28-654: EuroMaint AB LEO Mobility s.r.o. Leo Express s.r.o. Leo Express Slovensko s.r.o. Leo Express , formerly known as Rapid Express , is an open-access train operator in the Czech Republic , established in 2010. It launched inter-city services in November 2012 on the Prague – Ostrava route, on which state-owned operator Czech Railways and open-access operator RegioJet were already running trains. The company runs train services between around 30 cities in
56-521: A dark purple lower-case wordmark designed by Interbrand. Separate logos used by the other sectors were also replaced, but the old Renfe logo remains in use in some stations in Spain and on maps to indicate an ADIF station. The Railway Sector Act, 2003 separated the management, maintenance and construction of rail infrastructure from train operation. The first activity is now the responsibility of Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias (ADIF), while
84-544: A service between Kraków and Prague; the approval made the company the first private operator of long-distance trains in Poland. On 20 December 2019, in cooperation with the Polish regional train operator Koleje Dolnośląskie , Leo Express commenced services between Prague and Wroclaw ; separately, at the time of the launch, the company had secured a permit from Polish authorities to operate a service between Krakow and Medyka on
112-478: A special meaning: Travel tickets are available from rail stations and online. In 2023 the European Commission initiated an investigation into concerns that Renfe might have been abusing its dominant position in the online ticketing market by refusing to share journey time information with competing ticketing websites. Renfe offered a number of commitments intended to address these concerns, which
140-461: Is Spain 's national state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Spanish National Railway Network (RENFE) into the Administrador de Infraestructuras Ferroviarias (ADIF), which inherited the infrastructure, and Renfe-Operadora, which inherited the railway service. The name "Renfe" (acronym of Re d N acional de los F errocarriles E spañoles )
168-427: Is 350 km/h (220 mph). The greater part of the line (Madrid to Lleida ) was entered service on 11 October 2003, with a connection to Huesca from Zaragoza . The third high-speed line (Madrid to Toledo ) was opened in November 2005, followed by a spur from Córdoba to Málaga as far as Antequera in 2007. Another high-speed route from Madrid to Valladolid was opened in 2007. A line from Madrid to Valencia
196-468: Is an operator that takes full commercial risk, running on infrastructure owned by a third party and buying paths on a chosen route and, in countries where rail services run under franchises, are not subject to franchising. This rail-transport related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . RENFE Renfe ( Spanish pronunciation: [ˈreɱfe] , Eastern Catalan: [ˈreɱfə] ), officially Renfe-Operadora ,
224-401: Is derived from that of the former Spanish National Railway Network created on 24 January 1941 with the nationalisation of Spain's railways. As per EU Directive 91/440 , Renfe was divided into Renfe Operadora (operations) and ADIF (infrastructure) on 1 January 2005. At the same time, the existing Renfe logo (nicknamed the "galleta", Spanish for biscuit), first introduced in 1971, was replaced by
252-460: Is predominantly black with golden details, along with the company's white logo being placed in prominent locations. On 5 February 2012, the first of these trains was formally delivered to the company. On 27 September 2016, Leo Express signed an order for CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive to supply three electric multiple unit trains in mid-2018; the arrangement includes a framework agreement for up to 30 more which would be delivered between 2019 and 2021. At
280-621: The Belgian coast to Bratislava. Leo Express operates a fleet of black livery buses between Bohumín (Silesia), Katowice and Kraków (Poland) which run twice per day. In June 2015, the operator introduced a new network branded LEO Express Easy, which runs connections between Prague , Tábor , České Budějovice and Český Krumlov as well as between Košice , Michalovce , Uzhhorod and Mukachevo . The company's bus timetables are integrated with their train timetables. Open access operator In rail transport , an open-access operator
308-509: The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland . The company also runs buses to Poland, Germany , Austria , Southern Bohemia and Ukraine . On 13 November 2012, a trial passenger service was launched by the company, with the launch of a full service having been scheduled for 9 December 2012. However, due to reported technical issues with the rolling stock, full services were delayed until 18 January 2013. Under this full service timetable,
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#1732793821871336-479: The Prague–Bohumín route. Initially, Leo Express operated five Stadler Flirt five-car electric multiple units , which have been specially adapted to perform long-distance services. These have been claimed by the company to provide the fastest acceleration of any train operating in the Czech Republic, achieved via its modern and lightweight design and relatively powerful engines; these are also capable of attaining
364-644: The acquisition was reportedly completed, making RENFE the primary partner in Leo Express. In July 2022, Leo Express became unable to continue operating services between Nedakonice and Říkovice on the Břeclav–Přerov corridor due to its conversion from 3 kV DC to 25 kV AC electrification. Although the Flirt units are capable of being upgraded to support 25 kV AC operation, such an upgrade has not yet been performed. Instead, it has made use of free train capacity on
392-434: The company announced a partnership with the rideshare specialist Uber in major cities. Via this partnership, Leo Express has implemented its concept of door-to-door public transportation, Uber drivers can be scheduled to pick up passengers from their homes and delivered to the nearest station, and vice versa. During September 2017, Leo Express partnered with the international ticket retailer Trainline , under which tickets for
420-471: The company ran a regular service between Prague and Bohumín , calling in at Pardubice , Olomouc , Hranice , Přerov , Suchdol nad Odrou , Studénka and Ostrava . Additionally, a single service per day ran further to Karviná, Třinec , Český Těšín , Žilina , Poprad–Tatry and Košice in Slovakia. Within three years, Leo Express services had reportedly carried two million passengers. In March 2015,
448-532: The connection to the rest of the European railway system. For this reason, the 1,435 mm gauge is generally termed "European gauge" in Spain. Construction of a high-speed rail line between Madrid and Seville began in 1988 and began operations in 1991, going 300 km/h (190 mph). The second high-speed rail line (Madrid to Barcelona ) was completed in 2007 with the inaugural service commencing on 20 February 2008. The operational speed on this route
476-503: The country's border with Ukraine , and sought approval for another service between Kraków and Warsaw as well. In April 2020, Leo Express was compelled to reduce or cancel many of its services, and public concerns over the future of the overall business were aired, as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the Czech Republic . Months later, the company resumed operation of its Czech, Slovakian and Polish services. During late 2021, it
504-701: The firing of the executives deemed responsible. Fortunately, the trains were still being designed, however the Cercanía commuter trains will be delayed until 2026. Subsequently, transport officials including the president of Renfe and the Secretary of State for Transport resigned. In November 2024, Renfe bought a 33% shareholding in Arenaways . Renfe-Operadora utilises the following rolling stock and commercial products inside of its two divisions: All classes are designated by three numbers. The first digit has
532-536: The former's services became available for purchase on the latter's sales channels. Shortly thereafter, Leo Express also formed a partnership with the German open-access operator FlixTrain to collaborate on services in the German market. On 26 April 2018, in partnership with Leo Express, FlixTrain launched its first service on the Berlin to Stuttgart route. In October 2017, Leo Express was granted open-access rights for
560-655: The market with other commuter railway operators, such as FGC . In 2019, Renfe solicited bids for 31 new trains for the Asturias and Cantabria regions and the €258m contract was awarded to the CAF ( Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles ) in June 2020. Around February 2023, authorities discovered the designs were for the wrong loading gauge and would be too wide for the tunnels. Amidst international embarrassment, Renfe and ADIF each tried to deflect responsibility, and some called for
588-538: The maximum national speed of 160km/h. The interior has been designed for intercity travelers, and has been configured to provide three travelling classes: Economy, Business and Premium. In Premium Class, the seats are foldable to a sleeping position. Various amenities are present on these trains, including full air conditioning , Wi-Fi coverage, information and entertainment systems, onboard catering, ecologically closed toilets, wheelchair-accessible facilities, and daily newspapers and magazines. The livery used by Leo Express
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#1732793821871616-450: The newly created Renfe-Operadora (also known as Grupo Renfe or simply Renfe) owns the rolling stock and remains responsible for the planning, marketing and operation of the passenger and freight services. Renfe no longer has a monopoly on domestic passenger services due to Ouigo España launching in 2021, followed by Iryo in 2022. Renfe-Operadora inherited the management model of the old Renfe, which made Renfe-Operadora responsible for
644-405: The operation of the passenger and freight services. In January 2006, Renfe-Operadora restructured the main business units into four general directorates: In June 2013, Renfe's board agreed to restructure the group into four separate companies under the holding company: The company operates some 12,000 km (7,500 mi) of railways, 7,000 km (4,300 mi) of them electrified. Most of
672-569: The operator became the only Czech carrier to have acquired this certification in Germany; it is the fourth country in which Leo Express is permitted to operate, in addition to the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovakia. In March 2021, it was announced that the Spanish national operator RENFE was set to acquire a 50 percent stake in Leo Express; the operator stated that it sought to develop its business footprint outside of Spanish market. In August 2021,
700-466: The time, this order was stated as supporting the operator's plans to expand beyond the Czech Republic and Slovakia. However, in April 2022, reports emerged that Leo Express had cancelled its contract with CRRC, after undergoing two years of testing but failing to achieve certification based on European TSI regulations to allow operation. As of 2023, Leo announced intentions for a service from Oostende on
728-492: The tracks are constructed to the broad Iberian gauge of 1,668 mm ( 5 ft 5 + 21 ⁄ 32 in ), the same as that used in Portugal but wider than the international gauge of 1,435 mm ( 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ) which is standard in most of the rest of the world. The newer high-speed ( AVE ) network has been built to the international standard gauge of 1,435 mm for
756-609: Was announced that the partnership between Leo Express and FlixTrain had been dissolved, reportedly due to FlixTrain's temporary suspension of operations as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic damage that Leo Express sustained as a result; Leo Express stated its intention to seek new opportunities within the German market. During November 2020, Germany's Federal Railway Authority (EBA) certified Leo Express to operate passenger services within Germany, either as an independent operator or through third parties. Accordingly,
784-682: Was opened in 2010, and the first stage of a high-speed line in Galicia opened in 2011. A line to Lisbon is being designed. Other lines operated by Renfe include Euromed , a moderate-speed line between Barcelona and Alicante. In addition to intercity transport, Renfe operates commuter train systems, known as Cercanías (or Rodalies in Catalonia and Cercanías-Aldirikoak in the Basque Country), in eleven metropolitan areas, including Madrid and Barcelona. In some cities, Renfe shares
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