FRMCS: The Future of Railway Communication Will Be Faster, Safer, and Fully Online

An interview with Martin Bajer from TTC MARCONI was published in the current supplement “The Future of Railways” of Hospodářské noviny.

Modern railway transport cannot exist today without the means of reliable and rapid communication. The current GSM-R system, created in the 1990’s, is gradually becoming insufficient to the demands of today´s operations. Its successor, FRMCS (Future Railway Mobile Communication System), that currently uses the principals of the 5G networks and advances the possibilities of railway communication to an entirely new level, is formed at the European level. As Martin Bajer from TTC MARCONI explains, the difference between both of these systems is comparable to the transition from the push- button phone to the modern smartphone.

FRMCS enables trains to operate in real time. Trains will continuously communicate with dispatching systems, obtain actual information about the conditions of the tracks, and at the same time, send this data about its operation. Thanks to minimal latency (a delay of a mere few milliseconds), it will be possible to react practically immediately. This has significant impact not only on smooth operations, but primarily on safety. For example, in the event of a connection failure, the communication will refresh almost immediately, while with the older system, it would take up to tens of seconds, during which time the train operates “blindly”.

This new system has also brought about an additionally magnificent shift – it enables the transmission of the large amount of big data, including video. Therefore, train driver is able to see the situation on the upcoming track in advance and react to potential risks before it is necessary to advance to critical phase. Thus, FRMCS is also key to the development of the autonomy railway transport, where fast and reliable communication is absolutely crucial. In combination with the ETCS security systems, the foundation a significantly safer and effective operation has now arisen.

The launch of FRMCS also however has brought challenges. Higher frequency means the need for a more dense and greater investment in monitoring tracks. The involvement of mobile operators and the use of satellite communication, which can reduce costs in the future, is also currently in discussion. However, this direction of the development is clear – about 2030 FRMCS should gradually replace the GSM-R system and become the standard for modern European railway. TTC MARCONI is actively participating in this development and has contributed to the formation of the future of critical communication in transportation.

You can read the full interview (in Czech) HERE.