Passenger rail news – Page 75
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NewsHauts-de-France tenders regional services
FRANCE: Following a year of consultation over the competitive tendering of up to 10 groups of local rail services, the Hauts-de-France regional council formally invited expressions of interest on July 30 for three nine-year public service contracts to operate routes in Nord-Pas de Calais and Picardie.
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NewsGrand Est seeks Alsace branch concessionaire
FRANCE: Passenger trains on the Saint-Dié-des-Vosges – Épinal line are expected to resume running in 2025 under plans unveiled by the Grand Est regional authority on July 29.
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Rail Business UKStansted Express Class 745/1 trainsets enter passenger service
UK: The first two of the 10 Stadler Flirt Class 745/1 electric multiple-units ordered for Greater Anglia’s Stansted Express service entered passenger service on the route between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport on July 28. ‘This milestone marks the start of the ...
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Rail Business UKOperators unable to meet DfT ambition for full timetable from September 7
UK: Industry sources confirm that the Department for Transport has asked passenger operators to work towards a ‘near-full timetable’ from September 7 as part of the government’s plan to encourage people to start using public transport and to return to working normally. At the moment no advice ...
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NewsFinancing for 135 hybrid trainsets agreed
ITALY: The European Investment Bank agreed a €450m financing package on July 23 which will support Trenitalia’s plans to order 135 electric-diesel-battery hybrid regional multiple-units at total cost of €960m. The three-car and four-car units are to be used in regions including Calabria, Lazio, Molise, Toscana and ...
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NewsGrand Est to pilot revitalisation of France’s rural branch lines
FRANCE: The Grand Est region has invited tenders for a 22-year concession to rehabilitate, operate and maintain the Nancy – Mirecourt – Vittel – Contrexéville line in Lorraine.
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Rail Business UKBirmingham University station upgrade funding confirmed
UK: The Department of Transport announced £12m of funding for the £56m project to rebuild University station in Birmingham on July 22. It is the seventh busiest station on the West Midlands Trains network, serving the fourth largest university in the UK, nearby schools and the Queen ...
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NewsPays de la Loire launches regional rail and tram-train tenders
FRANCE: Operation of the Nantes – Châteaubriant tram-train route and regional rail services in western France is to be competitively tendered, the Pays de la Loire regional government confirmed on July 17.
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NewsPraha – Wien – Budapest train aims to undercut ‘nonsense prices’ of state operators
EUROPE: Open access operator RegioJet is to launch a twice daily Praha – Brno – Wien – Budapest service on July 31, by extending some of its existing Praha – Wien services. ‘We are coming to another route with our vision to significantly reduce the cost ...
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NewsSan Diego BiLevel order to ‘make the decision to try transit an easy one’
USA: San Diego’s North County Transit District has awarded Bombardier Transportation a $43m contract to supply a further 11 BiLevel double-deck coaches for entry into service in winter 2022-23. This will enable the Coaster commuter service to be increased to run every 30 min, and facilitate the ...
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NewsSNCB double-deckers delayed
BELGIUM: Delivery of SNCB’s double-deck Type M7 push-pull trainsets has been further delayed by the coronavirus, and will not be completed until March 2023, CEO Sophie Dutordoir has confirmed.
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NewsTalgo VI trainsets withdrawn from Amtrak Cascades service
USA: Washington State Department of Transportation has withdrawn its 1998-built Talgo VI trainsets used to operate the Amtrak Cascades services between Eugene, Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, ahead of the procurement of replacement rolling stock. Withdrawal of the Talgo VIs was recommended by the National Transportation Safety ...
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NewsDeutsche Bahn orders 320 km/h Velaro derivatives
Source: DB AG/Siemens GERMANY: Deutsche Bahn has announced an order for 30 inter-city trains able to run at 320 km/h. Chairman Dr Richard Lutz confirmed on July 15 that the operator had placed an order worth €1bn with Siemens Mobility for a derivative of the ICE3 ...
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NewsCER blueprint to increase rail’s role under EU Green Deal
EUROPE: A clear timescale for the decarbonisation of European transport and a greater role for rail are the key objectives of a ‘green mobility blueprint’ put forward by the Community of European Railway & Infrastructure Companies.
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NewsRielsfera pushes back Falbalá low-cost high speed launch dates
Source: Christophe Masse SPAIN: SNCF subsidiary Rielsfera has revealed further details of its planned Falbalá low-cost high speed services, following its submission of train path requests to ADIF Alta Velocidad. The first group of services to be introduced will link Madrid with Zaragoza, Lleida and Barcelona, with ...
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NewsIndependent operators raise night train competition concerns
EUROPE: Private open access operators RegioJet and RDC have seen higher than expected demand for the overnight services they launched this month, and Snälltåget has set out plans for expansion. However, the ALLRAIL association of independent passenger operators has expressed concern that incumbent state railways may come ...
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NewsEurostar looks to cut costs with reduced hours and part-time working
EUROPE: Eurostar is looking to reduce its payroll costs through the introduction of reduced hours and more part-time working ‘wherever possible throughout 2021’, in a move which the cross-Channel high speed operator said was intended to protect jobs at a time when ‘the impact of Covid-19 has ...
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News‘Rail comeback’ could reopen 4 000 km of closed lines
GERMANY: More than 200 closed, mothballed or freight-only lines could be reopened to serve 291 towns and a population of around 3 million people, according to proposals drawn up by the Association of German Transport Companies VDV and rail lobby group Allianz pro Schiene. The two organisations ...
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NewsLithuanian Railways launches ‘patriotic’ rebranding and international expansion drive
LITHUANIA·: National railway group Lietuvos Geležinkeliai launched a new brand identity on its 101st birthday, reflecting its recent restructuring with the formation of passenger, freight and infrastructure businesses. The full name remains Lietuvos Geležinkeliai, but with the ‘new, more patriotic’ abbreviation LTG rather than LG. ...
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NewsTrenord’s first Donizetti EMU enters service in Milano
ITALY: The first of 41 Alstom Coradia Stream electric multiple-units ordered by Lombardia regional operator Trenord entered service on the Milano – Gallarate – Luino route on July 5, with free travel offered to mark the occasion. The Trenord joint venture of ...