A body of the
European Union
Access the list of all EU-Rail Calls for Proposals.
On 21 June 2024, the Governing Board of Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking (EU-Rail) adopted a Call for Expression of Interest (CEI) with a view to selecting associated members with the potential to contribute to the achievement of its objectives. The Governing Board decision can be accessed here.
Discover detailed information about procurment rules and information.
Access detailed information about past tenders.
Europe's Rail regularly published Calls for Tenders. To find out about open Calls, follow link below.
Article 15 (Principle of transparency) of the EU-Rail financial rules states that the JU shall make available on its internet site no later than 30 June of the following financial year information on the recipients of funds deriving from its budget.
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 System Pillar provides governance, resource, and outputs to support a coherent and coordinated approach to the evolution of the rail system and the development of the system view.
The Deployment Group advises the EU-Rail Governing Board on the market uptake of rail innovation developments and support their deployment.
For a successful and effective implementation of the Digital Automatic Coupler for European rail freight (DAC), it is of crucial importance to have open, close and efficient cooperation between rail stakeholders. The European DAC Delivery Programme enabled by Europe’s Rail, offers a unique European platform for such cooperation and collaboration.
Discover how Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking is calling for a bold, coordinated investment strategy to simplify and modernise rail systems across the EU. This public-private partnership model – outlined in our High-Level Paper – proposes an €18 billion investment from 2028 to 2034 to strengthen European competitiveness, deliver greener transport, and drive technological sovereignty.
The Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking is the predecessor programme of the Europe's Rail Joint Undertaking (EU-Rail), established by Council Regulation (EU) 2021/2085 of 19 November 2021.
Discover detailed information on Europe's rail innovation initiatives, showcasing flagship and other projects aimed at enhancing rail systems across Europe. It highlights collaborative efforts funded by the European Union to develop sustainable, efficient, and competitive rail transport solutions.
Europe’s Rail Catalogue of Solutions illustrates successful R&I results in the form of possible products and solutions, while highlighting the benefits for final users, operators, infrastructure managers and/or suppliers. This publication also outlines the advantages of integrating demonstrators into market solutions so that they can deliver the rail innovation Capabilities of the future.
Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking (EU-Rail) is the European partnership on rail research and innovation established under the Horizon Europe programme (2020-2027) and the universal successor of the Shift2Rail Joint Undertaking.
Find out the full list of Europe's Rail Members.
Discover the full structure and governance of Europe's Rail, including the decisions of the Governing Board.
Get access to Europe's Rail main reference documents, including Annual Work Plans, Annual Activity Reports, Annual Accounts and other important information.
This systematic review of studies across transport sectors shows that successful transitions to automated operations depend mainly on organizational and human factors rather than technology alone. The main barriers are system complexity, poor adoption, and stakeholder misalignment, while strong stakeholder involvement and support tools are key enablers—highlighting that human and managerial alignment is critical for automation success in rail.
This paper compares the economic feasibility of traditional rail infrastructure investments and Automatic Train Operation (ATO) as solutions to improve rail capacity, punctuality, and efficiency. Using a KPI-based framework applied to Norwegian case studies, it finds that infrastructure projects are generally more cost-effective for significant capacity increases, while ATO offers better value for improving punctuality and operational efficiency, especially on busy corridors. The study concludes that infrastructure and ATO should be considered complementary approaches, with infrastructure enabling capacity growth and ATO enhancing reliability and performance.
A European survey (519 participants, 23 countries) shows moderate support for autonomous trains, with most people preferring partial automation (GoA2–GoA3) rather than full automation (GoA4). Support depends on reliability, human oversight, and clear cybersecurity information, and varies by region.
Final Event:
3rd & 4th of June 2026
Prague – CZECH REPUBLIC
Schedule for the two-day final event.
Date: 14-15 October 2026
Location: Université Gustave Eiffel, Campus de Lille – Villeneuve d’Ascq – France
The submission for this years SmartRaCon Conference is now open. Please consult the submission template and guidelines before preparing your contribution
7th SmartRaCon: CEIT’s Multiconnectivity Platform Laboratory Setup
The FP2-R2DATO project, led by Europe’s Rail Joint Undertaking, is advancing automated and autonomous tram and train technologies to make rail operations safer, more efficient, and sustainable. UITP member Sporveien Trikken contributes its expertise from Oslo’s tram network, focusing on depot automation while ensuring safety and cybersecurity. A recent interview with Dusan Klago highlights how these efforts integrate with the broader European R2DATO objectives.
Cost of railway capacity expansions in Norway as input to evaluation of Economic Feasibility of Automatic Train Operation
The paper compares infrastructure upgrades and Automatic Train Operation (ATO) for improving rail capacity and punctuality. Using KPIs and Norwegian case studies, it finds that infrastructure is more cost-effective for major capacity increases, while ATO is better for punctuality and efficiency gains in busy corridors. The study concludes that both solutions are complementary and calls for more research on ATO costs and broader benefits.
Two trains can now run digitally connected at just 15 to 80 meters apart, thanks to a new radio system for virtual coupling developed by the DLR Institute of Communications and Navigation within the FP2-R2DATO project. This technology enables continuous data exchange on position and speed, representing a major step toward automated rail transport. It was successfully tested in spring 2025 at the Dutch state railway’s test site in Amersfoort, Netherlands.
Link: https://www.dlr.de/en/latest/news/2025/dlr-tests-virtual-coupling-system-in-the-real-world
7th SmartRaCon: Self-Driving Freight Wagon (SDFW) state of art and use case list
7th SmartRaCon: Test of IEEE802.15.4 for Train-to-Train Short Range Communication and Relative Localization
7th SmartRaCon: Use Cases Development for Automated Functions in Autonomous Rail Inspection Vehicles
