Dublin gives an uneven impression of the health of Ireland’s railway network. Trams, busy commuter lines, freight and long-distance express trains all compete for space around the capital’s tracks. It’s not quite the same story in the less heavily populated provinces of the republic. That, though, is something the Irish authorities have a plan to […]
Category: Policy
The Irish are going for a rail freight renaissance
Dublin gives an uneven impression of the health of Ireland’s railway network. Trams, busy commuter lines, freight and long-distance express trains all compete for space around the capital’s tracks. It’s not quite the same story in the less heavily populated provinces of the republic. That, though, is something the Irish authorities have a plan to […]
Much-desired Spanish Ruta de la Plata line relegated in TEN-T roadmap
The Transport Committee of the European Parliament has relegated the much-desired Spanish rail line Ruta de la Plata to a lower priority in its roadmap. Portugal and local Spanish authorities lobbied for the renovation of the decommissioned railway that improves connectivity along the Portuguese border. The lobbying of the Portuguese ambassador and local western Spanish […]
DB Cargo restructuring: massive job cuts or not?
DB Cargo is attempting to improve its loss-making performance, and plans entail restructuring the company’s business. In doing so, Europe’s largest freight operator aims to outsource a large part of operations to other companies, some of them DB subsidiaries. This process will open the way for DB to focus closely on the remaining operations by […]
UK Draft Rail Reform Bill published to mixed reaction
The 32-page draft Rail Reform Bill very much escaped, rather than launched, on Tuesday, 20 February. On what editors would call “a busy news day”, the procedural legislative launch of a pre-legislative document was somewhat shunted off the front pages. However, the placing before Parliament of a singularly significant set of proposals was eagerly scrutinised […]
European Parliament clears path for revised TEN-T guidelines
In a significant move towards modernising Europe’s transportation infrastructure, the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee has embraced the compromise text on the Revision of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) Guidelines. This milestone sets the stage for adoption by the European Parliament Plenary ahead of the upcoming European Parliament elections, followed by anticipated approval by […]
Manifesto for Rail to be keynote at George Bradshaw Address
Prioritise getting freight off roads and onto rail is the unsurprising manifesto pledge from Rail Partners, the influential policy and lobby group, representing operators in the freight and passenger sectors in the UK rail industry. They have published a new document, “Manifesto for Rail – A five-point plan to create a thriving railway”. The manifesto […]
Kazakhstan calls for Kazakh Railways reform after frequent rail fee hikes
The parliament of Kazakhstan wants to reform its national rail operator Kazakh Railways (KTZ). The parliament filed a request to remove infrastructure management from the company’s competencies and to increase procedural and strategic transparency. The request follows years of rail fee hikes that raise concern about the country’s competitiveness. As rail freight increasingly transits Kazakhstan […]