In the European Union, the use and maintenance of rail freight wagons is regulated by two directives, one from 2006 for their use and one from 2019 for their maintenance. The Swiss Federal Office of Transport (FOT) is asking the European Railway Agency (ERA) to make a clear statement for the revision of the oldest…
Category: Policy
Russia to spend an additional trillion rubles on ‘Eastern Polygon’ lines
Russia will spend an additional one trillion rubles (10 billion euros) on the Trans-Siberian and Baikal-Amur railway lines. The extra financial injection is part of an infrastructure upgrade plan in Russia’s Far East. On 27 March, Russian Railways and the Russian transport ministry agreed on a framework for upgrades until 2035. The Russian transport ministry,…
UK logistics sector seeks rail development from next government
The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport in the UK, CILT(UK), has an eye on the forthcoming General Election. Even though the date has not yet been set, the industry body is seeking to influence the manifesto’s direction. They do so regardless of who may take power in the coming year. Three of six manifesto…
Freight targets are a floor for growth and not a ceiling, says UK report
A parliamentary launch for Rail Partners’ report ‘Freight Britain: An engine for green growth’. The document was formally introduced at the Partners’ annual reception event on the Thames-side terrace of the Houses of Parliament. The invited guests, media, and rail customers were in the company of representatives from across the political spectrum. With an election…
Rail industry lambasts DB’s largest ever track price increase programme
Deutsche Bahn’s intention to raise rail route prices in Germany has been faced with strong criticism. The planned increase would take effect from next year. It would be the largest price increase ever. Industry representatives like the German private rail association Die Güterbahnen have strongly denounced the plans. The German Bundesnetzagentur has approved the application…
Kazakhstan cancels rail freight price hikes after business dismay
Kazakhstan has cancelled Kazakh Railways’ freight price hikes. Earlier, the planned price increases led to dismay among Kazakh businesses due to worries about their competitiveness. Roman Sklyar, deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, cancelled the increase of so-called price limits for Kazakh Railways (KTZ). The price limits are used to calculate fees for transporting freight on…
EU Commission approves 180 million euros for Polish intermodal transport
The European Commission (EC) has approved 180 million euros in funding for intermodal transport in Poland. The investments will be funded from the EU’s Recovery and Resilience Facility. According to the EC, the aim of the funding is to develop intermodal transport as an alternative to road transport by increasing its competitiveness. The 180 million…
Latvian petition against manganese ore export to Russia gaining momentum
A petition to ban the export of manganese ore to Russia is picking up the pace in Latvia. The public initiative gathered a third of the required signatures for a parliamentary debate in a single week. The Latvian rail sector has suffered from sanctions on Russia, but public opinion is heavily in favour of them.…
Russia starts rail freight service through occupied Ukrainian land
Russia has launched a rail freight service through occupied Ukrainian territories. It started working on a direct rail line to Crimea over land last year. On 15 March, Russia reported that the freight route between Rostov-on-Don and Crimea started operating. According to Oleg Kalevatykh, the deputy head of ‘Novorossiya Railways’, the first train on the…