Germany: 200 million state aid for interoperability
The European Commission has approved a 200 million euros scheme by the German state for the upgrade of rail vehicles in the area of Stuttgart. Financial support will take the form of direct grants to...Read more
EU’s mobility strategy: ‘rail freight traffic will double by 2050’
The European Commission announced its ‘sustainable and smart mobility strategy’ and ‘action plan’ with regards to the transformation of European transportation. Objectives concern the doubling of rail freight traffic by 2050, and the doubling of...Read more
GB Railfreight and tech startups among new HS2 contractors
Freight operator GB Railfreight (GBRf) and supplier Rail Stone Solutions (RSS) will deliver aggregates by rail to HS2’s main construction compound in the West Midlands. Here, the high-speed line consortium is building its Birmingham Curzon...Read more
Significant upgrade for East Coast Main Line
The UK government has today announced additional funding to implement real-time digital signalling on stretches of the East Coast Main Line as part of a programmed upgrade. The investment of 350 million British Pounds (388...Read more
New fibre optic connection on Dutch Betuweroute
A 135-kilometer fiber optic connection was put into operation on the Dutch Betuweroute between Rotterdam and Zevenaar last weekend. The network has more capacity than the old fiber optic connection and is now connected to...Read more
Column: Follow the Germans to be an important rail theme in 2020
In 2020, ‘Follow the Germans’ will be an important theme for the Dutch rail sector. If the Netherlands works more with Germany by harmonising the specifications of ERTMS with Germany, to convert trains to ERTMS...Read more
No extra support for ERTMS transition in the Netherlands
Rail freight carriers in the Netherlands will not be provided with an extra subsidy to convert trains to ERTMS. Dutch secretary of state Stientje van Veldhoven said that on Thursday, in response to questions from...Read more
New CEF facility created for funding ERTMS
The European Commission and the European Investment Bank have launched the new CEF Transport Blending Facility, which is a financial instrument to support projects such as ERTMS. With an initial budget of 200 million Euros...Read more
EU Parliament votes for larger transport budget
Two committees of the EU Parliament have voted in favour of an increased budget for transport in the financing period 2021-2027. The amount comes to 37.8 billion Euros, including the amounts transferred from the Cohesion...Read more
European Parliament asks for larger budget transport infrastructure
The European Parliament has called for a significantly larger budget for transport infrastructure through the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) programme. This is a European financing tool for railway projects such as the TEN-T corridors and the...Read moreDutch masterplan for rail freight should be kept on track
The measures proposed by the Dutch government to enhance rail freight volumes and create a level playing field with Germany have been discussed in Parliament yesterday. The sector handed in a petition two days earlier,...Read more
Bombardier reaches milestone ERTMS preparations Sweden
Bombardier Transportation has successfully tested the latest software of the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) Level 2 solution in Sweden. Known as Baseline 3 Release 2, the testing indicated a milestone in the preparations...Read moreCER calls for extra 10 billion to fund digitalisation in railways
The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) has called for an additional 10 billion Euros in the new CEF transport budget to support the digital transformation of rail. Without this support, the deployment...Read moreRollout ERTMS in the Netherlands costs extra billion Euros
An additional billion Euros is needed for the rollout of European Traffic Control System ERTMS in the Netherlands. These are the costs for the rollout in the time period 2030-2050, said Dutch Secretary of State...Read moreAlstom to equip entire fleet Bane NOR with ERTMS solution
Alstom has been awarded a contract by Bane NOR, the Norwegian railway authority, to equip the entire Norwegian railway fleet with ERTMS on-board train control solution. In practice, this means the manufacturer wil install the...Read moreDutch Masterplan rail freight in the making
A Dutch masterplan with measures to enhance the position of the rail freight industry is in the making, following the example of Germany, which is to implement measures this year. The ministry of Infrastructure and Water...Read more