the Ukrainian territory currently occupied by the Kremlin. “This…
intermodal flows Teesport east coast rail served revival

Other East Coast ports in Britain seem to take the limelight, but there is one location that is quietly building traffic and championing rail freight.…
new services DB Cargo France to launch two road-rail services in early 2025

DB Cargo France is planning to launch two rail-road transport services at the beginning of 2025. One will link Metz and Nancy in eastern France…
Industry perspectives UK’s intermodal future in focus

Crystal balls are fragile things. Consequently, it is with kid gloves that Karl Watts, managing director of Railmotive consultancy, is handling his very own oracle.…
unsafe operations Bulgaria: railway safety questioned, transport minister demands resignations

The Bulgarian Minister of Transport and Communications, Georgi Gvozdeikov, has demanded the resignation of two top management officials of NKŽI, the country’s infrastructure manager. In…
HUngarian infrastructure Hungarian rail logistics brace for 6 years of infrastructure upgrades

The coming six years until 2030 will see the Hungarian railway network undergoing significant upgrades. No matter their necessity, those upgrades are also expected to…
new service Rail Cargo Group to launch new Serbia-Hungary-Germany service

Austrian rail freight operator Rail Cargo Group (RCG) will launch a new service connecting Serbia, Hungary and Germany. The trains will serve Kruševac, in central…
rolling stock upgrade Renfe’s Pecovasa to refurbish 100 wagons for car transport

Pecovasa Renfe Mercancías, the branch of the Spanish national rail freight operator specialised in transporting cars, wants to refurbish 100 wagons to adapt them to…

Business

new names revealed The successors of Fret SNCF officially have their names: Technis and Hexafret

The two entities replacing the French rail freight operator Fret SNCF now have their official name. The company taking care of locomotive maintenance will be…
Growing business Polish operator Laude planning new terminal in Ukraine

Polish rail operator Laude Smart Intermodal seems on track to surpass last year’s freight volumes of its Ukrainian operations, with January-September figures approaching total 2023…
strikes on the horizon? French labour unions get ready to go on strike over Fret SNCF discontinuity

Four labour unions at France’s State railway continues to call for a moratorium on the discontinuity of Fret SNCF and have brandished the threat of…
Privatisation Operail goes private with real estate company Tiigi Keskus

There is a purchase and sale agreement for Estonian national rail operator Operail. It is Tiigi Keskus, an Estonian real estate company that also owns…
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In Depth

rolling stock repurposing UK electric shunter completes field trials

Developers Positive Traction have successfully completed trials with their prototype electric shunter, rebuilt from a successful diesel design dating back to the 1930s. Their first-of-a-kind…
Delay or no delay? Fehmarnbelt tunnel’s rail freight traffic could be delayed until a decade from now

The Fehmarnbelt tunnel is supposed to provide a shortcut to rail freight traffic, alongside road traffic, from Germany into Scandinavia. The grand opening of the…
optimistic predictions Survey of French shippers highlights strong growth potential of rail freight

A major study of the development of rail freight in the industrial and agricultural sectors in France has concluded that there is the potential for…
Establishment of Carpatica Feroviar Romania’s controversial plan to save state rail freight

CFR Marfă, Romania’s state-owned rail freight operator, will soon be liquidated following bankruptcy. In its place will now come a new state-owned operator by the…
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Asia-Europe

Faster China - Europe traffic Northern Corridor countries want automatic train registration system in 2025

Kazakhstan has presented plans to launch the so-called “Seamless Transit” project along the Northern Corridor between China and Europe in early 2025. It would enable…
Problems on the Russian network Locomotive shortage causes at least 93% of Russian loading decline

Russian Railways (RZD) keeps struggling with a locomotive shortage, reducing its capacity to grow or even maintain its transported freight volumes. Loading has been declining…
International interest in Kazakhstan Alstom to build 4 maintenance plants in Kazakhstan

French rail rolling stock manufacturer Alstom is building four maintenance centres in Kazakhstan. The total investment revolves around 50 million euros and the first site,…
Locomotives left lingering Russian Railways: ‘We are using our capabilities in overheat mode’

Problems on the Russian railway network seem to be persistent and worsening. Reportedly, there are more and more locomotives being left unused, all the while…
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Intermodal

balkan connections RCG launches another service through Serbian subsidiary

Austrian rail freight operator Rail Cargo Group (RCG) is launching a new service through its recently established Serbian subsidiary. The service will connect Serbia’s capital…
rail-port synergies Spain launches two feasibility studies to boost rail freight in A Coruña port

The Spanish ministry of transport began two feasibility studies concerning the port of A Coruña, in the northwest of the country. One of the studies…
boosting combined transport France’s master plan for combined transport highlights need for more terminals

France has published a “national master plan” for combined transport. Drawn up by the State Directorate-General for Infrastructure, Transport and Mobility (DGITM), in close collaboration…
modal shift tests Volkswagen to start EcoDuo-rail intermodal pilot between Germany and Spain

A new intermodal pilot project to move Volkswagen products between Germany and Spain will start in 2025. The initiative, led by the German Association of…
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Policy

Public versus private Dutch government and rail freight sector do not see eye to eye on DAC

The Dutch state secretary for infrastructure, Chris Jansen, recently attended a Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) demonstration with his German counterpart. Jansen sees potential in the…
file: greening freight package European associations ask for more concreteness over Greening Freight Package

The Greening Freight Package remains a significant initiative for the European Union. One of its pillars, the Combined Transport Directive, is however once again in…
rail revolution? MPs in France push to connect all logistics sites to the railways

A French Parliamentary bill aimed at developing rail freight has been tabled by a group of MPs which, if passed into law, would oblige all…
subsidy dilemma Italy opens application for this year’s subsidies, but still hasn’t paid last year’s

The Italian Ministry of Transport has opened applications for the 2024/25 Ferrobonus incentive, one of the main measures to support the country’s rail freight sector.…
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Technology

rolling stock monitoring Austrian solar-power tracking for DB Cargo

A Vienna-based telematics specialist has won a contract with DB Cargo AG to provide self-powered monitoring telematics hardware for freight rolling stock. CargoMon Systems GmbH…
Public versus private Dutch government and rail freight sector do not see eye to eye on DAC

The Dutch state secretary for infrastructure, Chris Jansen, recently attended a Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) demonstration with his German counterpart. Jansen sees potential in the…
rolling stock repurposing UK electric shunter completes field trials

Developers Positive Traction have successfully completed trials with their prototype electric shunter, rebuilt from a successful diesel design dating back to the 1930s. Their first-of-a-kind…
New technology Öresund bridge gets rail maintenance-reducing pilot

The Öresund bridge between Denmark and Sweden is the site of a pilot project that is supposed to reduce maintenance on the rail tracks. With…
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Infrastructure

Infrastructure renovation Germany kicks off Emmerich – Oberhausen works

Renovation works on the Emmerich – Oberhausen railway started on Saturday 2 November. It is an important route for freight trains, and will lead to…
rail-port synergies Slovenian Parliament gives final approval for Divača-Koper doubling

The Slovenian Parliament officially approved the project to double the Divača-Koper railway line. Construction works for the second track leading into the country’s largest port…
rail at a standstill Valencia remains logistically isolated due to extreme weather conditions

The east of Spain is currently experiencing extreme weather conditions, especially in the area of Valencia. The events have already claimed dozens of lives, caused…
Rail overhaul ‘Freight to be primary beneficiary of 6 billion euros in Croatian investments’

Croatia is planning to invest a record 6 billion euros in its railway infrastructure during the coming decade. Its infrastructure manager, HŽ Infrastruktura, says that…
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