THE government of the Australian state of Queensland has announced plans to privatise the 1000km, 1067mm-gauge Townsville – Mount Isa line in Central Queensland as part of its 2014-15 budget strategy.

TAIWAN's Ministry of Transportation and Communications has proposed a radical financial restructuring of Taiwan High Speed Railway Corporation (THSRC) which it says will help the company overcome its continuing struggle with debt and avoid bankruptcy.

THE state government of Baden-Württemberg has submitted a €67m funding application to Germany's federal government to help finance the construction of a second metre-gauge tram line in the city of Ulm.

ALSTOM handed over the first of eight additional ETR 610 Pendolino EMUs to Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) at its Savigliano plant in northern Italy on June 3.

THE Chilean embassy in Argentina and the government of the Argentinean province of Salta hosted a symposium for senior diplomats, politicians, and industrialists in Salta on May 29 with the aim of kickstarting the revival of the Northern Transandine railway.

THE first of a fleet of 120 1524mm-gauge LRVs ordered by Moscow tram operator Mosgortrans from a joint venture of Pesa, Poland, and Uraltransmash, Russia, entered trial passenger operation in the Russian capital on June 1.

CANBERRA's proposed 12.5km inaugural light rail line received a $A 21.3m ($US 19.8m) boost in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) budget which was announced on June 3, in an allocation the government says is designed to make the proposed public-private partnership project "investment ready."

A MILESTONE was reached on a key capacity enhancement project in northeast England on June 1, when GB Railfreight operated the first test train over the newly-completed Doncaster North Chord.

ITALIAN State Railways' (FS) steering committee, led by its new president Mr Marcello Messori, has appointed Mr Michele Mario Elia as CEO of FS Group.

GENESEE & Wyoming's newest rail subsidiary, the Rapid City, Pierre & Eastern Railroad (RCP&E) began operations on June 1, 2014 after Canadian Pacific (CP) completed the sale of the line, the western stretch of the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern (DM&E).