Morocco orders high speed, inter-city and suburban trains
MOROCCO: National railway ONCF has selected three manufacturers to supply up to 168 high speed, inter-city and suburban trainsets worth up to 29bn dirhams.
DB seeks to order standardised S-Bahn fleets
GERMANY: DB Regio has called tenders for framework contracts to supply electric multiple-units to replace life-expired fleets used on S-Bahn services in the Rhein-Main, Stuttgart and München areas.
Hitachi to supply telecoms and information systems for Lisboa’s Cascais Line
PORTUGAL: Infrastructure manager Infraestruturas de Portugal has awarded Hitachi Rail and its partners SISINT and Conecticabo contracts to modernise telecoms and passenger information systems on Lisboa’s Cascais Line.
UK: The Welsh Valley Lines are going green
Development of the South Wales Metro project around Cardiff is progressing apace, and the start of electric operation marks a significant milestone in the programme, as Chris Howe explains.
Praha cross-city rail tunnel plans firm up
CZECH REPUBLIC: The Ministry of Transport has selected a preferred design option for two railway tunnels to be built under Praha with a total length of 10·6 km.
Boston operator launches battery train procurement
USA: Keolis Commuter Services has issued a request for proposals for the supply of seven battery-electric multiple-units for use on Boston’s Fairmount Line from 2028. It is also seeking proposals to finance the order under a leasing agreement.
Woojin starts production of Korail suburban EMU design
SOUTH KOREA: Woojin Industrial Systems begun production of a new design of electric multiple-unit for use by Korea Railroad Corp.
Adelaide train services return to the public sector
AUSTRALIA: The government of South Australia has taken the operation of suburban passenger train services in Adelaide back into the public sector, ending the contract with Keolis Downer. Tram operations are to follow.
Tunis suburban rail Line D opens
TUNISIA: Line D of the Tunis Réseau Ferroviaire Rapide suburban rail network was launched on January 25, with 10 000 passengers carried on the first day.
Colombia: Bogotá finally chooses rail
In the 2000s the capital of Colombia was famous for its TransMilenio bus rapid transit network, but as that became overcrowded, authorities made a decision to develop metro and tram-train routes, reports Marcelo Benoit.
Basque region looks to growth as it takes control of suburban rail services
SPAIN: Responsibility for RENFE suburban rail services around Bilbao and San Sebastián was transferred from the national government to the Euzkadi autonomous region at the start of January.
Phased integration of Manchester rail services into Bee Network confirmed
UK: Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has set out a phased approach to bring rail into the Bee Network of public transport services which is now being rolled out across the conurbation.
Seoul network keeps growing as second section of GTX-A opens
SOUTH KOREA: Further expansion of the urban rail network around Seoul is under way with another section of the Great Train Express metro network opening, a long-disused part of the suburban rail network being revived and a further extension of the legacy metro network being approved.
Refurbished Stuttgart S-Bahn trains ready to return to service
GERMANY: The first three Stuttgart S-Bahn electric multiple-units to be refurbished have been unveiled by operator DB Regio and transport authority VRS ahead of their return to passenger service in February.
Dedicated suburban services planned in three Moroccan cities
MOROCCO: ONCF is working on the development of RER-branded suburban rail networks around Rabat, Casablanca and Marrakech for launch by the end of the decade.
Daegu’s urban rail network grows
SOUTH KOREA: The urban rail network in Daegu has expanded following the opening of a cross-city suburban rail corridor and the extension of its metro.
Titagarh Firema unveils EMUs for the Lazio region
ITALY: The first of 38 electric multiple-units ordered by the Lazio region have been unveiled at Titagarh Firema’s Caserta factory.
Funding finalised for first phase of Côte d’Azur railway enhancement programme
FRANCE: Funding has been finalised for the first phase of the Ligne Nouvelle Provence d’Azur project to upgrade the busy Marseille - Nice corridor to support a 66% increase in the number of daily services.
First Montréal Charger loco delivered to Exo
CANADA: Montréal regional transport authority Exo has taken delivery of the first of 10 Charger locomotives being supplied by Siemens Mobility.
Ottawa’s O-Train starts phased reopening
CANADA: Ottawa’s O-Train reopened its extended north-south Trillium Line on January 6, with services to be ramped up over the next month.