Applying technology, safely

Introducing new technology can have many benefits, but it can also increase risks, and that’s a concern for safety-critical industries like rail. So we’re helping industry get the best from applying new technologies while keeping rail safe.

Improving suspension

Sometimes we can apply a new technology in rail that’s already been used elsewhere and take advantage of multiple factors at the same time. Take the issue of improving suspension using inverters. These were pioneered in Formula 1 racing, and we’ve been working with the universities of Bristol and Cambridge to find the best ways of using this technology in rail. We were working with them for some time when a bushing manufacturer contacted us about related issues, and then an organisation within rail contacted us with a separate but related query. This was a strong ‘coincidence of wants’ which has meant faster progress than usual to the trial stage. We’re now investigating setting up a trial in a fleet to see whether we can improve suspension in this way.

Reducing adhesion

Adhesion is a long-standing challenge in rail. It’s been a factor in several incidents, and we have delivered a range of research projects to better understand the issues and develop mitigations. For instance, the findings from our past research into variable rate sanders is being used on passenger trains to improve operational performance.

Reflecting on the research implementation journey and the fact it has taken seven years from the initial research stage to retrofitting new equipment on trains, as an industry we need to find ways of making funds available for priority investment particularly where the costs are borne by one party and benefits accrue to others. To help with making these investment decisions on adhesion we are working on a framework for assessing adhesion mitigation prioritisation.

Safe levels of power demand

As part of rail decarbonisation, new sources of traction power will be used. Multi-mode and battery-powered trains are already running on the network and a wider roll-out to replace diesel-only trains is expected. There are opportunities and challenges from such deployments and they need to be properly understood.

So, we’re looking at smart energy management which is one of the opportunities that these developments present. This will require new solutions as well as changes to technical and operational rules to deliver an efficient, reliable, and sustainable railway. For example, new operational rules and solutions will enable operators to manage battery-powered services more reliably without over-specifying the on-train battery capacity. These will also minimise the risk of stranded battery trains running out of power during disruptions on the network. Better and more real-time understanding of electric power supply and demand is already essential in certain part of the network to allow more electric-only trains to run. It will become even more vital with a wider roll-out of multi-mode and battery-powered trains on the network.

Standards for battery train design

Battery operated trains don’t only raise questions about route power network capacity. We’re already working with industry on technical notes to support the use and operation of battery vehicles. But there are also questions about how to effectively operate battery rail vehicles. So we’re currently working on a standard for the engineering design of rail vehicles, traction batteries, and dedicated charging systems. A separate guidance note will help with the operation of vehicles using traction batteries. It will help manage them under usual operations as well as in an emergency.

This is a complex area because there may be interactions between different charging infrastructure supporting battery trains. This is different from the typical AC and DC traction supplies. We also must consider where battery trains are going to charge and their available capacity to carry out timetabling commitments. We’re working with industry on these standards now and will publish them in December 2026.

Our research, standards, sustainability work, and our futures analysis, are all helping rail get the most from new technologies. And without harming our reputation as the safest mass transit mode.