‘Landmark’ research project seeks to understand FRMCS-ERTMS integration

EUROPE: The ‘landmark’ FP2-MORANE-2 research project has been launched to test Future Railway Mobile Communication System technology under real conditions in Europe.

FRMCS is the emerging telecoms standard being coordinated by UIC and partners to enable railways to make better use of next-generation communications technology including 5G and satellite connectivity.

The 34-month FP2-MORANE-2 project will assess how FRMCS can be integrated into the ERTMS train control technology. Current ERTMS deployments rely for radio and data communications on the increasingly life-expired GSM-R standard, which is based on 2G telecoms technology from the mid-1990s.

The project will test and foster market-ready specifications for signalling technology across Europe’s busiest railway lines, ensuring that these specifications are ready to be incorporated in future revisions of the EU’s Technical Specifications for Interoperability.

A series of FP2-MORANE-2 prototypes will be tested in …