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Last month the European Parliament Committee on Transport and Tourism voted on a recast of the First Railway Package. Keith Barrow looks at how the measures might drive liberalisation forward.

SPANISH track authority, Adif, has signed a framework agreement with Alcatel-Lucent to pursue joint research and development in communications technology in order to improve the efficiency of Spain's high-speed network.

ABELLIO, a subsidiary of Netherlands Railways, has been chosen by Britain's Department for Transport to take over the operation of the East Anglian passenger franchise for just 29 months. Abellio will take over from the current holder of the franchise, National Express, on February 5 2012. The franchise covers services from London Liverpool Street to Stansted Airport, Cambridge, King's Lynn, Colchester, Ipswich and Norwich.

FRENCH National Railways (SNCF) says it has achieved an increase in turnover of 7.1% to reach almost €24.2bn for the first nine months of 2011, compared with the same period in 2010. The best performing divisions were regional passenger, with a 10.2% increase in turnover and the Geodis freight and logistics division which saw growth of 7.4%.

THE railway equipment market in the Middle East has a current average volume of Euros 1.6bn and will grow at an average rate of 13% per year to reach Euros 3bn in 2015, according to a new study by SCI Verkehr, Germany.

GREATER Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) has secured a £500m loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to fund construction of projects included in the Phase 3B expansion of the Manchester Metrolink light rail system.

THE Channel Tunnel is currently being equipped with GSM-R digital radio under a contract awarded to Alcatel-Lucent in December 2009 and the project should be completed by 2013-14. In order to increase interoperability and control costs, Eurotunnel has awarded a Euros 11m contract to French Rail Network (RFF) to share the network and fixed terminal services and to maintain the system up to 2025.

QATAR Railways' (QR) CEO Mr Saad Al-Mohannadi says that the first tender for the project to build a network of railways across the Persian Gulf emirate will be delayed until the third quarter of 2012.

SAUDI ARABIA'S Landbridge project finally looks set to go ahead after the Council of Ministers approved construction of the new link between the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea.

FIGURES released by China's Ministry of Railways show the country maintained strong growth in rail traffic during the first three quarters of this year, despite the impact of July's fatal collision near Wenzhou, which prompted speed reductions on high-speed lines.