ERRAC Plenary – 11 April 2014
New perspectives and challenges for railway research in Europe
On April the 11th, UIC hosted the European Rail Research and Advisory Council (ERRAC) Plenary with 60 members represented from all around Europe.
Mr. Josef Doppelbauer, ERRAC Chairman, introduced the meeting pointing out the important moment for rail research and innovation with the on-going Horizon 2020 1st call process and the final discussions occurring around the establishment of the SHIFT²RAIL Joint Undertaking (JU).
The ERRAC plenary started with the presentation of the new Strategic Rail Research and Innovation Agenda (SRRIA), prepared under the Work Package 3 of the FOSTER RAIL project.
The SRRIA identifies major challenges and research priority areas which would contribute most effectively to the achievement of an efficient, sustainable and attractive rail transport.
This document was especially established on the basis of the objectives set out in the EC White Paper on transport released in 2011, the ERRAC RailRoute 2050 document but also the contribution from the Rail Challenge 2050 vision document published in February 2013.
The SRRIA will be circulated for approval to all ERRAC members and should be officially endorsed at the next ERRAC Plenary meeting during the autumn.
The Plenary was also the opportunity for the FOSTER RAIL project coordinator, Mr. Dennis Schut (UIC Research Manager), to provide an overview about the other on-going activities within the project and, especially, the preparation of the future technology roadmaps and the development of the 2050 Rail Business Scenarios.
Regarding the SHIFT²RAIL joint undertaking, Mr. Philippe Citroën, UNIFE Director General, gave a presentation on the latest up to date status and the development of the Master Plan to be published by the European Commission in April 2014.
Mr. Citroën indicated that SHIFT²RAIL is expected to become legal by the end of June 2014 and could start its activities by the beginning of 2015.
The European Commission, represented by Mr. Liam Breslin, head of unit at DG RTD (research and innovation) and Mr. Keir Fitch, Vice President of the European Commission in charge of transport at DG MOVE provided in their welcome addresses ERRAC members with more detailed information on the next steps regarding the development of the Horizon 2020 1st call and the SHIFT²RAIL Master plan.
While the evaluators are reviewing the proposals submitted under the 1st stage of the Horizon 2020 1st call, Mr. Breslin especially stressed the main concern by the Commission of improving the success rate in the implementation of results from European funded project in this new framework programme and to ensure the link with the future SHIFT²RAIL initiative.
On the future Joint Undertaking, Mr. Fitch ensured the ERRAC members that the Master Plan will be released in April and will also be made available to the ERRAC Strategic Board, acting as the Strategic Council on SHIFT²RAIL. A consultation of the stakeholders will also be organised between May and June 2014 prior to the final endorsement of the initiative by the European Council.
On February the 9th 2014, Switzerland voted on a new funding programme for railway infrastructure with a direct involvement of civil society who supported the legislative proposal by 62%.
Therefore, ERRAC invited for this plenary, Mr. Liechti, head of the section management affairs at the Federal Transport Office to present the current context in the Swiss railway policy and the role of civil society in its establishment.
Finally, this first ERRAC Plenary in 2014, following the closing of the FP7, was the opportunity to come back on some of the successful projects carried out the previous EC framework programme for research.
Mr. Otteborn, coordinator of the FOSTER RAIL WP6 in charge of providing essential information and tools on the lessons learnt from the evaluation of past research projects, and Mr. Toubol, coordinator of the MARATHON project which demonstrated the effectiveness of operating faster, longer and heavier freight trains on European routes, presented the TIGER and MARATHON projects, both recognised successful under the FP7 programme and addressing rail freight, a major issue of the European rail sector today for which the increasing development is a main objective of the EC White Paper on transport.
Mr. Doppelbauer concluded the meeting and invited all ERRAC members to attend the coming Transport Research Arena (TRA) conference to be hosted in Paris between April the 14th and the 17th 2014 where ERRAC and some of the ERRAC members will ensure the promotion of rail research and innovation.