In 2022, the COVID-19 pandemic continued to be a stress-test for all stakeholders but not only that. The year has seen a succession of other crises, such as the military aggression of Ukraine by Russia, unstable supply chain, an energy crisis, a debate about critical raw materials and a price hike due to inflation.

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Telematics applications ensure constant interfaces and dialogue between the train and the infrastructure at all stages of the process.

The electrification of the European railways is progressing with around half of the network already upgraded.

Noise pollution is one of the most widespread public health threats in industrialised countries and the second largest environmental cause of health problems in the EU, impacting the railway sector and rail operations.

The ‘European Rail Traffic Management System’ (ERTMS) is the European standard for automatic train protection.

On 24th February 2022, Russia launched a military aggression against Ukraine. As a response, the EU launched a series of packages of sanctions.

The EU budget is crucial to translating EU Members States’ political priorities into concrete programmes and activities.

In Europe, some rail infrastructure managers own or operate stations. In some cases, the operational part of station management is delegated to another entity, which could also be a railway undertaking.

Under the “Horizon Europe” multiannual research and innovation (R&I) programme (2021-2027) the European Union and the rail industry have funded the Joint Undertaking “Europe’s Rail”.

Drone technology has grown at a very fast pace, developing applications in various fields.

The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is a set of rail, road, air and water transport networks in the European Union.

Interoperability of rail operations and traffic management across Europe is crucial for the safety of passenger and freight trains, in particular for cross border services.

The rail sector is fully engaged in addressing the important societal need for better accessibility of persons with disabilities to public infrastructure.

Track Access Charges (TACs) are the charges payable by a Railway Undertaking (RU) to an Infrastructure Manager (IM) for running a train on the IM’s railway network.

Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move along a railway, i.e. powered and unpowered vehicles such as locomotives (including on-track machines – OTMs) and passenger carriages.

To ensure a high-level of safety, Rail Infrastructure Managers (IMs) are committed to delivering a safe, high performing and reliable rail network.

The digitalisation of rail increases cybersecurity threats for IT systems for Rail Infrastructure Managers (IMs) but also Railway Undertakings (RUs).