ABELLIO Rail NRW signed a contract with Stadler Pankow on June 12 for a fleet of 20 five-car Flirt emus, which will be used on the Dutch-German Lower Rhine Network from December 2016.

SPAIN's Ministry of Transport this week reported that ridership on Renfe AVE services has risen 14% year-on-year in the last four months to 4.7 million passengers, following an 11% cut in all tourist class tickets in early February.

HITACHI Rail Europe's "Verification-Train 3" has successfully completed a series of tests on a Network Rail class 97/3 locomotive equipped with ETCS Level 2 onboard equipment.

THE Xrail alliance of seven European wagonload railfreight operators has unveiled plans for the implementation of a "seamless" international capacity booking system for less-than-trainload consignments with the aim of improving the efficiency of cross-border wagonload operations.

THE High Commission for Riyadh Development (HCRD) says that "three major global consortia" have submitted technical and financial offers for the Riyadh Metro project, a six-line driverless network which will eventually encompass 177km and 96 stations in the Saudi capital.

ITALY's antitrust authority has announced it is launching an investigation into Italian State Railways (FS) and its subsidiaries following allegations by open-access high-speed operator NTV that the national railway has engaged in anticompetitive practices against the newcomer.

THE BOARD of New Zealand's national railway KiwiRail announced on June 7 that CEO Mr Jim Quinn is to stand down when his current five-year contract expires next February.

CALIFORNIA High Speed Rail Authority's (CHSRA) board unanimously approved a $US 985.1m bid from a California-based joint venture of Tutor Perini, Zachary and Parsons on June 7 to carry out civil works on the inaugural 48.3km Madera - Fresno section of the state's high-speed railway network.

THE Dutch government announced on June 7 that it has decided to cancel its contract with AnsaldoBreda for 16 V250 high-speed trains, in accordance with the wishes of Netherlands Railways (NS).

IN its latest study, "Freight Wagons – Global Market Developments," German consultancy SCI Verkehr projects that all market regions will experience constant growth in freight wagon sales in the next five years after sales reached a record €12bn in 2012.