THE European Commission (EC) announced on July 11 that it has approved a Danish scheme to help rail freight operators fund the installation of ETCS equipment on their locomotives.

THE European Commission (EC) and the Japanese government agreed on July 6 to remove the Operational Safety Clause (OSC) non-tariff barrier which impacts European rail equipment suppliers within a maximum one year after entry into force of a free-trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and Japan.

THE European Commission (EC) announced that rail projects in Greece will receive funding from the European Union (EU) cohesion funds, as part of a €1.3bn investment which will allow major projects that started in the 2007-2013 financial period to be completed in the current 2014-2020 period.

EUROPE’s Shift²Rail Joint Undertaking (JU) has received 60 proposals worth €192.8m under its 2017 call for research projects and a funding request of €136.5m, which is more than twice the available funding of €60.8m.

THE European Union’s (EU) Transforming Transport big data research project, which was launched in January and runs through to June 30 2019, is preparing to launch a rail pilot project in Spain as one of 13 pilot schemes in Europe covering all modes of transport.

THE European Commission (EC) is inviting transport infrastructure investment proposals which combine €1bn of grants through the Connecting Europe Fund (CEF) with other sources including the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) and public and private finance.

ROMANIAN infrastructure manager CFR Infrastructure announced on February 3 that the European Commission (EC) has agreed to continue funding the rehabilitation of the Coşlariu - Simeria and Sighisoara - Coşlariu sections of the Braşov - Simeria line, which is part of the Pan-European Corridor.

THE European Parliament (EP) voted to adopt the market pillar of the Fourth Railway Package at a plenary session in Strasbourg on December 14 in the final stage of a legislative process which is intended to open Europe’s railway sector to greater competition.

THE Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER) says the European Commission (EC) is putting rail freight, which is subject to customs clearance at European Union borders, at risk by imposing a system developed for road transport which is inappropriate for rail.