ANSALDO STS Australia has been awarded a $A 151m ($US 154.7m) turnkey contract to provide signalling and telecommunications systems for the Roy Hill Iron Ore project in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

LOS Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority's Expo light-rail line officially opened to the public on April 28.

UZBEKISTAN Railways (UTY) has entered negotiations with Talgo for two variable-gauge bi-mode trains, according to a report by Trend News Agency, which quotes UTY management as saying that discussions on financing are also underway.

STRATHCLYDE Partnership for Transport (SPT) has appointed Systra to act as technical advisor for the turnkey contract to supply new trains, signalling and train control systems, and an upgraded control room as part of the £287.5m modernisation of the Glasgow Subway.

ETIHAD Rail has revealed the livery for the fleet of seven locomotives on order from Electro-Motive Diesel (EMD).

AUSTRALIAN railfreight operator QR National has signed an agreement with Atlas Iron to study the construction of a heavy-haul railway to connect East Pilbara mines with Port Hedland in Western Australia.

COMMERCIAL services began on April 28 on the first metro line in Suzhou, a city of more than 4 million inhabitants situated in China's eastern Jiangsu province.

NTV, the world's first open-access high-speed train operator, carried its first passengers on April 28 with the launch of Italo services between Milan, Florence, Rome and Naples.

DUTCH infrastructure manager Prorail is to upgrade the non-electrified line between Groningen and Leeuwarden in an effort to meet demand for a second hourly fast service between the two towns.

KIWIRAIL is relaunching its only North Island long-distance passenger train, which operates between Auckland and Wellington, in a bid to make the service profitable.