FOLLOWING his resignation as CEO of Austrian open-access passenger operator Westbahn at the beginning of June, Dr Stefan Wehinger has sold his shares in parent company Rail Holding to the other three shareholders.

THE first Stadler Flirt emu for Czech open-access long-distance operator Leo Express has arrived at the Velim test circuit near Prague for trials.

The train will undergo brake checks as well as vibro-acoustic and electromagnetic compatibility testing over the next few weeks. Following the completion of these tests, trial running will switch to the mainline network.

WESTBAHN has become the first open-access operator to challenge Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) in Austria's domestic long-distance market, with the launch on December 11 of its Vienna - Linz - Salzburg service.

Last month the Czech Republic's first open-access long-distance passenger operator extended its services into neighbouring Slovakia, and has ambitions to expand even further. Aleš Ondruj, director, onboard services, for RegioJet tells Keith Barrow how liberalisation of the sector is bringing innovation and greater choice for passengers.

This year Hamburg-Köln-Express will break new ground for open-access operators in Germany when it goes head-to-head with DB on one of the national operator's most lucrative long-distance routes. Keith Barrow talks to the team behind HKX.