THE Italian autonomous province of Trento has awarded Trenitalia a contract to operate regional services on the Trento - Venice and Verona Porta Nuova - Bolzano lines for nine years from the end of this year.

THE first of seven new trains for the Genoa metro was unveiled to the media at Brignole station on March 24, before entering passenger service on the 6.5km line to Brin.

BRENNER Basistunnel (BBT), which is responsible for building the 64km €8.8bn tunnel under the Brenner pass between Italy and Austria, has selected a consortium led by Astaldi to build the Italian section at a cost of around €1bn.

TRENITALIA has launched a tender for a framework agreement to purchase up to 500 electric and diesel trains worth around €4.5bn.

The €26bn Lyon - Turin high-speed line has moved a step closer to tendering after French president Mr François Hollande and Italian prime minister Mr Matteo Renzi signed a supplementary protocol in Venice on March 8 authorising the release of €8.4bn in funding for the initial stages of construction.

PLANS to construct a rail link to Venice Marco Polo International Airport took step forward on March 9, when Mr Enrico Marchi, president of Venice Airport Company (SAVE) and Mr Maurizio Gentile, CEO of infrastructure manager Italian Railway Network (RFI) signed a memorandum of understanding in Rome on the planning, financing, and scheduling of the project.

ITALIAN Railway Network (RFI) has awarded Colmar, Italy, a contract to supply 141 T11000FS road-rail loaders over the next four years.

ITALIAN State Railways (FS) is to invest €17bn of additional funding to 2020 following an agreement between the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and Italian Rail Network (RFI), with safety, technology and capacity identified as priorities.

A feasibility study into the construction of a €1bn route between Dobbiaco and Calalzo in Italy's Belluno province will take place following an agreement signed on February 13.

With at least two sets of national rules and numerous location-specific technical considerations to contend with, cross-border ERTMS deployments can represent a daunting challenge for infrastructure managers. Keith Barrow looks at two key projects which are seeking to streamline international train movements on the Rhine-Alpine Corridor.