Europe News

Latest news and developments from Europe region

• Opening of Brenner Base Tunnel delayed, Austria

  May 27, 2021
  BBT SE, the developer of the Brenner Base Tunnel (BBT) project, has announced that the BBT project is unlikely to be completed before 2031 and the opening is expected to be delayed to 2032.

• Alstom to supply EMUs to Hessische Landesbahn, Germany

  May 27, 2021
  Alstom has secured a EUR200 million contract from Hessische Landesbahn (HLB), the operator of regional rail services in Hesse, to supply 32 Coradia Continental electric multiple units (EMUs).

• Autonomous shuttles commence trials in Cambridge, UK

  May 27, 2021
  The Greater Cambridge Partnership (GCP), in partnership with Smart Cambridge and Aurrigo, has commenced the trials of autonomous shuttles in Cambridge.

• Agreement signed to develop interurban tramway line in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia

  May 26, 2021
  The government of Sverdlovsk oblast and Verkhnepyshminskiy Tramway LLC, a part of the Movista Regions group, have signed a 10-year concession agreement to finance, build, and operate an interurban tramway line that will connect the town of Yekaterinburg with the town of Verkhnyaya Pyshma.

• Smart LRVs to be tested in Plzen, Czech Republic

  May 26, 2021
  A memorandum of mutual cooperation has been signed to transform Plzen into the first smart city in the Czech Republic with a living laboratory for testing autonomous vehicles (AVs), including smart light rail vehicles (LRVs) by 2027.

• IDFM to phase out paper tickets for Paris, France

  May 26, 2021
  Île-de-France Mobility (IDFM), the public transit authority of the Île-de-France region, will phase out paper tickets for the public transit network in Paris before the 2024 summer Olympics.

• Tramway to link light rail networks in Barcelona receives approval, Spain

  May 25, 2021
  The Government of Catalonia/Generalitat de Catalunya and Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM), the public transport authority in Barcelona, have given the final approval for the construction of a tramway to link two light rail networks in the city, known as Trambaix and Trambesós, along the Avinguda Diagonal avenue.

• Cash payment option for mobile tickets implemented in West Midlands, UK

  May 25, 2021
  National Express West Midlands and Payzone have partnered to enable cash payments for tickets purchased through the National Express mobile ticketing application (app), branded ‘NX Bus mTicket’.

• NaviLens technology trials conducted to improve accessibility, France

  May 24, 2021
  Keolis, in partnership with Île-de-France Mobilités, the conurbation authority of Versailles Grand Parc, Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français (SNCF), and the Valentin Haüy Association that acts on behalf of people affected by loss of sight, are currently conducting trials of the NaviLens technology to improve accessibility of transport services.

• EV charging superhub to be set up in Oxford, UK

  May 24, 2021
  An electric vehicle (EV) charging superhub, branded ‘Energy Superhub Oxford (ESO)’, is being set up at the site of Redbridge Park and Ride on Abingdon Road in Oxford.

• DfT and First Group agree to new contracts for two franchises, UK [free access]

  May 24, 2021
  The Department for Transport (DfT) and First Group have agreed to the terms of the new National Rail Contracts (NRC) for two franchises, the South Western Railway (SWR) and TransPennine Express (TPE) companies, to replace the existing Emergency Recovery Measures Agreements (ERMA).

• Kamaz to supply electric buses to Mosgotrans, Russia

  May 24, 2021
  Kamaz has secured a contract to supply 350 electric buses to Mosgotrans for services in Moscow.

• Legislation adopted to enable automated driving in Germany

  May 23, 2021
  The lower house of Germany’s parliament has passed legislation to allow some driverless vehicles to operate on public roads under certain conditions.

• BYD commences delivery of electric buses in Turin, Italy

  May 21, 2021
  BYD has commenced the delivery of the 50 electric buses that were ordered by Gruppo Torinese Trasporti (GTT), the public transport operator in Turin.

• Contactless bank card payment introduced on two bus lines in Barcelona, Spain

  May 21, 2021
  Transports Metropolitans of Barcelona (TMB), the public transport operator in Barcelona, and Autoritat del Transport Metropolità (ATM), the public transport authority in Barcelona, have launched a contactless bank card payment system using credit cards on two bus lines of the network as a part of the digitalisation of public transport under the T-mobility project.

• HESS and Mercedes-Benz to supply 62 electric buses in Basel, Switzerland

  May 20, 2021
  Carrosserie HESS AG (HESS) and Mercedes-Benz have secured contracts from Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe (BVB), the transport authority of Basel in Switzerland, to supply a total of 62 electric buses in Basel.

• Government of the UK unites rail network

  May 20, 2021
  The Government of the UK has announced the formation of Great British Railways (GBR), a new public body that will own the infrastructure, take charge of fare revenue collection, operate and plan the network, and set the timetables for all the passenger and freight rail infrastructure in the UK.

• Iricav Due consortium to prepone works on the Verona–Padua HSR line, Italy

  May 19, 2021
  The Iricav Due consortium has signed an agreement with Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) to commence works five months ahead of schedule on the second and final section of the first lot of the Verona–Padua high-speed rail (HSR) in Italy.

• Contactless ABT ticketing system deployed on bus fleet in Brescia, Italy

  May 19, 2021
  Conduent Transportation (Conduent) has deployed a contactless account-based ticketing (ABT) payment system on all 220 buses of Brescia Mobilità’s bus fleet, which serves the city of Brescia in Italy and 14 surrounding municipalities.

• Solaris to supply additional buses in Warsaw, Poland

  May 19, 2021
  Solaris has secured an order to supply 30 articulated compressed natural gas (CNG) buses to Miejskie Zakłady Autobusowe (MZA) Warszawa, the bus operator in Warsaw.