BERN, Switzerland — The Swiss Federal Railways plans to begin operating 31 passenger trains through the Gotthard Base Tunnel on weekends beginning in December, while increasing freight movements during the week, the national rail operator — known by its German initials, SBB — said in an updated plan for operations through the damaged tunnel announced […]
CALGARY — Canadian Pacific Kansas City says it has agreed to study passenger service on part of its freight network in Mexico, and is reviewing a draft decree by the Mexican government regarding passenger train operations. Reuters reports that companies holding Mexicos’s freight rail concessions — including CPKC de Mexico and Grupo Mexico’s Ferromex, in […]
KIEL, Germany — The first of what will be multiple fleets of new battery-electric multiple-unit, or BEMU, trainsets have entered passenger service in northern Germany. The Stadler-built, two-car FLIRT trains debuted two weeks ago. They are designed to replace diesel multiple units and operate as regular electric trains when running on electrified lines. Each of […]
SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, France — Alstom, the world’s second-largest rail rolling stock manufacturer is seeking to sell up to 1 billion euros in assets (about $1.09 billion) and cut 1,500 jobs as it faces a negative cash flow and a massive drop in stock value, Reuters reports. The company is also considering a capital increase. The company, […]
RIO NEGRO, Argentina — Four tourists were reported to have been injured — including a British passenger who is now described as “fighting for his life” — when a remote narrow-gauge, steam-powered heritage passenger train derailed Saturday in Argentina’s Patagonia region. The train was operating on the 750mm (2-foot, 5½-inch) gauge La Trochita Railway, which […]
LONDON — Plans to close almost every ticket counter at English railway stations have been dropped after public consultation rejected the proposals. In an unusual success for citizen participation, over 750,000 people responded to the public consultation — a record for any public consultation in England, not just one related to the rail industry. About […]
BERN, Switzerland — The Gotthard Base Tunnel will not fully reopen to passenger and freight traffic until September 2024, Swiss Federal Railways announced today (Thursday, Nov. 2), saying ongoing repairs from an Aug. 10 derailment in the tunnel have found much more severe damage than initially believed. The Aug. 10 incident caused damage for more […]
ERIE, Pa. —Wabtec and Australian mining firm Roy Hill have unveiled world’s first 100% battery-powered, heavy-haul locomotive for mainline service in ceremonies today (Oct. 31, 2023) at Wabtec’s Erie manufacturing facility. The FLXdrive locomotive contains 72 lithium-ion modular battery packs with a total of 36,288 cells, giving the locomotive an energy capacity of 7 megawatt-hours. […]
Irish national rail company Iarnród Éireann (IÉ) has announced plans to convert one of its EMD-built locomotives to burn hydrogen instead of diesel fuel. IÉ is working in partnership with Latvian rail engineering firm DIGAS to test the use of a hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engine in an existing Class 071 diesel freight locomotive. Since earlier […]
LONDON — Virgin Group has come out on top in its legal battle over Brightline Holdings LLC in a United Kingdom court judgment. This comes after a $115 million [originally reported to be $250 million] lawsuit was filed by Virgin over the Brightline’s exit from its 20-year partnership in the Virgin Trains USA branding that […]
PINHAIS, Brazil — Progress Rail has delivered two hybrid EMD GT38H locomotives to Rumo, Brazil’s largest railway operator, which will become the first hybrids in revenue freight service. The locomotives include both a diesel-electric system and battery packs, drawing energy to power the traction motors from the diesel generator and the bank of batteries. Rumo […]
JAKARTA, Indonesia — Passenger service commenced for Indonesia’s first high speed rail service on Oct. 2, 2023. The 140-kilometer (87-mile) route connects Jakarta and Bandung, the country’s capital and a popular tourist destination, respectively. The Nikkei Asia reports that the new eight-car WHOOSH train — an acronym for “Waktu Hemat, Operasi Optimal, Sistem Hebat,” meaning […]
