Deutsche Bahn Group will lay off 30,000 of its staff, nearly 10 per cent of its total employees, Reuters reported on Thursday, after Germany’s state-owned carrier announced almost ..read more

France’s high-speed rail network TGV has been hit by significant disruptions due to “malicious acts,” including arson attacks, just hours before the Paris Olympics opening ceremony, according to ..read more

French rail manufacturer Alstom has secured its largest German contract to date with a €4 billion order to transform the S-Bahn Cologne network with 90 new commuter trains ..read more

Polish president Andrzej Duda has reportedly threatened to effectively close the Malaszewicze rail border crossing with Belarus. The crossing is key to China’s overland exports to Europe. By ..read more

Leaders in rail safety technology, Tended and Dual Inventive, have announced a new partnership focused on bringing geofencing technology to the Netherlands to support the drive within the Dutch rail industry to improve safety and efficiency. The Netherlands has a dense rail network accommodating a multitude of passenger and freight trains. The challenges of climate change and increasing staff shortages put growing pressure on the entire rail system, impacting track worker safety. ProRail (the Dutch equivalent of the UK’s Network Rail), faces the challenge of addressing these issues to ensure t ..read more

Opened in the 1980s and is set to expand in the 2020s. Salford Crescent station in Greater Manchester is not the biggest station in the region, but it is among the busiest, and getting busier. Now, the station is set to add a platform and take a leading role in the regeneration of the entire city centre. It may only be an extra platform, but it is set to unlock the potential for the station to be a radical new travel hub. The growth of education, innovation and recreation, along with a huge programme of residential, retail and commercial property is poised to catapult Salford Crescent into the ..read more

Strikes on Britain’s railways are reaching the beginning of the end. There is optimism that the industry’s longest-ever dispute could soon be resolved. Representatives of the train drivers’ union ASLEF have agreed to a face-to-face meeting with government officials. This is a radical shift in relations. Previously the unions have been aggrieved that only a negotiating party from the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) was prepared to meet with them. The change of government at the recent general election seems to have gained a vote of confidence with the union. Industrial relations problems have beset B ..read more

Following the appointment of Lord Peter Hendy as Minister of State at the Department for Transport, Network Rail’s senior non-executive director, Mike Putnam, has been appointed as acting chair. Mike joined the Board of Network Rail in 2018 and has over 25 years of executive experience across the development, construction and services sectors, and successfully delivered high-profile projects. The new acting chair of Network Rail, Mike Putnam, was president and chief executive officer of the civil engineering consortium Skanska UK plc until May 2017. Mike is a chartered engineer and a fellow of ..read more

German company Vossloh has expanded its presence in France. with the takeover of France Aiguillages Services. The Werdohl-based global rail technology has acquired a significant contributor to the rail services effort in France. France Aiguillages Services (FAS), based in Bertrichamps, eastern France, will be assimilated into Vossloh’s ability to maintain and inspect switches and signalling systems. The main beneficiary will be the existing major client of FAS, the French state-owned railway company, SNCF. FAS is already well-known for its extensive railway engineering expertise. The company p ..read more

The “company train” was supposed to offer an alternative to the company car. That’s the view according to Alain Krakovitch, the Managing Director of TGV-Intercités, the fastest trains on the French network. He holds the subject close to his heart. He questioned the likelihood of that ever becoming the case, in a meeting on the sidelines of the Entreprises du Voyage congress at the end of June. There are currently 2.8 million company cars in France. A figure that Alain Krakovitch described as “monstrous”. The TGV senior manager says that is unacceptable, and the tax breaks, which can amount to ..read more