Poland to invest over a billion euros in Silesia rail infrastructure
The Polish rail Infrastructure Manager PKP PLK will invest over a billion euros in rail infrastructure. The operator signed contracts for rail upgrades in the…
Freightliner chief says get costs down for sake of environment
Tim Shoveller, the chief executive of Genesee and Wyoming UK and Europe, less tongue twistingly branded as Freightliner, has bemoaned the rising cost of operating…
French shippers say rail freight improves but remains ‘very inadequate’
The findings of the latest annual study by the Association des Utilisateurs de Transport de Fret (AUTF) on how French shippers view the service offerings…
Spain introduces new scheme to keep an eye on track access charges
Despite being one of the countries with the lower track access charges for rail freight in Europe, Spain is implementing a new scheme to supervise…
North-South Europe fresh produce train may start trial in late 2024
A new rail freight route carrying fresh produce will start a pilot in late 2024. On a weekly basis, a train will make a return…
Ukrainian Railways is planning to launch 18 new European routes
Ukrainian Railways is planning to launch 18 new routes to European countries. Additionally, the company will seek to restore and build new multimodal container terminals…
China-EU freight through Russia nearly back at pre-war levels
Rail freight transit through Russia to the EU is nearly back at its pre-war level. As Houthi attacks endanger shipping on the Red Sea, shippers…
Czechia warns: Russia is trying to sabotage European rail
The Czech transport minister has warned that Russia is trying to sabotage European rail. The minister said that Russia has made thousands of attempts to…
Switzerland to invest in CargoBeamer’s Domodossola terminal
The Swiss Federal Office of Transport (FOT) will invest 38,8 million francs (39.5 million euros) to build a transshipment facility in Domodossola, one of the…
GBRf Southampton to Hams Hall service begins today
GB Railfreight is making good on its promise to introduce a raft of new services and expand its operations. The company inaugurated a new Southampton…
French rail cooperative Railcoop to be dissolved next week
After five years of struggles to remain financially viable, French rail cooperative Railcoop will come to an end next week. The Cahors Commercial Court shall…
Operail Finland sale was 12 million euro “gift” to Finnish business
Estonia lost 12,3 million euros with the sale of the Finnish branch of Operail. Last year it sold Operail Finland, the former name of the…
Business
TERMINAL OPTIMISATION
Tideworks gears up for European rail market expansion
As the rail freight market in mainland Europe grows, Tideworks is readying itself to make its presence felt. During an exclusive interview, Todd Tatterson, vice…
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…
Volume statistics
Latvian rail freight continues trend of 25% volume drop
Rail freight in Latvia is continuing on its downward path. During the first nine months of 2024, the country recorded a drop of 25,5 per…
onto the next step
Deloitte to do due diligence in Renfe-MSC deal
The Spanish national rail freight operator Renfe Mercancias has chosen Deloitte to carry out the due diligence on Medway. MSC’s subsidiary will be taking over…
In Depth
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…
big changes ahead?
‘Block train and single wagonload businesses in Switzerland need to be separate’
Rail freight in Switzerland is currently undergoing a total revision of the Freight Transport Act, which was recently adopted by the country’s Council of States.…
Asia-EUrope statistics
Silk Road volumes via Małaszewicze reach highest point in four years
The upward development of Silk Road traffic and volumes transiting via Kazakh, Russian and Belarusian rail infrastructure is also confirmed by numbers. Statistics made available…
Asia-Europe
Two containers on a single wagon
Kazakhstan tests double-stack container load
Kazakh Railways (KTZ) has tested a service with a double-stack container load. Its freight subsidiary KTZ Express cooperated with wagon manufacturer Ziksto (ЗИКСТО) to make…
Transcontinental cooperation
Romania and Kazakhstan deepen rail logistics cooperation
Two Romanian logistics companies and Kazakh Railways (KTZ) are strengthening their cooperation for rail logistics. KTZ’s freight logistics subsidiary KTZ Express signed a memorandum of…
Updated
Kazakh-Chinese border: total blockade or business as usual?
The rail border crossings between Kazakhstan and China have made the news at various points throughout the year. For example, in spring, Kazakhstan stopped grain…
Coal from Donbass
Russia may already be exporting Ukrainian coal on the INSTC
The Russian mining company “Don Coal” is planning to export coal from occupied Ukrainian territories in October. The coal is reportedly destined for countries such…
Intermodal
road to rail
Rail boosted by Southampton modal shift programme
The modal shift incentive at the Port of Southampton has contributed to improvements in intermodal cargo handling numbers. The operators of the Solent Rail Terminal…
Biggest UK port expansion
New rail freight terminal for London Gateway
The fast-growing London Gateway container terminal has just gone into overdrive with a massive one billion pound investment programme. The owners, DP World, have given…
shift to rail
New service brings the port of Venice closer to the Benelux
The port of Venice, in northeastern Italy, launched a new rail freight connection for steel and metal products to Montirone, near Brescia. With this new…
shift to rail
French quarry group Carrières de l’Ouest inaugurates new terminal near Paris
Cinérites Transport & Logistique (CTL), freight forwarding arm of French quarry operator, Carrières de l’Ouest, has officially inaugurated a multi-modal freight terminal at the inland…
Policy
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.…
bye bye billions?
Is the French 100-billion-plan for rail in jeopardy?
A French State programme to invest 100 billion euros in rail transport up until 2040 could hit the buffers as a consequence of State budgetary…
file: greening freight package
Capacity Management Regulation might be approved this spring
The management of rail capacity across the European Union is in dire need of changing, especially if the mission is to boost international rail freight…
EVG vs non-federal rail
Collective wage negotiations are again on German rail’s agenda
After some time of relative calm, a new round of collective labour bargaining is again on German rail’s doorstep. The country’s largest trade union, EVG,…
Technology
Two containers on a single wagon
Kazakhstan tests double-stack container load
Kazakh Railways (KTZ) has tested a service with a double-stack container load. Its freight subsidiary KTZ Express cooperated with wagon manufacturer Ziksto (ЗИКСТО) to make…
memorandum of understanding
Nevomo continues international expansion with Etihad Rail partnership
Nevomo, a tech company developing magnetic levitation concepts for rail freight, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Etihad Rail. The Poland-based company will explore the…
digitalisation
Azerbaijan Railways boosts safety and digitalisation of local railway system
Within this framework, on 4 October, an executive of Azerbaijan Railways (ADY) attended the 5th Eurasian Forum on Transport Safety and Digitalization, held in Almaty…
Digital Automatic Coupling
‘Let’s go for DAC, but not now’ as costs for rail freight mount
Pushing ahead with the implementation of Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) would be like “shooting ourselves in the foot”, warn Czech and Slovak rail associations ŽESNAD…
Infrastructure
Port infrastructure
Polish Port of Gdynia welcomes big rail expansion
The Polish Gdynia port has had its rail infrastructure renovated and expanded, increasing its capacity fivefold. Among other things, the port can now handle 740-metre…
ten-t mediterranean corridor
‘Catalunya will be fully equipped with standard gauge in two or three years’
The difference in railway gauges between the Iberian peninsula and the rest of Europe remains a significant bottleneck for international rail freight services. However, it…
Gulf railway
After securing 1,5 billions in funding, Hafeet Rail now signs contract for new freight locomotives
The Omani-Emirati joint venture Hafeet Rail is purchasing 27 new heavy-haul freight locomotives from Progress Rail. The deal now comes after the joint venture secured…
Dutch challenge as Germany works
Crucial Dutch Betuwe line closed: 60 of the 80 weeks will be ‘usual busy days’
Next month, the 80-week Betuwe line works will officially start. DB InfraGO will be building a third track between Emmerich and Oberhausen, near the border…