No more transit of sanctioned goods in Turkey, for now
Turkish customs authorities are reported to have put a sudden stop to the transit transport of sanctioned goods to Russia and Belarus. Cargo that is sanctioned by the EU can no longer be shipped through...Read more
LTG’s tighter rules against smuggling pay off, tens of wagons seized
LTG Cargo seized 30 wagons loaded with products from Lukoil, a Russian energy company. The cargo was captured before it entered the Russian exclave Kaliningrad. Since last week, the Lithuanian company has been enforcing stricter...Read more
German rail expansion plan will take decades, not years, says government
The German rail industry is quite upset with the recent comments made by representatives of the Federal Government regarding the Deutschlandtakt and its timetable. The German Federal Commissioner for Rail Transport Michael Theurer was quoted...Read more
Big changes ahead for railway rolling stock identification
InterviewAn international registry for easier rolling stock identification may be up and running before the end of the year. This public registry would assign a Unique Rail Vehicle Identification System (URVIS) identifier, a unique 16-digit...Read more
New package of EU sanctions on Russia: what is the impact?
On February 25, the European Union issued the 10th package of sanctions against Russia. What could possible impact rail freight between China and Europe is the prohibition to transit dual-use goods and firearms via the...Read more
Poland gets the stones to build: 24.2 billion of EU funds in sight
Poland has welcomed a new round of EU funds that could possibly finance its ambitious road and railways projects. On Wednesday 2 March, the new financial perspective of EU funds was officially inaugurated. Poland has...Read more
Will Ukrainian grain get stuck in Poland?
Transporting Ukrainian agricultural products, especially grain, via Poland may become significantly more difficult in 2023. The export of grain from Ukraine to Poland via the Izov-Hrubieszów rail border crossing has been prohibited since 27 February,...Read more
Rail should be included in Commission’s Green Deal Industrial Plan, says CER
The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) is asking for the inclusion of the rail industry in the Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age (GDIP), the EU’s new plan to reach...Read more
Official: Germany pumps 1,1 billion to cover rail electricity bills
With the EU’s approval, Germany will pour 1,1 billion euros into its rail sector to alleviate it from the skyrocketing electricity traction prices. The German government decided to act against the increased energy costs in...Read more
Bahrain wants in on the INSTC
The Kingdom of Bahrain signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Turkmenistan to become part of the International North-South Transport Corridor. Turkmenistan Railways and Bahrain’s Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunication have agreed to connect the two...Read more
Is France giving up on this border crossing with Spain?
France might not participate in the financing for the modernisation of the Pau-Canfranc-Zaragoza railway, one of the lines crossing the France-Spain border, closed since 1970. No budget was allocated for this project in a leaked...Read more
Switzerland: running trains in the EU might become an issue
Running trains in the European Union might become problematic for Switzerland. The authorisation procedure that allowed Swiss companies to run trains in all EU member states will in fact expire at the end of 2023...Read more
Swiss single wagonload support: ‘yes, but…’, says rail sector
The Swiss Federal Council’s scheme to grow rail freight is currently in consultation until 24 February. The plan focuses on two variants: either supporting single wagonload or opening competition with road transport. So far, Swiss...Read more
Road or rail investments? German rail associations think this debate has gone too far
A political debate in Germany on whether investments should target the construction of freeways or railways has been taking place since 26 January. Parliament party FDP represented by the German federal transport minister Volker Wissing...Read more
Single wagon traffic vs block trains: financial support should not be a vicious circle
As many states are already supporting or planning to adopt supportive measures for single wagon traffic, the European Rail Freight Association (ERFA) draws attention to the possibly distorting side effects that such practice could have...Read more
‘A train path is a commitment, and when not used it should be returned’
When a train path is missed or cancelled, it is lost. This is the reality railway undertakings and infrastructure managers face regularly, and that is a shame when considering that the available capacity on the...Read more
Spanish association not happy with government’s rail freight strategy
The Spanish government published its Indicative Strategy for developing, maintaining, and renovating the railway infrastructure in December. However, the European Alliance Association for the development of Railway Corridors pointed out a series of deficiencies concerning...Read more
What if both sides are right? The case of duties on Ukrainian exports
ANALYSISThe Ukrainian Agrarian Council (UAC) appealed to the European Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, requesting the continuation of the duty-free regime applied to Ukrainian agricultural produce exports. The appeal came as a response...Read more
Hungary submits railway plans for EU funding, crucial projects are missing
The Hungarian government submitted a funding request to EU’s Connecting Europe Facility 2 for several domestic railway projects. Although some of the railway schemes included in the proposal are relevant for rail freight development in...Read more