THE Development Commission of Mecca and Mashaaer (DCOMM) has selected Parsons Brinckerhoff as the project management office consultant for the Mecca Public Transport Programme (MPTP) in a five-year contract worth $US 93.6m.

CSR Corporation subsidiary CSR Nanjing Puzhen has secured a contract to supply 33 six-car type B metro trains for Shenzhen Line 3.

TURKISH State Railways (TCDD) has confirmed that test operation will begin on August 2 on the Marmaray link between the Asian and European sides of Istanbul.

THE Swazi government says it is confident it can raise the Rand 9bn ($US 882m) it needs to fund its share of the Rand 15.9bn Swazilink line between Lothair in South Africa's Mpumalanga province and Sidvokodvo, Swaziland, before construction starts next year.

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SIEMENS has announced that it will withdraw from bidding for the tender to supply 60 10-car emus for the Crossrail project in London. This leaves Bombardier, CAF and Hitachi in the running to win the £1bn contract, which should be awarded next year.

THE first light rail line was officially opened on July 4 in Constantine, Algeria's third largest city with a population of around 900,000. Commercial services were due to begin on July 5.

THE funding arrangements have been announced for the PPP deal for Siemens to supply 1140 emu cars for Britain's Thameslink project.

SINGAPORE Mass Rapid Transit Corporation (SMRT) has awarded a contract worth more than Yen 8bn ($US 80.5m) to Toshiba, Japan, to re-equip a fleet of 66 six-car metro trains with permanent-magnet synchronous traction motors.

THE first of 20 locomotives supplied by CNR's Dalian Locomotive & Rolling Stock subsidiary have entered service in Argentina.