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PARIS, France (AFP) — Metro and rail services in Paris and its suburbs will be cut to a minimum as part of the nationwide coronavirus lockdown, officials said Wednesday. Both Paris transport operator RATP and national rail group SNCF have already sharply reduced services since the home confinement orders came into effect on March 17. They apply to all but essential employees and those who cannot work from home. Starting Thursday, about 50 of the […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — French health workers will get free transport on the country’s high-speed and intercity trains, France’s state rail operator the SNCF announced on Monday. The rail operator was responding to an appeal by Paris hospitals for people with medical or paramedical training to come and reinforce their staff. Doctors, nurses and other medical staff will be able to travel for free to help in the fight against the virus, if they get […]
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AFP) — Hungary became the latest European country to announce drastic restrictions on public life Monday, closing its borders and curtailing movement in a bid to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. “We are closing Hungary’s borders to passenger traffic,” Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in a speech in parliament on Monday. “The international talks to coordinate this is taking place now, this means that in future only Hungarian citizens will be […]
LIMA, Peru (AFP) — The death toll from the explosion of a gas tanker in Lima last month has risen to 30, Peru’s ministry of health said Thursday. Two women and a man were the most recent to succumb to burns from a fireball that occurred when the tanker truck carrying 10,000 liters (2,642 gallons) of liquefied gas exploded on January 23. Initially, only two people were killed and 50 injured, but the death toll […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was set Tuesday to announce his plans for the HS2 high-speed railway, with reports suggesting he will stick with the long-running project despite soaring costs. HS2, which would quicken rail journeys between London in southeast England and cities to the north of the capital, has been dogged by controversy owing to projected spiraling costs and damage to wildlife. It is forecast that the project, aimed […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — Japan sent a naval destroyer to the Middle East on Sunday for a rare overseas mission to ensure the safety of its ships amid lingering tension between Iran and the US. The vessel left the Yokosuka naval base, south of Tokyo, for an information-gathering mission in the Gulf of Oman, northern parts of the Arabian Sea and parts of the Gulf of Aden. Japan earlier decided not to take part in […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — A number of airlines say they are halting or reducing flights to China as the country struggles to contain the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus sweeping the country. China has advised its citizens to postpone trips abroad and canceled overseas group tours, while several countries have urged their citizens to avoid travel to China if possible. The epidemic has killed 132 people, infected more than 6,000 worldwide, and spread to […]
BEIJING, China (AFP) — China has ordered nationwide measures to identify and immediately isolate suspected cases of a deadly virus on trains, aeroplanes and buses, as the death toll and number of patients has skyrocketed. Inspection stations will be set up and passengers with suspected pneumonia must be “immediately transported” to a medical centre, the National Health Commission said in a statement. The isolation of suspected cases must be followed by disinfection of the […]
MANILA, Philippines (AFP) — The Philippines’ largest budget airline Cebu Air Inc has ordered 16 Airbus planes worth $4.8 billion, the carrier said Monday, as it aims to expand carrying capacity with larger, more fuel-efficient jets. Cebu Air, commonly referred to as Cebu Pacific, said it sees the long-range A330neo jetliner as key to lowering its per-seat costs and maximizing the airport slots it already has. The company will use the new planes for […]
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AFP) — Malaysia’s competition watchdog on Thursday threatened to hit Grab with a $21 million fine for practices that allegedly reduce competition, the latest problem for the ride-hailing giant. Grab is the biggest ride-hailing firm in Southeast Asia, and has strengthened its hold on the market since buying US rival Uber’s operations in the region last year. But the Singapore-headquartered firm has come under scrutiny from regulators in several countries due […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Five people were injured in a fire that broke out at a new high-speed train station in Saudi Arabia’s western city of Jeddah on Sunday, state television reported, with huge palls of smoke seen rising into the air. The station serves the main Haramain High-Speed Rail system. The route opened to the public in October last year, taking passengers between Mecca and Medina, Islam’s holiest sites. “Five people who sustained […]
SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Uber on Tuesday said it was laying off about eight percent of its product and engineering teams as the smartphone-summoned ride service tries to map a route to profitability. The San Francisco-based company is cutting about 265 people from its engineering group and another 170 or so jobs from its product team, a spokesman told AFP. While a fast-growing startup, ranks of Uber employees swelled to more than […]
