EU-Rail’s Innovation Pillar (IP) is tasked to deliver operational and technological solutions that contribute to a more efficient, flexible, and demand-led, yet safe and environmentally sustainable European railway system. The activities undertaken aim at large-scale demonstrations and they also cover technologies of all readiness levels as well as exploratory research. EU-Rail thus not only builds on the outputs achieved under the Shift2Rail programme but extends the scope from planning to operations reaching higher development levels. To this end, EU-Rail provides financial support in the form of calls for proposals following open, transparent, and competitive calls.

The Research & Innovation activities under the IP are aligned with the areas of priority defined within the EU Rail Master Plan and implemented in the Innovation pillar by:

• European rail traffic management and supporting rail’s key role in a multimodal transport system
• Digital and Automated Train Operations
• Sustainable and Digital Assets
• Competitive Digital Green Rail Freight
• Smart Solutions for Low Density Traffic Lines (cost-efficient regional railways)
• Transversal topics: data and digital enablers
• Exploratory research and paradigm shifts

To realise these priorities, seven Flagship Areas (FAs) have been defined in the Multi-Annual Work Programme as an integrated set of R&I activities to achieve a system impact, which may be implemented with Flagship Projects (FPs), complemented by Transversal Topics works. In addition, new and disruptive ideas are continuously scouted in the form of Exploratory Research activities that challenge traditional approaches and practices, promote behaviour and organisational change, and thus help to accelerate the innovation, scientific knowledge generation and sharing or technological advances integration from other sectors into the railway system.