INNOTRANS: Stadler has unveiled a custom-designed electric multiple-unit for the narrow gauge Centovalli railway which runs for 52 km between Locarno in Switzerland and Domodossola in Italy.

CROATIA: Končar KEV unveiled its newly-developed battery and battery-electric multiple-units in its home city of Zagreb before the battery unit was sent to Berlin for display at InnoTrans.

CROATIA: Končar KEV unveiled its newly-developed battery and battery-electric multiple-units in its home city of Zagreb before the battery unit was sent to Berlin for display at InnoTrans.

GERMANY: Another step towards automation of main line rail operations was taken on September 23 when Alstom demonstrated a remotely-controlled diesel multiple-unit near Salzgitter.

UK: Turkish overhead electrification equipment manufacturer Ulusoy Raylı Sistemler has a signed a memorandum of understanding to use the future Global Centre of Rail Excellence in South Wales for product development and commercial showcasing as part of its planned expansion into the UK market.

EUROPE: Combined transport company Hupac says railways in eastern France need to be enhanced to ensure the long-term reliability of north-south European freight services by offering an alternative to routes through Germany.

INNOTRANS: Frauscher unveiled its FPS object controller at InnoTrans on September 25. The modular control unit is designed to work with a range of point motors and interface with all interlocking technologies using the EULYNX standards.

SWITZERLAND: SBB Cargo and Stadler have signed a framework agreement at InnoTrans covering the supply of up to 129 multi-system electric locomotives, with a firm order for an initial 36.

INNOTRANS: Austrian Federal Railways has ordered 29 Plasser & Theurer CatenaryCrafter 15.4 E3 electric-battery overhead line maintenance vehicles which will soon begin entering service, and an agreement to supply Germany’s DB InfraGO with 15 from 2029 is expected to be finalised shortly.

Examples from DSB and Transdev Deutschland highlight how use of resource planning software can boost employee recruitment and retention as the rail industry adapts to an endemic staff shortage.

INNOTRANS: The future appearance of the 90 extra-long electric multiple-units which Siemens Mobility is to supply for München S-Bahn services was unveiled by Bayern Transport Minister Christian Bernreiter at InnoTrans on September 25.

INNOTRANS: ABB has launched its Pro Series battery as the latest addition to its range of traction powerpacks.

INNOTRANS: One of the 30 Stadler Class 99 electro-diesel locomotives ordered by GB Railfreight through leasing company Beacon Rail is a highlight of the manufacturer’s presence at InnoTrans, the world’s largest railway industry trade fair which is being held in Berlin on September 24-27.

INNOTRANS: French rail industry association Fédération des Industries Ferroviaires and government export promotion body Business France have signed a Team France Ferroviaire agreement to share knowledge to boost overseas sales.

INNOTRANS: Plasser & Theurer has unveiled its InfraSpector Truck road-rail mobile testing lab, which is designed to meet all the infrastructure inspection and measuring requirements of metro, tramway and local railway operators.

UK: A five-year contract to supply Network Rail with switches and crossings and associated components was announced by Progress Rail at the InnoTrans rail industry trade fair in Berlin.

GERMANY: In a bid to end the shortage of qualified staff at a time when demand for electrification skills is expected to grow rapidly, the German Railway Industry Association (Verband der Bahnindustrie in Deutschland) has partnered with a group of companies to launch a specialist training scheme.

AFRICA: China Civil Engineering Construction Corp is in active negotiations for a 30-year concession to operate the Tanzania-Zambia Railway network and revitalise the infrastructure and rolling stock.

AUSTRALIA: Port Dock station on a spur from the Outer Harbor line in central Port Adelaide has reopened after 43 years.

INNOTRANS: Stadler has unveiled its prototype RS Zero lightweight railcar, offered in hydrogen or battery powered versions as a locally emission-free successor to the successful Regio-Shuttle RS1 family of diesel railcars for use on secondary routes where a high passenger capacity is not required.