Construction of a light rail line has begun in Almaty, Kazakhstan. The 18.3 km route will link the industrial zone in the Alatau district with the city centre and Almaty-2 railway station, serving 34 stops. According to railwaygazette.com, the opening has been brought forward from the second quarter of 2029 to the end of 2027. In June the city signed a memorandum of understanding for the project with Integra Construction KZ and CRRC, which will supply the rolling stock.

In Berlin, the first of the longest trams ever ordered for the city entered service on July 15. The nine-section, 50 m long Urbanliner trams are intended to increase capacity on Route M4, which carries around 100,000 passengers per day with a service of up to 18 trams per hour per direction. The new vehicles, with capacity for 300 passengers, are replacing coupled pairs of Adtranz GT6N trams. Alstom is supplying 65 Urbanliner trams; a further 14 are due to enter service by the end of the year, with the remaining units following by 2030.

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Road Transport and Bridges has called tenders to design, manufacture and install electrification, signalling and telecommunications systems, platform screen doors and an enterprise resource management system for Dhaka’s metro Line 5, where preliminary works are underway.

TMH has handed over the first three four-car 81-765.5/766.5/767.5 series trainsets ordered by the Toshkent metro in April 2023. The next 11 are expected by the end of the year.

Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona has invited tenders for the supply of 35 trains from 2029 to increase service frequency and capacity, with an option for another four. Of the initial order, 22 trains would be allocated to metro Line 9 and the rest to lines 1 (four), 2 (three), 3 (five) and 4 (one). The procurement has a budget of 330 million euros to be funded by TMB and the Generalitat de Catalunya (51%), the city (25%) and the metropolitan area (24%). A previous tender which split the order into three lots attracted no bids.

Supported by the Asian Development Bank, Tbilisi City Council and Georgian Railways have called an international tender for a feasibility study into a suburban rail project which would use existing infrastructure.

Hong Kong transport operator MTR Corp is collaborating with creative brand AllRightsReserved on the Next Station: Chiikawa Artiverse campaign to promote a manga exhibition. Activities include decorations in Admiralty and Lok Ma Chau stations and a fantasy-themed light rail vehicle with handrails based on the characters and glow-in-the-dark stars on the exterior. MTR Mobile members who take 10 eligible rides by July 30 will receive 100 MTR Points and can enter a draw to win a ticket for the exhibition.

As part of the Zürich Trams for Vinnytsia financial and technical assistance project which has been running since 2006, Switzerland will cascade to the Ukrainian city a further 23 Tram 2000 cars manufactured in 1992-93. The first is scheduled to be handed over this summer.

Transport for Greater Manchester is offering people picking up or dropping off a Starling hire bike in Firswood, Chorlton and Salford Quays up to 20 minutes of free use during the period when Metrolink tram services are disrupted for track renewal works this summer.