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One of the main trends in railway transport in recent years is replacing diesel engines with alternative ones. As all major manufacturers are responsive to market demands, they develop rolling stock on alternative traction.
EU: The Association of European Rolling Stock Lessors, AERRL, has published the first part of a study of such diesel alternatives as biofuel, biomethane, ammonia, batteries, and hydrogen in rail transport.
EU: Europe's Rail has updated its estimates of the potential costs of the DAC introduction on freight cars. The estimates and the initiative itself have attracted criticism by ZNPK, an association of minor operators from Poland.
France: The running gear is being developed for a prototype of the Leger low-floor battery-powered two-car train, which the national operator plans to launch on the country's low-density lines in 2029.
After having reported a spike in demand for its products and services amid challenges of the economic environment, the company has received the first orders for its France-based plant acquired from Alstom.
France: The American manufacturer has launched the MONITOR project. It implies fitting freight cars with sensors to monitor the condition of the braking system and bogies as well as to provide radio communication between cars.
EU: In January 2023, new public procurement rules came into force in the European Union. The first company to be affected by these rules is CRRC.
France: In September 2022, the second automatic metro line with trains by Siemens was launched in Rennes. Two months later, new rolling stock for Marseille and Île-de-France was unveiled at Alstom’s plant in Petite-Forêt.
France: The company plans to build a generator tender producing electricity from high-power hydrogen fuel cells by 2025.