March 15 – The Osaka Higashi Line is scheduled to open in Osaka, Japan; the opening was originally scheduled for 2006, but delayed due to problems acquiring land.
July 5 – Meeting between Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador regarding a proposed rail link for freight and passengers between the three countries, also connecting the Pacific with the Atlantic.
* – LNER-design Peppercorn Class A1 60163 Tornado makes first official move under its own steam, the first main line steam locomotive built in Britain since 1960.
– The project to rebuild and upgrade Guiyang Southern Station to more than double its capacity is expected to be completed.
Unknown date events
– Indian Railways expects to complete the conversion of its electrified section in Mumbai from a 1,500 voltDC system to 25,000 volts AC; this will make the Mumbai section's electrification consistent with the rest of Indian Railways' network.
– Pakistan will begin construction of a major railway line in Afghanistan. An initial 10.5 km stretch of track will be laid from Pakistan border town of Chaman to Spin Boldak in Afghanistan at cost of USD 11.5m. A second phase envisages extending line to Kandahar for eventual connection via the western city of Herat to Khushka in Turkmenistan. The final phase would link 1676mm gauge with Central Asian 1524mm gauge. It is not clear where the break of gauge station will be.
Accidents
April 28 – 2008 Shandong train collision: Sixty-six people are killed and almost 250 injured when a passenger train from Beijing careers off the rails and slams into another train in eastern China. The rail accident, the worst in China in more than a decade, happens near the city of Zibo in Shandong province.
August 8 – 2008 Studénka train wreck: A EuroCity train en route to Prague strikes a part of a motorway bridge that has fallen onto the track near Studénka station and derails, killing 8 people and injuring 64 others.
September 12 – 2008 Chatsworth train collision: A Metrolink commuter train, having passed a signal at danger, collides head-on into a Union Pacific freight train in Los Angeles, killing 25 and injuring 130.
