Estonian carrier starts single-person operations 
Although freight trains have previously always had a driver and assistant in the locomotive cab, Operail saw the first single-person operation last week. This means that all necessary operational procedures and safety were the sole responsibility of the driver. "This is... more
All-electric truck goes into serial production in 2021
The Mercedes-Benz eActros all-electric truck has been successfully undergoing tough real-world trials for over a year now. In the autumn of 2018 Mercedes-Benz Trucks began to hand over a total of ten 18 t and 25 t trucks to customers in Germany and Switzerland for testing under... more
Switzerland promotes cross-border rail traffic
For the Swiss Federal Council it is essential to ensure that cross-border rail traffic runs as smoothly as possible. It has therefore decided to adopt the so-called technical pillar of the fourth European railway package, which provides for unified procedures across Europe and... more
Schweizerzug links Niederglatt with Antwerp
From 16 December 2019, the Swiss rail freight company Schweizerzug will increase the existing number of round trips between Frenkendorf near Basel (Switzerland) and the German hub in Neuss from three to six per week and will thus be operating a daily service from Monday to... more
Wels to become a key hub for West-South traffic
Kombiverkehr is restructuring some of its services to and from Austria and Hungary. Kombiverkehr and Rail Cargo Operator (RCO) will join forces to operate the Austria – Hungary link between Wels and Vienna/Budapest together in future. As from 16 November 2019, the joint... more
Better rail transport interoperability in Dutch network
The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, EU 22.2 million of public support to upgrade traffic management equipment on freight locomotives in the Netherlands. The scheme will contribute to making railway systems more interoperable in the EU without unduly... more
New tool improves risk assessment and cost analysis
Across Europe, national road administrations are having to deal with more frequent and severe weather, greater sea level rises and increased stress on infrastructure leading to higher deterioration rates. A new tool, funded under the conference of European directors of roads... more
US short line can handle heavier freight cars
North Carolina & Virginia Railroad (NCVA) has upgraded its entire line to handle 143 t railcar loadings. Until now, the railroad’s infrastructure was limited to 135.6 t railcar loadings. In an USD 11.6-million project to achieve the capacity improvement, NCVA installed... more
Further progress in implementing PTC
US class I railways Union Pacific (UP) implemented positive train control (PTC) on 1790 route kilometres in the third quarter of 2019, bringing the required PTC-operated route kilometres to more than 40,877 or 93%. Nearly all Union Pacific trains operating on PTC-mandated... more
Increased capacity to ship manufactured buildings
Bennett Truck Transport in Georgia (USA) has concluded the asset purchase agreement with Road Masters Transport and its open-deck, general freight carrier RoadMasters Power Transport. The Texas-based RoadMasters companies have provided over 41 years of service to shippers of... more