Dear Readers
We are pleased to be supporting the International Rail Transit Forum 2026 (IRTF 2026) which will take place on 8 June 2026 at the AC Hotel by Marriott, Penang, Malaysia.
The International Rail Transit Forum 2026 (IRTF 2026) is a flagship platform designed to convene international rail stakeholders to accelerate practical collaboration, knowledge exchange, and partnership formation across the rail transit ecosystem. Hosted in Pulau Penang, Malaysia, IRTF 2026 brings together policymakers, regulators, rail operators, infrastructure owners, technology providers, OEMs, contractors, investors, urban developers, research institutions, and media to jointly advance a shared agenda for rail excellence. This inaugural forum is held in conjunction with the Symposium on Railway Infrastructure and Engineering (SRIE), building upon its legacy of technical excellence to foster even broader industry integration.
Anchored by the theme “The Great Shift: Paving the Road to Rail Excellence”, IRTF 2026 emphasises the transition from conventional, fragmented approaches toward integrated, performance-driven, and future-ready rail systems. The forum is structured to deliver outcomes that extend beyond dialogue—including curated business matchmaking, partnership pathways, and actionable post-event follow-up.
To view the brochure, visit: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1wF2ebQ1aC6LYA39mQwY3xTa9fS791dHa?usp=sharing
And to register to attend, visit: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSciQHZKm7sMo8r50QeouBkLQ_IrwQF3ETgsIIQLH-tINKdkfA/viewform
Best Regards
Rail Personnel
Rail News
DB InfraGO is pressing ahead with the ETCS rollout along Germany’s Rhine-Alpine Corridor, commissioning Alstom to equip a further 43 km of the key line near Düsseldorf by the end of 2029, the French supplier’s first call-off under DB’s €6.3bn digital signalling framework. The Alstom order targets 43 km between Ratingen West and Immigrath just east of Düsseldorf, bringing ETCS to an important stretch on one of the continent’s busiest freight axes. DB will overlay the legacy PZB system with ETCS Level 2.
Source: Railway Gazette
12 May 2026. Australia. Major excavation milestone reached on level crossing removal
Construction crews working on the Webster Street Level Crossing Removal Project have completed a major piling milestone, with 403 piles installed to support the walls of the new road underpass in Dandenong. More than 38,000 tonnes of soil have already been excavated as part of the project, representing around two-thirds of the total excavation required for the underpass. Works are continuing on the eastern side of the rail line, where crews are progressing excavation ahead of the next construction stages.
Source: Infrastructure Magazine
Seven nations have joined a U.S.-led initiative to develop a major economic corridor in the Philippines, expanding a multi-billion-dollar infrastructure project aimed at addressing regional supply chain vulnerabilities. The expansion of the Luzon Economic Corridor (LEC) brings in Australia, Denmark, France, Italy, South Korea, Sweden and the United Kingdom, joining the founding members—the Philippines, the United States and Japan.
Source: Bilyonaryo
12 May 2026. Taiwan. Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp unveils ‘platypus’ trainset
Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp has unveiled the first of 12 N700ST trainsets ordered from the Hitachi Toshiba Supreme Consortium to boost capacity. THSRC Chairman Shih Che travelled to Japan to inspect and unveil the first trainset on April 30. Deliveries are scheduled to run from August 2026 through the end of 2028, with entry into service from August 2027. THSRC currently operates a fleet of 34 N700T high speed trainsets.
Source: Railway Gazette
11 May 2026. Vietnam. Vietnam Railways accelerates digital transformation and green transition
Vietnam Railways is accelerating digitalization and clean energy initiatives to improve operational efficiency, reduce emissions and strengthen the competitiveness of the railway sector in Vietnam. The railway network currently operates around 2,600 km of track, supported by 258 locomotives and approximately 4,000 passenger and freight carriages. Following a pandemic-related slowdown, the sector recovered in 2025, transporting about 40 million passengers and more than 5 million tonnes of cargo.
Source: Southeast Infrastructure
A new 150 million GBP phase of renovations is set to begin on Greater Manchester’s tram network later this month as essential track replacement work aims to improve both network safety and resilience. As a result, no trams will run between Victoria and Rochdale town centre from Saturday 16 to Friday 29 May due to improvement work taking place on the Oldham-Rochdale line.
Source: Railway News
Spain’s first fully regional account‑based ticketing (ABT) system has reached a significant deployment milestone, with more than 50% of Galicia’s interurban transport services now live on a single, unified platform. The Galician Mobility Platform 4.0 (MoBT), delivered for the Xunta de Galicia in partnership with Plexus Tech, is powered by Masabi’s Justride account‑based ticketing platform and represents one of Europe’s most ambitious regional fare collection programmes to date.
Source: Rail Technology Magazine
HS2 has completed a series of major construction milestones across the route between London and the West Midlands, as the organisation continues its programme reset while maintaining a strong focus on safety, productivity and value for money. In a project update, Mark Wilde, CEO of HS2, highlighted progress across tunnelling, stations, viaducts and earthworks, while reaffirming that safety remains the programme’s top priority for its workforce of more than 30,000 people.
Source: Rail Technology Magazine
11 May 2026. Australia. Federal investment backs freight rail upgrades
The Federal Government has announced a further $1.75 billion investment in Australia’s freight rail network, alongside a new $55 million incentive scheme aimed at moving more freight by rail and sea. The funding builds on the Government’s existing $1.04 billion commitment to upgrade the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) network, taking the total investment in the Network Investment Program to almost $2.8 billion. The investment will support upgrades across the ARTC.
Source: Infrastructure Magazine
8 May 2026. Singapore. Hitachi Rail Awarded LTSS Contract for NEL’s ISCS in Singapore
Hitachi Rail has been awarded a new, long-term service support (LTSS) contract to manage obsolescence treatment for the Northeast Line (NEL) Integrated Supervision Control System (ISCS). Hitachi has worked closely with SBS Transit Rail since 2003, having supported the original ISCS for SBS Transit’s first MRT line. This new initiative marks a significant milestone for Hitachi Rail’s local footprint.
Source: Railway News
The Public-Private Partnership Center reported that the Philippines now has 252 public-private partnership (PPP) projects in its pipeline, with a total value of PHP3.16 trillion.
Of these, 168 projects worth PHP3.02 trillion will be implemented by the national government, while 84 projects valued at PHP136.26 billion will be led by local government units. Most initiatives (194) are government-solicited, with the remainder being unsolicited proposals.
Source: Southeast Infrastructure
