THE integrated structure of railways in Germany and Austria does not contravene European legislation on liberalisation, according to European Court of Justice Advocate General Mr Niilo Jääskinen, who today delivered his opinions on infringement actions brought against several European Union (EU) member states by the European Commission (EC).
While German Rail (DB) is performing well financially, it still faces some tough challenges as it deals with threats to its existence as a fully-integrated railway and copes with the aftermath of past misjudgements. DB's CEO Dr Rüdiger Grube (pictured) reveals in an exclusive interview with David Briginshaw how the railway is addressing these issues.
THE African Development Bank (AfDB) has provided $US 500m to the East African Community (EAC), which covers Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, to roll out projects under its Railway Master Plan starting this year.
THE credibility of KiwiRail's $NZ 4.5bn ($US 3.6bn) plan to turn the state-owned railway into a profitable business has taken a major hit after the New Zealand government minister for state-owned enterprises, Mr Tony Ryall cast doubt on KiwiRail's ability to generate the necessary revenue.
ROMANIA's Ministry of Transport has appointed a consortium of PwC, David & Baias and George Butunoiu to recruit directors general and non-executive directors for 10 state-owned transport companies, four of which are in the rail sector.
THE European Commission (EC) has authorised an Austrian government scheme to subsidise railfreight operations for five years from December.
THE DUTCH government has announced plans to extend the concessioning of regional rail services following the completion of a research project by two consultants.
THE SPANISH government is expected to vote at the end of this month on draft legislation that could bring sweeping liberalisation of the rail market within a year together with the privatisation of Renfe.
THE International Union of Railways (UIC) has nominated Mr Vladimir Yakunin, president of Russian Railways (RZD) as its next chairman. The appointment will be ratified at the UIC's next general assembly in Paris in December. Yakunin will then serve as UIC chairman for two years.
BRITAIN's prime minister Mr David Cameron has announced plans today to invest an additional £4.2bn to upgrade key sections of the rail network in England and Wales between 2014 and 2019 on top of the £5.2bn already committed for projects currently underway such as Crossrail and Thameslink.