Talgo sets have the worst reliability in DSB’s fleet
DENMARK: DSB’s Talgo-built EuroCity sets ran an average of 5,182 km between failures in January–August, the operator’s own figures show. That is the lowest of any DSB fleet, including the trouble-plagued IC4 diesel units.
The EuroCity (EC) sets entered service between Copenhagen and Hamburg on 3 November 2025, about a year later than DSB had planned.
August was their best month so far at 11,795 km, and the first in which they ran further between failures than IC4. In each of the other seven months of 2026 the EC sets came out below IC4.
Year to date, DSB’s IC3 diesel units ran 36,741 km between failures, about seven times the EC figure.
DSB had nine EC sets approved for service at the end of August. With sets in the workshop and one held as reserve, fewer than seven were left for scheduled services.
Munich–Milan and Rome routes delayed a year to 2027
CROSS-BORDER: Direct Frecciarossa services from Munich to Milan and Rome now depend on nine converted trains being approved in time for a start in summer 2027. When the routes were presented in May 2025, the start was set for 2026.
The services will run Munich–Innsbruck–Milan and Munich–Rome, with two pairs of trains on each route at launch.
A Hitachi Rail and Alstom consortium is converting nine Frecciarossa ETR 1000 trains. They need new authorisation for Germany and Austria and renewed authorisation for Italy.
According to DB, securing the approval is up to the manufacturers. The statement does not give a reason for the new start date.
SBB drops leasing and will buy 21 high-speed trains
SWITZERLAND: Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) will buy 21 high-speed trains for its international services, with an option for 20 more, instead of leasing them. The tender is planned for the first half of 2027.
According to the operator, buying is more economical over the trains’ service life than a leasing model.
The decision reverses the model SBB chose a year earlier, when it sought a 15-year operating lease, citing its strained finances.
The new fleet is to run mainly to Italy and France in the 2030s. SBB has not disclosed a budget or a delivery date.
Railpool orders up to 100 Vectron X locomotives
GERMANY: Leasing company Railpool has ordered up to 100 Vectron X locomotives from Siemens Mobility, the first large order for the manufacturer’s new locomotive generation. Fifty of the 80 firm units are dual-mode locomotives, the first in Railpool’s Vectron fleet.
First deliveries are scheduled for 2027. Neither company disclosed the value of the order.
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