Politicians in Finland have spoken out against a European Union (EU) proposal that would see Finland’s 5-foot gauge (1524mm) rail network at least partly rebuilt to standard gauge, or most likely dual 5foot/standard gauge, although some politicians and business organizations support the idea. Finland’s use of 5-foot gauge reflects its history as part of the […]
MATHURA, India — After almost 22 years and more than 100 hearings, a railway passenger in India has won a legal battle over being overcharged by 20 rupees (25 cents) for a pair of tickets. The BBC reports that Tungnath Chaturvedi, a lawyer in the state of Uttar Pradesh was charged 90 rupees instead of […]
A rail line through the small European country of Lithuania has become the site of serious geopolitical wrangling between the Lithuanian government, the European Union, and Russia. The rail line connects the otherwise isolated small Russian region of Kaliningrad with the rest of Russia, via both Lithuania and Russian ally Belarus. Financial and other sanctions […]
THETFORD, England — Passenger trains of British operator Greater Anglia were disrupted for about an hour Monday afternoon because of an escaped giant tortoise on the tracks. Yes, you read that correctly. The BBC reports that the animal, about 2½ feet long, had escaped from pet and aquarium store Swallow Aquatics on Sunday. It was […]
PARIS — A Quebec pension fund which has been active in Canadian rail infrastructure projects is reportedly the front-runner to purchase a Paris-based locomotive leasing firm. Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) and a possible alternative purchaser, U.S. investment bank J.P. Morgan, both outbid potential French purchasers for leasing firm Akiem. The transaction […]
BREMERVORDE, Germany — The world’s first hydrogen-powered trains in regular passenger service are now in operation, having begun service July 25 on a German regional rail line between Cuxhaven and Buxtehude, via Bremervörde. Bremervörde is around 40 miles southwest of the city of Hamburg. The initial service is being billed as “preliminary,” in case operating […]
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Southern de Mexico’s exclusive operating concession for its routes in Mexico have been extended by 10 years as part of an agreement with the Mexican government to invest in a new rail bypass route. The agreement with the Mexican Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT) extends the concession […]
LONDON — Britain is bracing for additional rounds of rail strikes after unions announced planned strike dates later this month and in August. The Guardian reports the National Union of Rail, Maritime, and Transport Workers (RMT) has called strikes for August 18 and 20; those strikes will involve about 40,000 RMT members at infrastructure company […]
PARIS — French railway workers went on strike today (Wednesday, July 6), with national rail operator SNCF advising customers not to travel if at all possible. Reuters reports three of the four main unions at SNCF were taking part in the strike resulting in the cancellation of about a third of all trains. Paris commuter […]
You might enjoy these four railroad themed novels on your summer travels. Rene Schweitzer details these four works of fiction that you may have overlooked. The Christmas Train David Baldacci Genre: Fiction First published: 2004 Journalist Tom Langdon, due to an “incident” at an airport, is banned from flying commercial airlines and takes Amtrak […]
PARIS — French rail unions Sud Rail, CGT, and CFDT have called for a national strike by rail workers on July 6, Reuters reports. The unions said in a joint statement that workers “are sharply hit by exploding inflation. We must act to obtain wage increases.” The French call for a strike came as most […]
Governments in Europe have been turning to discounted and almost-free train travel for those facing huge rises in energy costs following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has pushed gas and electricity prices to levels never seen before. The aim of such policies, happening at the same time European economies are seeing near double-digit inflation for […]
