Saxony orders 113 battery trains from Siemens
GERMANY: Lower Saxony has ordered 113 three-car Mireo Plus B battery trains from Siemens Mobility, with two new depots and 30 years of maintenance by the manufacturer. The first trains are due at the end of 2031 on regional lines that are not fully electrified.
The state’s regional transport authority, LNVG, takes 83 units and the Braunschweig regional rolling stock company takes 30.
The trains will start on the Weser-Leine and Harz-Heide networks. The new depots are planned in Goslar and Soltau.
The ministry’s headline puts the investment at more than EUR 2bn. The text of the same release gives roughly EUR 1bn and does not explain the difference.
SBB and DB slow Zürich–Stuttgart trains to absorb German delays
CROSS-BORDER: Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) and Deutsche Bahn (DB) will add up to 11 minutes to some Schaffhausen–Stuttgart trains from the December timetable change and drop stops in Germany. The extra time is meant to keep delays on the German network from reaching Zürich.
The fewer stops and longer running-time reserves apply between Stuttgart and Singen. SBB did not name the stations to be dropped or say how many trains are affected.
Arrival punctuality in Zürich has risen by about 20 percentage points to more than 80%, according to SBB.
The two operators will decide in spring 2027 whether to bring back hourly through trains between Stuttgart and Zürich.
Czech Railways loses objection to RegioJet’s express win
CZECHIA: The Ministry of Transport has rejected Czech Railways’ objection to RegioJet’s win on the R10 express line from Prague to Hradec Králové and Trutnov. The state operator had called RegioJet’s price abnormally low. Its remaining option is the competition office.
RegioJet bid CZK 70.40 per train-km, against CZK 102.42 from Czech Railways (ČD).
RegioJet cannot sign the contract until the deadline for an appeal to the Office for the Protection of Competition (ÚOHS) has passed. The length of the deadline has not been disclosed.
RegioJet is due to take over the line from ČD in December 2028.
Irish Rail orders ETCS for its fleet ahead of trackside deal
IRELAND: Iarnród Éireann has signed contracts worth about EUR 95m with Alstom to fit ETCS Level 1 equipment to up to 176 vehicles in its existing fleet. The national trackside rollout is still out to tender, with an award targeted for mid-2027.
Alstom will equip up to seven fleet types, each starting with a prototype before the rest of the fleet is fitted.
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