About the author

Kevin Smith

Kevin Smith joined IRJ in 2009 as Features Editor and since then has travelled the world reporting on developments in the world's railways. He was appointed Managing Editor in 2017 and Editor-in-Chief in February 2020. Before joining IRJ, Kevin worked for several local newspapers in the United States and as a freelance technical writer for a university engineering magazine. Kevin graduated with a first class honours degree in American Studies from Lancaster University, Britain, in 2006, and with a Master's degree in American Studies from Purdue University, United States, in 2008.

April 24, 2017 | Financial

RZD revenue and profits grow in 2016

REVENUES at Russian Railways (RZD) increased by 7.1% to reach Roubles 2.133 trillion ($US 38.08bn) in 2016 helping the company’s Ebidta to soar by 15.4% to Roubles 443bn and net profit to increase from Roubles 8bn in 2015 to Roubles 10bn last year.

April 24, 2017 | Freight

Seven countries sign China-Europe rail freight agreement

CHINA Railway Corporation (CRC) says that itself and railway authorities from Belarus, Germany, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Poland and Russia have signed an agreement to deepen their levels of cooperation on China-Europe intermodal rail freight services.

April 21, 2017 | Central/South America

São Paulo to invite bids for lines 5 and 17 concession

THE government of São Paulo has announced that bidding will open on July 4 for the public-private partnership (PPP) concession to operate lines 5 and 17 of the Brazilian city’s metro network.

April 18, 2017 | Metros

Delivering a New York City mega-project

The Second Avenue Subway is the first major addition to New York City’s subway for 50 years. Kevin Smith speaks with the team that delivered the project and considers the challenges they faced in building a new line beneath the streets of Manhattan.

April 18, 2017 | Freight

China-Europe rail freight continues to soar

China-Europe intermodal freight is a major success story of recent years. Kevin Smith considers the factors driving continuing development and the challenges that trans-Eurasian services face to realise their full potential.

April 3, 2017 | Rolling stock

SNCF Mobility orders more Alstom trains for Intercity

SNCF Mobility has awarded Alstom a contract worth approximately €250m for a further 30 Coradia trains for use on French Intercity and regional services.

April 1, 2017 | Technology

A new game with new rules

SNCF president Guillaume Pepy revealed to the International Railway Summit in Paris how the company is positioning itself as a leading transport provider in a new transport market defined by shared mobility and underpinned by digital technologies. Kevin Smith was in the audience.

March 14, 2017 | Financial

Wabtec buys Aero Transportation Products

WABTEC has purchased Aero Transportation Products (ATP), a manufacturer of engineered freight wagon components, for an undisclosed fee.

March 14, 2017 | Europe

Richard Lutz set to be next DB CEO - reports

GERMAN Rail (DB) is expected to appoint current chief financial officer (CFO) Dr Richard Lutz as its next CEO, succeeding Dr Rüdiger Grube who resigned in January. According to German media reports, DB’s supervisory board is expected to confirm the appointment at a meeting next week.

March 14, 2017 | Locomotives

Connecticut to overhaul passenger locomotives

CONNECTICUT Department of Transport (CTDOT) has awarded NRE a contract to overhaul six GP40-2H locomotives, which date from the 1970s, and are set to begin operating commuter services on the new Hartford Line from New Haven to Springfield, Massachusetts, next year.