Keith Fender

MID-SAXONY Transport Authority (VMS) says it will start using eight electro-diesel Citylink tram-trains for services from Chemnitz city centre to Hainichen, Burgstadt and Mittweida in early 2016.

LONDON Underground (LU) took delivery of two new points and crossings tampers supplied by Matisa, Switzerland, in early December.

GERMAN Rail (DB) has announced the outcome of months of strategic review, assisted by consulting firm McKinsey, confirming a programme of measures to tackle the company's worsening financial performance.

GERMAN Rail (DB) has confirmed that as part of its planned cost reductions for next year it will cease operating all overnight trains with sleeper, couchette and specially-equipped overnight seating coaches from December 15 2016.

GERMAN open-access operator Hamburg-Cologne (HKX) officially launched its new service from Frankfurt to Hamburg on December15.

THE first pre-series class 490 EMU for the Hamburg S-Bahn network is nearing completion at Bombardier's Hennigsdorf plant north of Berlin, and according to the manufacturer is due to begin testing next month.

GERMAN Rail (DB) finally started passenger operation of its new IC2 double-deck push-pull inter-city trains with the launch of the 2016 timetable on December 13.

Private concessionaire FCCA, which has been operating and maintaining the world's second-highest railway in Peru since 1999, has invested heavily in both the infrastructure and its fleet. As Keith Fender reports, from Peru, this is now paying off as freight traffic has more than doubled and the railway is making an operating profit.

LEIPZIG tram operator LVB withdrew all services on the 4.5km line between Connewitz S-Bahn station and Markkleeberg West south of Leipzig city centre on November 27.

THE continuing decline in coal transport, in part caused by cheaper supplies of oil and gas, plus the global slowdown in the steel industry continues to impact railfreight volumes in central Europe.