The delayed high speed railway line between Istanbul and Ankara will be opened on July 25. Originally due to start services in May, the line has been hit with problems due to cable thefts on the line. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan will formally open the line. The new line will cut journey times between the […]
With the UAE’s new national railway network starting full operations soon, Etihad Rail has begun a national safety campaign to warn people who go near its tracks of the dangers of trains. Many thousands of people a year are hit by trains all over the world, and so far on the construction phase of the […]
With Stage One of the UAE rail network complete, Etihad Rail is planning on awarding the Design and Build contract of Stage Two of the network, which will comprise of 630 km of new track. British engineering company Atkins has completed the first phase of the Stage Two contract, the preliminary engineering work. The next […]
Minister of Transport Abbas Aknoundi announced that an Iran - European railway link will be improved with the upgrade of the Tabriz - Miyaneh route. An additional line is being laid on the 200km route and though used by diesel locomotives at present, the Minister said that it can easily be electrified to allow high […]
With the creation of the GCC Railway network there has to be common standards in order for trains, passengers and cargo to cross the six nations involved in the project. This week, the Saudi Railway Company and Etihad Rail, the two authorities with the most advanced projects within the GCC Network, have announced the formation […]
Turkey’s Undersecretary of the Treasury, Ibrahim Çanakci, and European Investment Bank (EIB) Vice-President responsible for Turkey, Pim van Ballekom signed an agreement to upgrade the lines either side of the Marmaray Tunnel to connect the European rail network with Asia. The EIB has agreed to lend €200 million to Turkey to upgrade the lines. It […]
The long awaited high speed railway connecting Ankara to Istanbul is set for completion and operation by the end of this month. It will significantly reduce travel times between Turkey’s two major cities and connect the European and Asian sections of the country. With the new line rated for train travel at 250km/h, it will […]
Locomotive testing has begun on the Istanbul - Eskisehir section of the high speed line which is under construction between Istanbul and Ankara. No opening date has been announced for full operation. The line between Ankara and Eskisehir has been running since 2009 but is being extended to Istanbul. Test runs have begun at 40km/h […]
Kuwait’s Ministry of Communications (MoC) is leading the country’s plans to develop a 511 km rail network in the country. It is advertising for a company to become a Transaction Advisor to take the network from idea to full operation. Kuwait is planning a 511 km freight and passenger network which will include 200 km/h […]
Amidst rumours of difficulties in procuring the land to build the track along the planned route, the deadline for completion of the El Haramein railway linking Jeddah with Mecca and Medina has been delayed by a year and is now expected to be fully operational by 2016. The budget for the build has gone up […]
