Italian high-speed rail operator Italo is preparing a major expansion into Germany with a €3.6 billion investment plan aimed at challenging Deutsche Bahn’s dominance of the country’s long-distance rail market.
Tag: Alstom
REVIEW | Travelling Eurostar Premier class (Paris) – Brussels – Cologne
November and December 2017. During my solo trip to Taiwan – the vacation which was a catalyst to start Trip By Trip – I met Ugo. Fast forward to August 2025. Ugo is touring Europe and we decided to meet up. Showing him Antwerp was an option, but fitting the metropolis into his itinerary was…
BELGIUM | Rise of international trains puts pressure on the rail network: domestic services must not disappear
In three years, demand for train paths for international services in Belgium has almost doubled, De Standaard noticed. This is increasing pressure on the Belgian rail network, where more and more sections are being declared saturated, and it is also affecting the availability of domestic train services.
SNCF Voyageurs orders 15 extra Alstom Avelia Horizon TGV M, mostly for services to Brussels
In January 2026, SNCF Voyageurs confirmed an additional order for 15 next-generation TGV M high-speed trains from Alstom, underlining its ambitions to expand further across the European high-speed rail market.
NMBS / SNCB & CAF for MR30 / AM30 electric multiple units signed
Belgium’s National Railway Company NMBS / SNCB has formally signed the framework agreement for its future MR30 / AM30 electric multiple units with manufacturer Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) from the Basque Country in Spain.
How firm are Eurostar and Deutsche Bahn’s “2030s” Germany to London train link plans?
Deutsche Bahn and Eurostar have taken a significant step towatrds establishing a direct high-speed link between Germany and London in the United Kingdom, revealing in a joint press release on Thursday 4 December 2025 that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to explore a shared long-distance service connecting London with major German cities such…
Board of Directors of NMBS / SNCB awards MR30 / AM30 contract to CAF and orders first trains
“Following a European public procurement procedure launched in 2022 for the purchase of new multiple units, the Board of Directors of NMBS / SNCB decided this Friday to award the framework agreement to the manufacturer CAF“, a press release says.
NMBS / SNCB to order 180 CAF Civity trains, including battery-powered sets
The Board of Directors of the National Railway Company of Belgium, the NMBS / SNCB, is set to award the contract for the new MR30 / AM30 trains to manufacturer Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF) from the Basque Country in Spain, Thibault Lapers‘ mobilithib blog has learned from a source.
NS buys 36 new Stadler Flirt Flex trains for local, intercity, and international services
The Nederlandse Spoorwegen or NS, the Netherlands‘ state railway, ordered 36 new Stadler Flirt Flex, Sprinter in NS terminology, trains for over €400 million. Unlike the current Sprinter trains, the ultramodern trains, named Flirt Flex, will once again have the classic yellow-blue NS livery. The first trains are expected to enter Dutch service in 2030.
#CROSSCHANNELRAIL | Expanding UK-Europe train links most realistically leading to Switzerland
A new independent analysis has laid out the most comprehensive roadmap yet for expanding direct high-speed rail services between London in the United Kingdom and mainland Europe. The #CrossChannelRail Final Report, published on 17 November 2025, is the result of an unusually detailed investigation that included visits to sixty-three stations across the continent, technical assessments…