spanish private operators on the rise Captrain and Medway continue to gain ground on Renfe Mercancias

The rail freight market in Spain is seeing a stronger presence of private operators, especially Captrain España and Medway, a subsidiary of MSC. Over the…
intermodal flows Freightliner expansion connects London Tilbury with Manchester

UK operator Freightliner has launched a new Tilbury to Manchester intermodal service. The first train ran from London on Monday, 30 September. Freightliner say the…
new services Budapest to get two new rail freight connections

Two rail freight services serving the Hungarian capital Budapest, both suitable for the transportation of non-cranable semi-trailers, are being introduced over the next few months.…
flood aftermath Recovery from floods in Austria is going ‘better than expected’

Dealing with the impact of the floods that recently hit Austria on the railways is going better than expected, rail freight operator Rail Cargo Group…
Into mountainous Central Asia CKU line construction to kick off this month

Construction works on the China – Kyrgyzstan – Uzbekistan line are supposed to start this month. For that purpose, the joint venture of the three…
Expected downturn PKP Cargo sees financial performance drop massively in first half year

The financial performance of PKP Cargo has taken an expected turn for the worse in the first half of 2024. The Polish state rail freight…
digitilisation Digitalising rail freight with RailCube

Digitisation and digitalisation are two of the most used words when discussing the future of rail freight. RailCube, a software company based in Rotterdam, provides…
cross-border incentives LFP Perthus to decrease tolls for freight trains by 90%

LFP Perthus, the Catalonia-based operator of the Figueras-Perpignan railway line, passing through the Perthus Tunnel between Spain and France, is to decrease tolls for all…
Private sector surges Private operators gain ground on German market, sector overall loses to trucks

Private operators in Germany have expanded their share of the rail freight market. In 2023, they walked away with 61 per cent of the total…

Business

TERMINAL OPTIMISATION Tideworks gears up for European rail market expansion

As the rail freight market in mainland Europe grows, Tideworks is readying itself to make its presence felt. During an exclusive interview, Todd Tatterson, vice…
Establishment of Carpatica Feroviar Romania’s controversial plan to save state rail freight

CFR Marfă, Romania’s state-owned rail freight operator, will soon be liquidated following bankruptcy. In its place will now come a new state-owned operator by the…
Volume statistics Latvian rail freight continues trend of 25% volume drop

Rail freight in Latvia is continuing on its downward path. During the first nine months of 2024, the country recorded a drop of 25,5 per…
onto the next step Deloitte to do due diligence in Renfe-MSC deal

The Spanish national rail freight operator Renfe Mercancias has chosen Deloitte to carry out the due diligence on Medway. MSC’s subsidiary will be taking over…
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In Depth

optimistic predictions Survey of French shippers highlights strong growth potential of rail freight

A major study of the development of rail freight in the industrial and agricultural sectors in France has concluded that there is the potential for…
Establishment of Carpatica Feroviar Romania’s controversial plan to save state rail freight

CFR Marfă, Romania’s state-owned rail freight operator, will soon be liquidated following bankruptcy. In its place will now come a new state-owned operator by the…
big changes ahead? ‘Block train and single wagonload businesses in Switzerland need to be separate’

Rail freight in Switzerland is currently undergoing a total revision of the Freight Transport Act, which was recently adopted by the country’s Council of States.…
Asia-EUrope statistics Silk Road volumes via Małaszewicze reach highest point in four years

The upward development of Silk Road traffic and volumes transiting via Kazakh, Russian and Belarusian rail infrastructure is also confirmed by numbers. Statistics made available…
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Asia-Europe

Two containers on a single wagon Kazakhstan tests double-stack container load

Kazakh Railways (KTZ) has tested a service with a double-stack container load. Its freight subsidiary KTZ Express cooperated with wagon manufacturer Ziksto (ЗИКСТО) to make…
Transcontinental cooperation Romania and Kazakhstan deepen rail logistics cooperation

Two Romanian logistics companies and Kazakh Railways (KTZ) are strengthening their cooperation for rail logistics. KTZ’s freight logistics subsidiary KTZ Express signed a memorandum of…
Updated Kazakh-Chinese border: total blockade or business as usual?

The rail border crossings between Kazakhstan and China have made the news at various points throughout the year. For example, in spring, Kazakhstan stopped grain…
Coal from Donbass Russia may already be exporting Ukrainian coal on the INSTC

The Russian mining company “Don Coal” is planning to export coal from occupied Ukrainian territories in October. The coal is reportedly destined for countries such…
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Intermodal

road to rail Rail boosted by Southampton modal shift programme

The modal shift incentive at the Port of Southampton has contributed to improvements in intermodal cargo handling numbers. The operators of the Solent Rail Terminal…
Biggest UK port expansion New rail freight terminal for London Gateway

The fast-growing London Gateway container terminal has just gone into overdrive with a massive one billion pound investment programme. The owners, DP World, have given…
shift to rail New service brings the port of Venice closer to the Benelux

The port of Venice, in northeastern Italy, launched a new rail freight connection for steel and metal products to Montirone, near Brescia. With this new…
shift to rail French quarry group Carrières de l’Ouest inaugurates new terminal near Paris

Cinérites Transport & Logistique (CTL), freight forwarding arm of French quarry operator, Carrières de l’Ouest, has officially inaugurated a multi-modal freight terminal at the inland…
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Policy

subsidy dilemma Italy opens application for this year’s subsidies, but still hasn’t paid last year’s

The Italian Ministry of Transport has opened applications for the 2024/25 Ferrobonus incentive, one of the main measures to support the country’s rail freight sector.…
bye bye billions? Is the French 100-billion-plan for rail in jeopardy?

A French State programme to invest 100 billion euros in rail transport up until 2040 could hit the buffers as a consequence of State budgetary…
file: greening freight package Capacity Management Regulation might be approved this spring

The management of rail capacity across the European Union is in dire need of changing, especially if the mission is to boost international rail freight…
EVG vs non-federal rail Collective wage negotiations are again on German rail’s agenda

After some time of relative calm, a new round of collective labour bargaining is again on German rail’s doorstep. The country’s largest trade union, EVG,…
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Technology

Two containers on a single wagon Kazakhstan tests double-stack container load

Kazakh Railways (KTZ) has tested a service with a double-stack container load. Its freight subsidiary KTZ Express cooperated with wagon manufacturer Ziksto (ЗИКСТО) to make…
memorandum of understanding Nevomo continues international expansion with Etihad Rail partnership

Nevomo, a tech company developing magnetic levitation concepts for rail freight, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Etihad Rail. The Poland-based company will explore the…
digitalisation Azerbaijan Railways boosts safety and digitalisation of local railway system

Within this framework, on 4 October, an executive of Azerbaijan Railways (ADY) attended the 5th Eurasian Forum on Transport Safety and Digitalization, held in Almaty…
Digital Automatic Coupling ‘Let’s go for DAC, but not now’ as costs for rail freight mount

Pushing ahead with the implementation of Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) would be like “shooting ourselves in the foot”, warn Czech and Slovak rail associations ŽESNAD…
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Infrastructure

Port infrastructure Polish Port of Gdynia welcomes big rail expansion

The Polish Gdynia port has had its rail infrastructure renovated and expanded, increasing its capacity fivefold. Among other things, the port can now handle 740-metre…
ten-t mediterranean corridor ‘Catalunya will be fully equipped with standard gauge in two or three years’

The difference in railway gauges between the Iberian peninsula and the rest of Europe remains a significant bottleneck for international rail freight services. However, it…
Gulf railway After securing 1,5 billions in funding, Hafeet Rail now signs contract for new freight locomotives

The Omani-Emirati joint venture Hafeet Rail is purchasing 27 new heavy-haul freight locomotives from Progress Rail. The deal now comes after the joint venture secured…
Dutch challenge as Germany works Crucial Dutch Betuwe line closed: 60 of the 80 weeks will be ‘usual busy days’

Next month, the 80-week Betuwe line works will officially start. DB InfraGO will be building a third track between Emmerich and Oberhausen, near the border…
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