The critical issue of un-unified European railways
OpinionThe objective which should unite the European railways is to break the chains of national rules, which keep railways essentially locked in their home countries.Read more
Agreement with SNCF sets timeline to open French Intercity’s to competition
A new agreement for the operation of French TET Intercity trains has been signed by SNCF Voyageurs and the French Transport Ministry. The gradual opening up of the TET lines to competition is also set...Read more
FlixTrain: a change of strategy?
AnalysisThings are moving fast for the privately owned Munich-based firm FlixMobility, which has been running FlixTrains since 2017. The acquisition of the American bus icon Greyhound in 2021 has shown a change in strategy for...Read more
Delayed arrival of new operators Madrid-Andalusia: the link to old signalling
The arrival of new competitors in Spain between Madrid and Córdoba and Málaga in the southern region of Andalusia will not be this summer, and probably not this year, as planned. The delay in operating...Read more
ILSA gains third shareholder with Globalvia and plans to compete for Galicia
New Spanish railway operator ILSA has gained a third shareholder next to Trenitalia and Air Nostrum with infrastructure investment group Globalvia, the Expansión daily reported on Tuesday. The company also announced that it aims to...Read more
SNCF sets out goal: 200 million TGV InOui passengers by 2030
The French state railways SNCF has set its ambition to reach 200 million passengers on their TGV InOui high-speed trains by the year 2030, the company announced at the start of a new campaign this...Read more
Mobile apps: how incumbent railways can dominate
OpinionGetting a single ticket on a journey made up of various rail parts still is out of reach in 2021. Even though ease of choice and payment could be the number one reason for people...Read more
Helsinki-Tallinn tunnel can open up rail in Finland and Estonia: ‘we love competition’
InterviewThere is an ambitious plan to build a tunnel from Helsinki to Tallinn. Peter Vesterbacka, COB and founder of the company behind the project and founding partner Kustaa Valtonen talk about the progress of the...Read more
Finland enters new PSO contract with VR
VR Group and the Finnish Ministry of Transport and Communications have reached an agreement on purchased transport services until 2030 under public service obligation (PSO). Finland’s national operator also commits itself to major fleet acquisitions,...Read more
Will open access come to Dutch cross-border train connections?
There is a good chance that in the Netherlands, long-distance cross-border train connections that are part of the main rail network concession would also be established in open access. Open access would be a modest...Read more
Trenitalia brings the Frecciarossa to France
The first ride of the Frecciarossa high-speed train will depart from Milano Central station towards Paris on Saturday 18 December. It will compete with the French railways SNCF on the route between France and Italy.Read more
‘Integrated companies like DB pose more problems than solutions’
The new German government recently announced that the split of Deutsche Bahn into two different entities would not take place. There will be an attempt to make the company’s internal structures more ‘efficient and transparent’....Read more
New Belgian public service contract for NMBS criticised
AllRail, the alliance of newcomers to passenger rail transport in Europe, has strongly criticised plans by the Belgian government to once again award a public service contract to NMBS/SNCB for ten years. This would leave...Read more