Category: Rail freight

KTZ temporarily bans agricultural exports to China after border overload

Kazakh Railways (KTZ) has temporarily banned the export of agricultural goods via rail to China. KTZ explains the ban by referring to overloaded border crossings. At the Dostyk and Khorgos border crossings, 180 and 100 covered goods wagons respectively are waiting to be processed. According to KTZ, the Chinese railways do not unload the wagons…

Maritime appointed rail freight operator at forthcoming West Midlands Interchange

The UK multimodal freight carrier Maritime Transport has been appointed rail freight operator at the West Midlands Interchange. The government-designated strategic rail freight interchange (SRFI) is currently under construction at a site north of Wolverhampton. The developers of the logistics park, Oxford Properties Group and partner developer Logistics Capital Partners, have announced an exclusive agreement…

Bridge in Russia collapses onto rail tracks: Traffic restored in a day

A road bridge in Russia has collapsed onto rail tracks. The debris of the bridge blocked the main rail line between Russia and Belarus. While the consequences for train traffic were initially unclear, traffic on the rail line resumed in about a day. The Paninsky bridge in the Russian town of Vyazma collapsed onto rail…

European rail a mixed bag: Polish PKP Cargo profits while others struggle

Rail freight operators in Europe are performing very differently. Big names such as DB Cargo and Lineas are in trouble, but in Poland, the annual figures were an invitation to uncork the champagne bottle. Despite the call for more sustainability in logistics and transport, freight transport by rail is not always an attractive modality for…

Operail CEO refutes media accusations: “Operail Finland sold at fair price”

The CEO of Operail, Merle Kurvits, has responded to media attention for Operail Finland’s sale. Estonian media recently said Operail Finland’s sale was a 12 million euro “gift” to the Finnish rail industry. Kurvits refutes the accusations of underselling, saying that Operail sold the subsidiary at a fair price. Operail sold its subsidiary Operail Finland…

Poland to invest over a billion euros in Silesia rail infrastructure

The Polish rail Infrastructure Manager PKP PLK will invest over a billion euros in rail infrastructure. The operator signed contracts for rail upgrades in the country’s southern region of Silesia. With the investments, Poland hopes to reduce traffic congestion and improve connectivity on TEN-T corridors. PKP PLK signed two contracts with a value of over…

Freightliner chief says get costs down for sake of environment

Tim Shoveller, the chief executive of Genesee and Wyoming UK and Europe, less tongue twistingly branded as Freightliner, has bemoaned the rising cost of operating rail freight in the face of environmental issues. On the first anniversary of his appointment, the former Network Rail boss has called out the widening gap between the costs of…

North-South Europe fresh produce train may start trial in late 2024

A new rail freight route carrying fresh produce will start a pilot in late 2024. On a weekly basis, a train will make a return trip between Oslo and Valencia. The train will save time and emissions, but faces bureaucratic hurdles. Frederik Zevenbergen, a representative of the Dutch province of Zuid-Holland, presented the plan at…

Ukrainian Railways is planning to launch 18 new European routes

Ukrainian Railways is planning to launch 18 new routes to European countries. Additionally, the company will seek to restore and build new multimodal container terminals throughout Ukraine. The company’s board chairman, Yevhen Lyashchenko, made the announcement during a briefing in early April. Ukrainian Railways will present the routes in September 2024. Lyashchenko states that the…