Passenger rail news – Page 4
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NewsVR to divest infrastructure assets to facilitate Finnish rail competition
FINLAND: ‘Our strategy focuses on profitability, growth and creating a values-based VR culture’, VR Group CEO Elisa Markula said when she the presented the national operator’s H1 2024 results on August 16 and set out plans to divest some assets to facilitate competition. With the opening ...
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Rail Business UKLNER withdraws flexible off peak fares from more stations
UK: LNER’s pilot scheme withdrawing flexible Off-Peak and Super Off-Peak fares is to be expanded to cover journeys between London and more than 20 stations around and between Newcastle, Berwick-upon-Tweed and Edinburgh from September 30. In January, the nationalised operator launched a two-year ‘Simpler Fares’ trial ...
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Rail Business UKAll-day off-peak fare trial fails to achieve modal shift goals
UK: A pilot scheme which removed peak fares on ScotRail services in favour of offering cheaper off-peak fares all day is to end, after analysis found only ‘a limited degree of success’ in achieving modal shift from cars The Scottish government spent £40m subsidising the ScotRail ...
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NewsBilingual station signs installed in Austria
AUSTRIA: Austria Federal Railways has begun installing bilingual signs at stations in communities that are legally defined as bilingual. The first such signs were installed at St Michael ob Bleiburg/Šmihel pri Pliberku station. Four stations in the Land of Kärnten are to get signs in Slovenian, ...
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NewsBrussels – Venezia night train to serve winter sports and city break destinations
EUROPE: Open access night train operator European Sleeper is to launch a seasonal Brussels – Utrecht – Köln – München – Innsbruck – Verona – Venezia service to winter sports and city trip destinations. The service is being planned around school holidays, the peak winter sports ...
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Rail Business UKViewpoint: the fare evasion prosecution scandal explained
UK: Nathan Seymour-Hyde, Partner and Solicitor at Reeds Solicitors, explains how train operators misused the Single Justice Procedure and why up to 75 000 convictions for fare evasion offences have now been quashed.
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NewsTunisia to Algeria passenger train services restart
AFRICA: Passenger train services from the Tunisian capital to Annaba in Algeria have restarted almost 30 years after being suspended. The first train left Tunis on August 11. Tunisia’s SNCFT will initially operate services from Tunis on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, returning from Annaba on Tuesdays, ...
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Metro Report InternationalVirtual Reality for Inclusion initiative helps people to use public transport with confidence
BRAZIL: Virtual reality is being used to help people with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorder develop the skills to use public transport confidently and autonomously. The Virtual Reality for Inclusion initiative is hosted at the headquarters of the Jô Clemente Institute in the Vila Clementino ...
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NewsMBTA orders double-deck coaches
USA: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has ordered a further 41 Hyundai Rotem double-deck coaches for use on Boston commuter services. The firm order signed on August 14 has been placed using an option on a 2019 order for 83 cars, of which 76 have been now ...
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NewsFunding deal secures future of Nice – Digne line
FRANCE: A fleet of eight diesel-battery bi-mode trains, renovated stations, better reliability and easier ticketing have been promised under a modernisation programme agreed for the 1 000 mm gauge Nice – Digne line operated by Chemins de Fer de Provence.
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Rail Business UKCrossCountry Voyager refurbishment contract awarded
UK: Leasing company Beacon Rail has formally awarded Alstom a £60m contract to refurbish CrossCountry’s fleet of Voyager and Super Voyager 200 km/h inter-city diesel-electric multiple-units. The work will include an interior refresh with replacement seats, tables and carpets, improved lighting, a passenger counting system and ...
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NewsPorsche SE invests in train and coach company Flix
GERMANY: Porsche Automobil Holding is to invest ‘a low double-digit million amount’ in international train and coach company Flix as part of a co-investment with the EQT Future fund. EQT together with Porsche SE, Kühne Holding and co-investors are to acquire a stake of around 35% ...
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NewsLiechtenstein railway modernisation project launched
LIECHTENSTEIN: A €100m project has been launched to modernise the 18·5 km single track railway running through Liechtenstein from Feldkirch in Austria to Buchs in Switzerland.
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Rail Business UKInterview: Chiltern Railways is ‘focused on what we can control’
UK: As the rail sector braces itself for major institutional change, Chiltern Railways Managing Director Richard Allan is keen to deliver tangible improvements now. Key investment priorities include decarbonising its rolling stock fleet. Tony Miles posed the questions.
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NewsCaltrain launches electric passenger service
USA: Californian commuter train operator Caltrain celebrated the start of 25 kV 60 Hz electrified services with an inaugural train carrying invited guests from San Francisco on August 10. Public services began the following day. More electric trains will be added ahead of the start of ...
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NewsTanzanian electric train service reaches Dodoma
TANZANIA: The 258·2 km Morogoro – Dodoma standard gauge line was handed over with a ceremony on July 25 and the first electric passenger train service ran on August 1 with President Samia Suluhu Hassan onboard. The 201·8 km standard gauge line from Dar es Salaam ...
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NewsDanish local railway operator selects battery train supplier
DENMARK: Local railway operator Lokaltog has selected its preferred bidder for a contract to supply 14 battery trainsets for use in the Sjælland region, with options for 10 more. The tender published in November 2023 attracted bids from CAF, Siemens Mobility and Stadler Bussnang. Lokaltog decided ...
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NewsTesla shuttle returns with battery trains
GERMANY: The free shuttle train to Tesla’s Gigafactory plant in Grünheide to the east of Berlin restarted on August 7, using two Siemens Mobility Mireo B battery-electric multiple-units instead of a pair of Bombardier Transportation Talent diesels.
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NewsBattery-electric trains to be ordered for Boston commuter line
USA: The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority board has approved a proposal to replace diesel locomotive-hauled trains on Boston’s Fairmount Commuter Rail Line with battery-electric multiple-units. An onboard battery would be charged when overhead electrification is available, including at Boston’s South station. The 15 km line from ...
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Rail Business UKMore focus on passenger welfare is needed when trains are stranded
UK: The rail industry’s plans for dealing with trains stranded between stations need greater focus on passenger experience and welfare, according to a report commissioned by regulator the Office of Rail & Road and watchdog Transport Focus. The report produced by consultancy Steer examined four incidents ...