We bring you this listing of free and low cost online rail and transport webinars, as well as interesting conferences, semi-regularly updated from around the world. Updated September 20, 2026.
● The webinar How High-Speed Rail Is Transforming Transportation: International Case Studies and Lessons hosted by Dr Francesca Pagliara, associate professor of transportation engineering, University of Naples Federico II, presents how high-speed rail has ushered in a new era marked by transformative, positive impact on economies and societies. Drawing from international case studies, she has identified a “top 10” list of measurable benefits of high-speed rail investment. From enhanced safety and energy efficiency to boosts in tourism, job creation, and GDP growth. The event takes place on Wednesday September 30, 2026 at 10:00-11:30 Eastern, 15:00-16:30 Greenwich. [new]
● The Technology in Rail 2026 virtual and hybrid session, in partnership with Hitachi Rail, features innovation meeting infrastructure, and where the future of UK rail is imagined, engineered, and accelerated. The event takes place on Friday September 10, 2026 at 9:30-13:30 Greenwich, 4:30-8:30 Eastern. [past]
● The Mineta Transportation Institute is presenting the webinar Moving Goods, Managing Impacts: Planning for Sustainable Freight. Dr. Serena Alexander will describe her research examining goods movement plans from eight major US regions, specifically how agencies are balancing economic competitiveness with sustainability, resilience, and equity. As well, which strategies are gaining ground, where freight planning continues to fall short, and how challenges around data, funding, and coordination are shaping the path forward. The event takes place on Thursday, September 17, 2026 at 12-12:30 Eastern, 17:00-17:30 Greenwich. [past]
Do double check all times when registering, as they are sometimes hosted in different countries and time zones, what with different, chaotic Daylight Savings regimes, or even better, no Daylight Savings at all.
North American In Person Events
● The International Tunnelling and Underground Space Association (ITA) hosted its World Tunneling Congress. The event took place 15-21 May 2026 in Montréal, Canada. [LR is preparing an article on this conference.]
● The international public transport association UITP will be hosting its North American Forum 2026, which will have presentations and discussions on the continent’s most critical mobility challenges. It will take place on 28-30 October 2026 in Montréal, Canada. [New]
● The Institution of Railway Signal Engineers (IRSE)'s Advanced Train Control (CBTC & Beyond) Conference will take place in 3-4 December 2026 in Toronto, Canada.
● The Airship Association and CanHav Alliance will be hosting the Up Ship! Ottawa 2026 conference on LTA (lighter than air) policy, industry, & innovation, is being rescheduled to Spring 2027 at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, Canada. [LR is preparing an article on the state of the art of modern airships.]
European & Global Conferences
● The International Conference On Electric Airships will be a three day event with speakers presenting on modern airship technical, environmental, and application aspects. Topics include drones, high altitude, surveillance, cargo, and passenger airships. The conference took place at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität in Nürnberg, Germany from 24 to 26 September 2025. [LR is preparing an article on the State of the Art of modern airship development and future trends.]
● The Transit Mapping Symposium two day event Hubs and Us took place in Hong Kong 6-7 November 2025. Contact the organiser for more information. [LR is featuring links to videos from this symposium on Friday and Monday Reads.]
On Demand Events
● The MIT Mobility Forum hosted the webinar How TfL Became One of the World's Most Integrated Transport Organizations. TfL's Chief Technology Officer, Shashi Verma, spoke about how TfL's mode integration reshaped not just how Londoners move, but also how the organisation itself thinks about its role in the city. The event took place on Friday May 29, 2026.
● The High Speed Rail Alliance hosted TrainTubers: A Panel of Creators United by Transit, featuring Thom de Boo (Trains Are Awesome), Keith Davis (Car Free Keith), & Alan Fisher for a virtual panel discussion about trains, content, passenger rail, and the role of content creation in transportation advocacy. Is media the key to getting everyone behind a less car-dependent future? The event took place on Friday April 24, 2026.
● The MIT Mobility Forum is hosting the webinar How TfL Became One of the World's Most Integrated Transport Organizations. TfL's Chief Technology Officer, Shashi Verma, will speak about how TfL's mode integration reshaped not just how Londoners move but also how the organisation itself thinks about its role in the city. Please note this Zoom session requires registration in advance. The event took place on Friday May 29, 2026.
● Magazine New Civil Engineer is presenting its talk How subterranean 3D modelling in road and rail differs from mining as an on demand webinar. The expert panelists explored how leading projects are already harnessing 3D subsurface modelling to transform the way road and rail infrastructure is planned and delivered. This includes: • What are the present and future capabilities of this kind of technology? • Can ever more complex projects continue using traditional PDF-based data? • How can project teams adapt to these new technological expectations?
● Hybrid Air Vehicles (ITDP) produced a webinar on How hybrid airship could transform maritime defence operations – A closer look at Airlander. Capt Ben Cohen, US Marines Corps and Gary Waterfall, HAV advisor, and former RAF Air Vice Marshal, discussed the role hybrid aircraft, like Airlander, can play in maritime operations such as logistics and communications in contested environments.
● The High Speed Rail Alliance is hosting a webinar Crossrail Chicago: The Foundation for a Modern Travel Network. This proposal aims to connect and upgrade existing Metra lines to create an electrified, passenger-dedicated mainline through the city. This link would provide intercity train service to key locations in downtown, as well as O’Hare International Airport. CrossRail Chicago would span the metro area with high-capacity, passenger-focused rail lines, and form the core of a Midwest high-speed rail network.
● The Eno Center for Transportation has recorded its webinar Trains, Buses, People: An Opinionated Atlas of US and Canadian Transit. Christof Spieler, Senior Lecturer, Rice University recently released the second edition of his wildly popular book Trains, Buses, People, which now covers eight Canadian cities & two new US cities. In this webinar he discusses the evolving conversation around transit in the past three years since the book originally published, plus updates around fare policies, wayfinding, transit governance structures, customer experience, and how to create inclusive transit systems that work for all riders.
● The Global Railway Review presents a free webinar on A strategic approach to deliver rail decarbonisation, featuring speakers from the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education (BCRRE) and the Railway Industry Association (RIA).
Found an event you'd like to share? Email Mike at LondonReconnections.com.
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