FOUR European railway associations plus the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) are calling for urgent action to accelerate the excessively slow and cumbersome processes for the certification of trains in Europe which they argue are far too costly and are harming rail's competitive position.

GERMAN Rail (DB) CEO Dr Rüdiger Grube has called on European governments to adopt the structure of Germany's railway industry to foster competition and increase market share.

SIEMENS reported its financial results for the first half of the 2013 financial year on 2 May, which show second quarter group revenues fell 7% year-on-year to €18bn with profits of €1.37bn.

GERMAN Rail (DB) announced on May 2 that it has agreed a framework contract with Bombardier for up to 450 Traxx electric locomotives over the next 10 years, which could be worth up €1.5bn if all options are exercised.

FOLLOWING a successful legal challenge by German Rail (DB) subsidiary DB Regio, Berlin Brandenburg Transport Authority (VBB) has issued a new tender for the Ringbahn, the first part of the Berlin S-Bahn network to be tendered on a competitive basis.

RAIL access to Munich Franz-Jozef Strauss International Airport is set to improve significantly after German Rail (DB) and the state of Bavaria reached an agreement to build a new connection between the airport and the Munich – Regensburg line.

Despite strong growth in demand, the German rail market is facing considerable uncertainty resulting from changes in the way rail services are funded, amendments to legislation and regulation and a squeeze on public spending. Maria Leenen and Karl Strang from consultancy SCI Verkehr say the decisions being taken now are likely to have a profound effect on the entire market.

SIEMENS has awarded Bombardier a €336m contract to supply bodyshells and bogies for a batch of 170 ICx high-speed coaches ordered by German Rail (DB) under a framework agreement with Siemens.

GERMAN Rail (DB) has placed a €113m order with Bombardier for 12 Twindexx Vario double-deck emus, which will be used by DB Regio on Main-Spessart Regional Express services from Frankfurt to Würzburg and Bamberg from 2015.

GERMAN Rail (DB) subsidiary DB Regio is carrying out a series of test runs with the new Bombardier class 146.2 locomotives for DB Long Distance.