Railway connectivity on track to break $1bn revenue mark

While a lot of attention regarding communications in the transport sector has focused on the automotive industry in 2024, research from SNS Telecoms & IT has revealed that cumulative spending on future railway mobile communication systems (FRMCS) ready for private 5G and LTE networks is set to grow substantially between 2024 and 2027 to reach $1.2bn.

The study, Private 5G/4G cellular networks for railways: 2024-2030, revealed that private 5G and 4G LTE cellular networks – or non-public networks (NPNs) – are rapidly gaining popularity across a diverse range of vertical industries, and that the rail industry is no exception to this trend, as public transport operators increasingly turn to mission-critical LTE networks over ageing GSM-R systems and other legacy technologies. It predicted that global spending on private 5G and 4G LTE network infrastructure in the rail sector would increase at a compound annual growth rate of 23% over the next three years.

Asia was revealed to be one of the key regions for connectivity in the rail industry. It noted that South Korea’s KR (Korea National Railway) has deployed one of the world’s largest LTE-based railway communications networks and China hosts many 1.8GHz private LTE networks for communications-based train control (CBTC), video surveillance, broadband trunking and passenger information system (PIS)-related applications. In France, Société du Grand Paris (SGP) has deployed a 2.6GHz private LTE network to provide indoor and outdoor coverage for operational communications across all Grand Paris Express rapid transit system stations, lines and depots.

Among other examples cited in the report, the Public Transport Authority (PTA) of Western Australia is installing a purpose-built 3GPP network, which includes approximately 160 cell sites, to replace its existing 400MHz voice-only analogue radio system. India’s National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) is deploying a 700MHz private LTE network for the Delhi-Meerut Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS). The network supports mission-critical voice and data communications, European Train Control System (ETCS) Level 2 and 3 signalling, as well as automatic train operation (ATO).

Although a full-scale transition from GSM-R to FRMCS implementations is not expected until the late 2020s, the analyst noted that FRMCS-ready 5G networks are also starting to be adopted to support operational and safety-related applications. In China, Shentong Metro, Guangzhou Metro, Shenzhen Metro and several other urban rail transit operators have recently adopted hybrid public-private 5G networks.

Spain’s Adif AV was also highlighted as deploying hybrid public and private 5G network infrastructure in strategic logistics centres across the country in a bid to boost digitisation, process automation and cost reduction in rail freight transport. In the UK, the England’s Connected Heartland Railways (ECH-R) project aims to deploy a standalone private 5G network to provide connectivity for operational teams and passengers along a section of the East West Rail (EWR) track between Bicester and Bletchley.

Lastly, the report observed that Deutsche Bahn (DB), French National Railways (SNCF), Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (FTIA), Polish State Railways (PKP), Tokyo Metro, China State Railway Group and others are actively progressing with their pre-commercial 5G rail connectivity projects prior to operational deployment.