GERMAN rail freight volumes showed small declines in 2016 despite an increase in the overall freight market, according to annual figures released this week by the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).

BLS, Switzerland, announced on February 16 that it has agreed to sell a 45% stake in its rail freight subsidiary BLS Cargo to SNCF Logistics.

SWISS Federal Railways (SBB) has launched a new strategy which aims to combine its existing strengths with new technology to enable it to increase capacity, offer door-to-door journeys, and develop digital stations and smart freight wagons.

SBB Cargo is prioritising the growth and competitiveness of wagonload freight by utilising the latest technologies, as CEO Mr Nicolas Perrin explains to Anitra Green.

CANADIAN National Railway (CN) says 64% of its $C 2.5bn ($US 1.9bn) capital investment budget in 2017 will be used to upgrade track and structures.

THE European Commission (EC) is inviting transport infrastructure investment proposals which combine €1bn of grants through the Connecting Europe Fund (CEF) with other sources including the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and public and private finance.

NEW Zealand operator KiwiRail is having to contend with the indefinite closure of a second line on the South Island after a scrub fire badly damaged a major viaduct on the line linking Christchurch and the West Coast.

SWISS Federal Railways (SBB) has begun work on an SFr 100m ($US 101m) project to expand SBB Cargo’s San Paolo marshalling yard at Bellinzona to increase capacity as part of the broader upgrading of the Gotthard corridor.

CANADIAN Pacific (CP) has promoted Mr Keith Creel as its new president and CEO succeeding Mr Hunter Harrison, who has retired from CP and is currently investigating another opportunity which could lead to another shake-up in the North American rail industry.

Transnet signed a 20-year contract with RailRunner to haul lorry trailers on its 1400km Capecor corridor in 2016, with the aim of delivering a dramatic uplift in rail freight traffic, as Paul Ash explains.