SIEMENS presented the first of 74 Inspiro metro vehicles for Riyadh's metro in Vienna today.

DUSSELDORF's €843.6m underground Wehrhahn Line light rail line opened on February 20. Regular operation and closure of the previous on-street route followed overnight with services starting via the new route on February 21.

GOVIA Thameslink Railway, Britain, has completed its order of 25 class 700 EMUs from Siemens in a £200m deal after securing funding from British leasing company Rock Rail.

THE first major contract for the €3.7bn western extension of Paris RER Line E was awarded on February 10, when French National Railways (SNCF) president Mr Guillaume Pepy and Siemens president Mr Joe Kaeser signed a €186m contract for the rollout of CBTC on the core section of the east-west line.

SWITZERLAND's largest private railway BLS confirmed on February 2 that it has shortlisted four suppliers to bid for a contract to supply 60 EMUs for S-Bahn and regional services.

A consortium of Alstom, CAF, and Siemens has begun the work to install ERTMS on the Atlantic Corridor in Galicia, the 155km-long high-speed line which connects A Coruña with Santiago and Vigo.

INNOVATION is the key to success as it will improve our competitiveness by providing leading-edge technologies. We have to make sure we are always one step ahead of others when it comes to technology and know-how - especially in the areas of energy efficiency, productivity/throughput, asset utilisation, improvements in infrastructure and rolling stock availability, travel experience for passengers, and, last but not least, climate and environmental friendliness.

SPANISH national train operator Renfe has shortlisted six manufacturers for a framework contract to supply and maintain a new fleet of high-speed trains.