AUSTRIAN Federal Railways (ÖBB) signed an agreement with the City of Vienna and the Austrian Ministry of Transport on June 14 to invest €450m to improve and expand the Vienna S-Bahn network.

GERMANY's Rhine-Main Transport Authority (RMV) announced on June 13 that regional operator Vias has ordered four Alstom Lint 54 DMUs for the Odenwald network south of Frankfurt-am-Main.

CHEMNITZ Transport (CVAG) signed a contract with Škoda Transportation on June 14 for 14 standard-gauge ForCity low-floor LRVs, which will replace the German city's ageing fleet of Tatra trams.

THE new West Midlands Combined Authority centred on Birmingham, Britain, is drawing up plans through Transport for West Midlands, which comes into force this month, to expand the rail network under a £4bn 10-year transport investment plan.

ŠKODA Transportation, Czech Republic, is to set up a subsidiary company in the United States with a view to selling light rail vehicles and trains in North America.

STADLER, Switzerland, says the decision to remove the Swiss Franc's exchange rate cap with the Euro in 2015 has cost it more than SFr 100m ($US 103.6m) on top of a fall in orders for new trains.

WHITING Corporation, United States, has acquired LB Foster's rolling stock and locomotive repair and service assets in Pittsburgh for an undisclosed sum.

THE Canadian province of Ontario is to provide $C 205m ($US 160m) to help advance work for the Yonge North subway extension and the proposed Relief Line which is designed to help relieve congestion on Toronto Transit Commission's (TTC) Yonge Line.

GERMAN Rail (DB) has signed memorandums of understanding with CRRC, China Railway and the city of Dalian, expanding its presence in the Chinese railway market.

SLOVENIAN prime minister Mr Miro Cerar and Hungarian minister of foreign affairs and trade Mr Péter Szijjárto attended an inauguration ceremony at the border station of Hodoš on June 10 to mark the completion of a project to modernise and electrify the 109km Pragersko - Hodoš line.