TWO special trains were operated on December 8 and a ceremony was staged in Berlin attended by Germany’s chancellor, Mrs Angela Merkel, and federal transport minister Mr Christian Schmidt to mark the completion of the final section of the 623km Berlin - Erfurt - Nuremberg - Munich high-speed line.

CRRC Qingdao Sifang has completed the delivery of the nine high-speed trains it is supplying to MTR in Hong Kong for operation on the new Guangzhou - Shenzhen - Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL).

TURKISH State Railways (TCDD) has invited companies to prequalify by January 25 for a three-stage contract to supply a fleet of 96 250km/h trains with a gradual transfer of technology and production to Turkey.

THE first test run along the full length of the 643km Xi’an - Chengdu high-speed line took place on November 22, marking a milestone in the construction of the first railway across the Qinling mountains in China’s northwestern Shanxi province.

MALAYSIA High-Speed Rail Corporation (MyHSR) published a tender notice on November 22 for a Project Delivery Partner (PDP) to support the planning and delivery of civil infrastructure works on the Malaysian section of the Kuala Lumpur - Singapore high-speed line.

THE board of Italian open-access high-speed operator NTV has decided to exercise an option for five additional Pendolino Evo trains.

THE chairman of Italy’s open-access high-speed rail operator NTV, Mr Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, has confirmed that the company will launch an initial public offering (IPO) on the stock exchange in 2018.

BRITAIN’s HS2 Ltd has shortlisted five train builders to bid for a contract worth around £2.75bn to design, build and maintain at least 54 360km/h trains for entry into service in 2026 on the London - Birmingham first phase of the planned high-speed network which will eventually extend to Manchester and Leeds.

THE Canadian province of Ontario is to establish a high-speed rail planning advisory board to provide strategic support and community engagement as the province pursues its plans to build a $C 7.5bn ($US 5.86bn) high-speed line between Toronto and Windsor.

THE first test run with a Talgo high-speed train was conducted on the southern section of Saudi Arabia’s Haramain high-speed line between Jeddah and Mecca on October 17.