In recent years SNCF’s rail freight activities have struggled against a tide of weak demand and strong competition. France’s Court of Auditors fears the time for action is running out, as Keith Barrow reports.

Trade between African nations is considered one of the continent’s great untapped economic opportunities, but poor cross-border connectivity continues to hinder growth. Keith Barrow reports from Cape Town on the potential role for rail in unleashing intra-African trade.

TUNIS public transport operator Transtu has submitted an application to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for a €100m sovereign loan to help finance its €240.2m Urban Rail Fleet Renewal programme.

ARGENTINA’s Ministry of Transport has launched an international tender for a contract to supply 1500 EMU cars for the Buenos Aires RER network, which will bring high-frequency services to suburban lines in the capital.

CAF says it has no intention of altering its strategic plan following the announcement earlier this week that Alstom and Siemens Mobility will merge to create the world’s second largest supplier of rail equipment.

THE European Commission (EC) published a proposal on September 27 to update the rules on rail passenger rights in the event of a delay, cancellation, or discrimination.

DUTCH infrastructure manager Prorail has awarded machine-to-machine technology company Dual Inventive a contract to supply 1500 wireless sensors to remotely monitor the health of points and crossings at key locations across the network.

PASSENGER numbers on Germany’s rail network continued to rise in the first half of this year as the meteoric growth in ridership on long-distance bus services came to an end, according to figures published by the federal statistics agency Destatis on September 21.

HARSCO Rail has won two orders worth nearly $US 25m to supply track maintenance and measuring equipment for use on the Haramain high-speed line in Saudi Arabia and the Transnet network in South Africa.