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The end of December 2025 saw me visit family, but with a brief opportunity to go out around the East Midlands area, sampling the new Class 810 sets entering service with East Midlands Railway January 2026 was also a quiet month, with a few unusual moves As always, click on the photos to view them all Regards, Kieran

Something built 70 years ago does not provide context. I could for instance say there was a massive and quick building programme across Germany from January/February 1945, but it's wouldn't solve the housing issues here. The world has changed (sometimes better sometimes worse), whether you like it or not. Woodbrook has been built and opened just as development started opening up, the Green Line was extended to Bride's Glen when it was a field (and now very much is not), same with Saggart, so there are several cases where things have happened for the regular passenger. Woodbrook cost €24m as a guide. As I said, Adare is a different matter and funded in a different way. There's also Galway station, Oranmore loop, Cork Area Commuter Project, DART+, Metro - all which funding of €3m would help but (particularly for the latter) not make much of an impact. The €3m will more than likely be recouped through the significant footfall for the week across the country, which if you lobby your local TD could then go to public transport funding. Or other services that are needed. There's far more pressing concerns about public spending! You're entitled to your opinion, and I'll leave it at that.

The reality and truth is how things are funded. IÉ can do little if the Department for Transport restricts the budget, whereas something like Adare gets funding from other avenues (the Ryder Cup organisation itself for one is very much pushing public transport as an option, be it rail to Adare or Limerick, and park and ride services across the Limerick area). And there's been a lot of work in the background before public announcements so it's not "in haste". Get your local TD to push for additional rail and public transport funding. And opening a station in 1957 is hardly "in context".

The rest of my quick Finnish December trip is now online Day 2 was mainly in the Helsinki area, capturing the Valmet trams before they disappear and exploring the Metro system Day 3 was a long circular trip from Helsinki to Ylivieska, across to Iisalmi with the only booked Sr1 + Eif + Eifl working, and back to Helsinki via Kouvola Day 4 was another day around Helsinki before my flight back to Dublin, with the new Sm7 unit on trial contrasting with the pair of Sr1s on the evening sleeper Regards, Kieran

In December 2025 I paid my now traditional visit to Finland. Although a shorter trip than previous due to having used a fair bit of leave to go to Japan, still managed a fair bit! Day 1 saw me go from the airport into Helsinki, out to Kouvola, across to Riihimäki via Lahti (and a Sm2) and back to Helsinki to check into the hotel. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

RPSI have been a Railway Undertaking in the Republic for many years at this stage (at least since 19 December 2014). Northern operations were under Translink until recently.

November 2025 saw me start the month in London for the Arch Enemy / Eluvietie concert in The Apollo, along with a mix of Irish content including Steam Loco 171's first runs following overhaul. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

RIP Paddy And it should be remembered that the 141/181s weren't the first proper Irish diesel outline locos he developed, the Lima 201s too some 7 years before helping to kick start the market, along with previous commissions

Photos from the final full day in Germany, being mainly in the Frankfurt area having explored a bit of the more unknown side of Frankfurt's past, this being Dulag Luft (or rather the site of) just outside Frankfurt. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Day 3 in Germany was split into two halves. The first half was in the DB Museum in Koblenz, a wonderful old-school working museum that hosts mainly the electric loco collection, as well as being a mainline operating base for the DB Historic fleet. It's very much a "wander around, don't hurt yourself" feel to it! The second half was a couple of hours at Oberwesel on the Rhine, watching the trains go past on both sides of the river in glorious sunshine Regards, Kieran

Day 2 in Germany in August 2025, with a trip from Frankfurt to Fulda and Niederheimbach. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Following on from my Japan experience, I stayed a few days in Frankfurt (the main reason being that's where the Lufthansa 747-8 from Tokyo dropped me off!). Photos from Day 1 in Germany, covering Frankfurt and Köln with some retro locos around Köln Hansaring. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

My final full day in Japan was around the Tokyo and Yokohama areas, visiting the Tokyu museum and having a look from the outside at the J-TREC (formerly Tokyu) factory where the 2600, 2800 and 85xx fleets were built. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Day 9 in Japan was mainly getting from Kyoto back to Tokyo and out to Haneda airport via the Tokyo Monorail. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

The Presidential Mk2 5408 was 5406, they swapped identities for reasons I've never quite understood!

The Western Rail Corridor has not currently progressed past Approval Gate 1, which is preliminary business case (and is Transport Appraisal Framework Module 4 for anyone really interested). 2030 looking rather optimistic for that!

Day 8 in Japan, which was in the Kyoto area including the Kyoto Railway Museum. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Day 7 of my Japanese adventure, this mainly being a travel day from Nagasaki to Kyoto, with a couple of Nagasaki trams thrown into the mix. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Everything ended up where it should be. Only took an interest the other day due to unusual stabling locations

Day 6 in Japan was a day in Nagasaki. The Nagasaki Electric Tramway operates a fascinating collection of trams, dating from between 1950 and 2024. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Continuing the Japanese adventure, mainly a transfer day from Hiroshima to Nagasaki, followed by some evening tram spotting in Nagasaki. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Day 4 in Japan was initially at the Hiroshima hypocentre memorial (being 6 August), then heading for a round trip on some classic Japanese railcars, before a bit of tram spotting (including a 1940 built Osaka tram) in the Hiroshima city centre area. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

Quite common. All the major manufacturers have at some point filed such things in various countries. Alstom did so against Siemens for winning the Eurostar contract, Siemens and Alstom have done the same for the SNCB contract that was awarded to CAF for the AM30 fleet order. All these style of contracts have a standstill period between award and announcement specifically for this in case the contract was given not according to the rules (and it has happened that the contract award was deemed illegal and had to be rerun). Most of the time it's a final throw of the dice to try and win the contract

Day 3 of my Japanese trip, mainly being a transfer day between Tokyo and Hiroshima with some time at Tenjingawa one station out of Hiroshima. Click on the photo below to view them all Regards, Kieran

2 DDs and 1 ICR unless a DD fails