Freight news – Page 181
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News
FS enters the logistics market
ITALY: Italian Railways has set up a joint venture with the Italian post office aimed at securing a share of the market for transporting high-value goods and packages. Italia Logistica was launched on February 28 when FS and Gruppo Poste Italiane announced that they were merging the activities of their ...
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Vossloh shunters in service
France: Fret SNCF is putting into service 160 Class 460 000 locomotives ordered to replace Class 63000 locos on shunting and local freight duties. The diesel-electrics were designed by Alstom, but are being built by Vossloh at its Valencia plant. Rated at 1 000 kW, they have Caterpillar 3508B engines, ...
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NewsCounting the cost of competition
SBB plans widespread cost-cutting and job losses in a bid to counter the growing deficits at its freight business.
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Regulation tops the freight agenda
Delegates attending the freight day at EuroRail 2008 focused on the regulatory and capacity issues facing the sector as it works to realise the EU's vision of an open, liberalised and inter-operable market.
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NewsFreight operator announces London IPO
RUSSIA: Private freight operator Globaltrans Investment announced on April 4 that it is planning to launch an initial public offering and listing on the London Stock Exchange. The offering represents around 30% of its outstanding shares and will take place by the end of the first half of this year. ...
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Freight support boost
AUSTRALIA: Following the announcement that Pacific National was looking to discontinue many rural freight services (RG 2.08 p76), the state of Victoria has taken steps to safeguard rail freight for the next two years. On February 26 Premier John Brumby announced an A$20m Rail Freight Support Package, designed to ensure ...
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Logistics venture formed
RUSSIA: Regular intermodal services are to be introduced to link Moscow with various German cities, following the formal launch of the Trans-Eurasia Logistics joint venture on March 6. A memorandum of understanding had been signed in July 2007, and the project has now been approved by the competition authorities. To ...
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Freight for sale
ROMANIA: After years of speculation, proposals and counter-proposals, Minister of Transport Ludovic Orban confirmed on March 16 that state-owned rail freight operator CFR Marfa is to be privatised. Established as a stand-alone business during Romania's railway reform programme of 1998-99 (RG 3.07 p155), CFR Marfa was always intended to be ...
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Improved Class 66 arrives
FRANCE: During March the first EMD JT42CWRM loco for Euro Cargo Rail arrived in France for testing, after being shipped from Canada in December for final fitting out at NedTrain's Tilburg plant in the Netherlands. Better cab isolation offers improved driver comfort compared to the JT42CWR, which was restricted by ...
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Locos into cross-border service
EUROPE: Warszawa-based CTL Logistics put two Siemens Eurosprinter multi-system locomotives into service on February 29. Leased from Dispolok, the ES64F4 locos are approved for use in Germany and the Netherlands, where they will haul cross-border freight trains using the Betuwe Route.
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On the path to competition
FRANCE: Open access freight services are now operating in every region of the French rail network, according to RFF President Hubert du Mesnil. He told the sixth national train paths conference on February 6 that private companies are now running an average of 80 trains a day, and a quarter ...
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Short line upgrades
CANADA: Transport Canada and the government of Québec announced on February 1 the award of grants to co-finance renewal and upgrading work on nine short line and regional railways over the next five years. The federal and provincial governments had announced a framework agreement in July 2007 for a package ...
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Loco roll-out
USA: Pennsylvania-based mining and industrial locomotive builder Brookville Equipment Corp has unveiled the first of 16 BL20GH diesels it is supplying for freight and commuter services in the New York area. Six are for Connecticut Department of Transportation, six for Metro North and four for use on Staten Island. The ...
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Serbia signs €57m wagon order
SERBIA: International Railway Systems has been awarded a €57m contract to supply Serbian Railways with 750 wagons by the end of the year. The contract signed on February 21 is funded by the European Bank for Reconstruction & Development. Luxembourg-headquartered IRS said the Eanoss wagons will be produced at ...
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NewsVeolia buys Rail4chem
GERMANY: Rail4chem is to be sold to Veolia Cargo, the shareholders of the Essen-based private freight operator announced on February 20. Subject to regulatory approval, the transaction will be completed in the first half of 2008. The parties have agreed not to disclose the price. Rail4chem will be merged with ...
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NewsVTG buys into US leasing market
HAMBURG-based wagon leasing company VTG has announced its entry into the North American market with the acquisition of Texas Railcar Leasing Co. An agreement was reached with the family-owned business in December, with the transaction expected to be completed early this year. Financial terms were not disclosed. Founded 20 years ...
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NewsHydraulic locomotive orders roll in
VOITH TURBO Lokomotivtechnik of Kiel in north Germany has won several orders for its Maxima and Gravita diesel-hydraulic locomotives. The prototype Maxima has been tested at Velim (RG 11.07 p724) and was due to undergo winter trials in Norway before returning to Germany. The second loco, now nearing completion (rear ...
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Sweden - Germany through freight launched
HECTOR Rail began operating through freight trains between Sweden and Germany via the Øresund bridge and Denmark on January 4. The Swedish-based open access operator is running five trains a week between Norrköping and Herne in the Ruhr area under a contract signed with Dutch logistics firm Van Dieren Maritime ...
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NewsEWS promises Channel Tunnel 'revolution'
EWS announced on November 22 that its Euro Cargo Rail subsidiary will be launching 12 intermodal services through the Channel Tunnel during 2008, connecting 'the key UK economic regions' with terminals in France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland. The first is due to start at the end of January ...
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NewsMÁV Cargo tender won by RCA-GySEV
HUNGARY'S Ministry of Economy & Transport announced on November 27 that a consortium of Rail Cargo Austria and GySEV had submitted the best bid for the privatisation of MÁV Cargo. The Ministry's statement said negotiations with the winning consortium would start 'as soon as possible, so the contract might ...