Passenger rail news – Page 76
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NewsAgreements signed to allow direct Amsterdam – London trains
EUROPE: Eurostar is set to launch direct services between Amsterdam and London later this year, following the signing on July 7 of four-country agreements covering the legal and security arrangements. A date for the start of through services has not yet been finalised, the high speed train ...
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Rail Business UKFranchise support to be extended by 18 months
UK: The government is preparing for a further 18 months of financial support for passenger train operators once the existing Emergency Measures Agreements expire on September 20, industry insiders have confirmed. A formal decision is expected to be announced by Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps ...
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NewsSecond-hand inter-city coaches arrive in Portugal as CP looks to bolster fleet
Photo: José Carlos Barbosa PORTUGAL: National operator CP has completed the purchase of 51 hauled coaches from Spanish counterpart RENFE as part of its efforts to mitigate an acute shortage of rolling stock. Initial negotiations started in February, when CP anticipated buying only 16 vehicles for ...
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NewsFrench regulators formalise co-operation ahead of market opening
FRANCE: National transport regulator ART and rail safety authority EPSF have agreed to strengthen their co-operation in preparation for opening up of the domestic rail market to competition, the two organisations announced on July 7.
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Rail Business UKSnowdon Mountain Railway takes delivery of diesel-battery locomotives
UK: The Snowdon Mountain Railway has taken delivery of two 800 mm gauge diesel-battery hybrid Abt rack locomotives ordered last year from Clayton Equipment, which specialises in the production of bespoke designs for specialist railway, metro, mining and tunnelling applications. Thanks to the hybrid drive, the ...
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NewsIndian Railways invites bids to run private passenger trains
INDIA: Confirming its intention to work with private operators to address a shortfall in passenger capacity, the Indian Railway Board issued requests for qualification on July 1 for 35-year concessions to operate private trains on the national network from 2023. IR currently operates around 13 500 ...
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Metro Report InternationalElectro-diesel tram-train order expanded to support service increase
HUNGARY: National passenger operator MÁV-Start has exercised an option for Stadler’s Valencia plant to supply a further four Citylink electro-diesel tram-trains for the route being developed to link Hódmezővásárhely with Szeged. The country’s first tram-train project aims to provide a high-quality service for daily commuters between the ...
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Rail Business UKNine factors to consider when designing future stations
UK: Design Council has published ThinkStation, a report which was commissioned by Network Rail to provide a framework for the future design of ‘local’ stations. These are defined as Network Rail categories D, E and F, the smaller stations which make up around 80% of the total. ...
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NewsRegioJet launches train to Croatia so ‘everyone can afford a holiday’
EUROPE: Czech open access operator RegioJet’s first overnight train from Praha to Rijeka arrived in the Croatian port city on July 1. The seasonal service is to run three times a week until July 11, daily until the end of August, and then thrice weekly until ...
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NewsChinese network expands again ahead of national timetable change
CHINA: A series of new line openings has driven an increase in services across the country with the introduction of a new national timetable on July 1. The 143 km Shanghai – Nantong line has been designed for 200 km/h operation and includes a 1 092 m ...
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NewsTrains replace planes on Wien – Salzburg route
AUSTRIA: Inter-city rail travel will replace domestic flights between Wien and Salzburg, Austrian Airlines announced on July 2.
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NewsSeries N700S enters service on Tokaido Shinkansen
JAPAN: Central Japan Railway officially launched its first Series N700S high speed trains into revenue service on the Tokaido Shinkansen with a ceremony at Tokyo station on July 1.
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Rail Business UKCrowdsourcing train loadings to support social distancing
Trainline UK: Independent ticket retailer Trainline has launched a function on its app which is designed to help passengers alert other people if they find that it is not possible to socially distance in particular areas of specific trains. Passengers using the Crowd Alerts ...
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Rail Business UK‘Now is the right moment to act’ Grand Central says as it announces restart date
UK: ‘We’ve tracked our path forward, we believe now is the right moment to act, for our passengers, our staff and for the business’, Grand Central Managing Director Richard McClean told Rail Business UK on July 1 when the company announced plans for a ‘measured’ restart of ...
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NewsMelbourne – Adelaide Overland to return
AUSTRALIA: The Victoria state government has agreed to provide A$3·8m/year to ensure the continued operation of The Overland passenger train between Melbourne and Adelaide for the next three years. Around 200 000 passengers/year use the twice-weekly daytime service, which takes 10½ h to cover the 828 km ...
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NewsGerman government commits to rail at national summit
GERMANY: The federal government underlined its commitment to investment in the rail sector to enable a significant increase in market share during a Rail Summit hosted by the Federal Ministry of Transport & Digital Infrastructure in Berlin on June 30.
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NewsRENFE picks CAF to renew narrow gauge fleet
SPAIN: The RENFE board has selected CAF to supply 37 metre-gauge trains for its former FEVE routes under a contract worth €258m. Photo: Carmelo Zaita Among recent CAF designs for Spanish narrow gauge lines are these metre-gauge Series 950 EMUs operated by Euskotren. The contract announced ...
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Rail Business UKTOC owning groups consider exit strategies as Shapps outlines reform thinking
UK: Several owning groups holding passenger franchises are understood to be considering their future in the light of emerging government thinking about future industry structures and concession models.
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Rail Business UKLNER to operate InterCity East Coast services for a further three years
Photo: Tony Miles UK: The Department for Transport announced on June 26 that LNER would continue to operate InterCity East Coast services from London to Leeds and Edinburgh for a further three years from June 28, with an option for a further extension. Owned and managed by ...
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NewsAir ticket specialist expands rail portfolio
The agreement gives travel agents access to more European rail operators, including Italo. EUROPE: AERTiCKET, Europe’s largest air ticket wholesaler, has agreed a partnership with travel software specialist Amadeus to grow its share of the rail ticketing market. The wholesaler will now have access to the Amadeus ...