Trains

We're seeing a growing emphasis on direct air capture technology in our efforts to combat climate change, and an interesting new take on this technology could see it put to use on railways around the world.

The 600,000 Dutch that travel daily by train will now do so thanks purely to wind energy, with the national rail operator Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS) announcing that 100 percent of its passenger trains will be powered by the renewable source from January onwards.

​If you're trying to monitor railways for wear and tear, why not just use something that's already on the tracks all the time … trains? That's the idea behind the Tracksure system, which looks for trouble using an inexpensive sensor that can be easily added to locomotives.

Researchers from New York's Stony Brook University have developed a device capable of harvesting energy from train-induced rail track vibrations to power signal lights, structural monitoring systems or even track switches.

The electricity from braking electric trains can now be efficiently reused thanks to a program carried out by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA).

The Coalition for Sustainable Rail is aiming to convert a 1937 locomotive into the world’s first carbon-neutral higher-speed locomotive.

A two mile rail tunnel in Belgium that's had 16,000 solar panels installed on its roof has just gone into service.

The T-box concept would be installed between railway sleepers, and would harness the wind of passing trains to generate electricity.

A project to build a 220mph solar-powered bullet train would not only dramatically improve travel times, it would be much better for the environment.