DB cuts renovations, eight corridors must wait
GERMANY: DB InfraGO will carry out 13 corridor renovations between 2027 and 2031 instead of 21, under a plan agreed with the Federal Ministry of Transport. The other eight are postponed, not cancelled, among them, according to dpa, the port lines around Bremen and Koblenz–Mainz on the Rhine.
The renovations are now ranked by the gain each is expected to bring in quality, stability and punctuality. Priorities from 2032 will be set next year.
The original plan was to renovate around 40 heavily used corridors by 2036. That timetable no longer applies, and the end date for the programme is open, dpa reported.
After each closure, traffic restarts step by step, as a rule with freight trains first. The target is 80% fewer infrastructure-related disruptions within 100 days of reopening.
From the early 2030s, renovations will install ETCS Level 2 without lineside signals as standard. On such lines, only trains with ETCS on board can run.
GoVolta wants regulators to examine how NS and DB treat rivals
CROSS-BORDER: GoVolta has asked the Dutch and German regulators to examine whether NS and DB put new entrants at a disadvantage. A broken-down ICE blocked its locomotive at Bad Bentheim for seven hours on 8 October. NS called the accusation nonsense.
The open access operator wants the ACM and Germany’s Federal Network Agency to ensure fair access to the track, correct travel information and clear arrangements for passengers during disruption. Neither regulator had confirmed a complaint by 11 October.
GoVolta says it is the third time in a month that it could not run a service because of NS and DB. At least five other runs were seriously delayed.
NS says it carries passengers only from operators in the CER agreement and has invited GoVolta to talks about an arrangement.
Italo loses capacity rule in court ruling
GERMANY: The rule meant to make room for Italo on German lines cut back by construction work has been ruled unlawful. The Administrative Court of Cologne found on 8 October that the regulator could not make DB InfraGO cap DB Fernverkehr’s share of capacity there. The interim ruling cannot be appealed.
The cap would have held DB Fernverkehr to 60–75% of the long-distance capacity left on sections restricted by construction work or diversions. The court found no basis for it in EU law or in German rail regulation.
The ruling does not shut Italo out, but it removes the protection its complaint produced. Italo plans to invest about EUR 3.6bn in German long-distance services from April 2028.
The clause stays off the table until the main proceedings are decided. Italo said it is sticking to its plans for Germany.
Budapest–Belgrade passengers due in December after ETCS test
CROSS-BORDER: Hungarian Transport Minister Dávid Vitézy says ETCS testing on the Hungarian section of the Budapest–Belgrade line is complete. Domestic passenger trains could start in the second half of October, with international services to Belgrade following in December.
Both steps are conditional. The passenger information systems did not perform as required during the October test and must be fixed before opening.
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