DUTCH secretary of state for infrastructure Mrs Wilma Mansveld announced on May 27 that the Dutch government will allocate €88m towards the construction of a new line from Utrecht Central to Leidsche Rijn, a major new housing development west of the city.

THE detailed construction schedule for Sydney's CBD and South East light rail line was released on May 28, with major city centre works on the 12km route scheduled to start on October 23.

ALSTOM has signed an agreement to acquire Balfour Beatty's share of Signalling Solutions Ltd (SSL), a 50-50 joint-venture between Alstom and Balfour Beatty established in 2007 to bid for signalling contracts in Britain and Ireland.

DYNAMIC testing of the first Pesa ED161 Dart EMU for Polish long-distance operator PKP Intercity has begun with trials on the Bydgoszcz – Gdansk line in northern Poland.

A commission set up by the French government to draw up proposals for the development of loss-making Intercity services published its initial report on May 26, recommending significant changes to the organisation and operation of the network.

MITSUBISHI Electric Corporation announced on May 27 that it has been awarded a contract by CAF, Spain to supply traction equipment for the fleet of 118 New Generation Sprinter (SNG) EMUs ordered by Netherlands Railways (NS) last December.

ITALY's National Railway Safety Agency (ANSF) says it will issue an Authorisation to Place into Service (APS) on May 29 for the ETR 563/564 Civity EMUs supplied by CAF for the region of Friuli Venezia Giulia, enabling the first trains to enter service within the next few weeks.

AUSTRIA's €3.3bn Semmering Base Tunnel has been given the green light for construction by the country's Federal Administrative Court, enabling work on the project to restart.

THE Dutch province of Overijssel and infrastructure manager Prorail have awarded Volker Rail, Netherlands, a contract to electrify the 40km Zwolle – Wierden line.

GERMANY's Federal Railway Authority (EBA) has granted Škoda Transportation a Supplementary Authorisation to Place in Service (SAPS) for its type 109E electric locomotive, enabling the design to operate in regular service on the German railway network.