An overview of lessons learnt from ERTMS implementation in European railways

Abstract

The European Union’s aspiration for railway systems that are interoperable across Europe is driven by the need to service a market that is open within and across industrial sectors and national boundaries. This in turn requires that the technologies and operational procedures that underpin the railway systems facilitate not only interoperability but also enhancement of safety, capacity and efficiency. The European Railway Traffic Management System (ERTMS) is designed to enable interoperability through use of one unique signalling system as opposed to conventional signalling systems. However, the introduction of ERTMS must be undertaken to facilitate the European wide ambition to reduce risk on the railways.This paper addresses the issues relevant to the safe introduction of ERTMS into European railway systems, with a focus on the technical and procedural challenges of moving from conventional signalling to a new traffic management system. Existing literature, augmented with a targeted survey of subject matter experts, is used for a critical appraisal of safety considerations across Europe. Differences and variations across networks and countries are identified, and used to determine the significant issues that need to be addressed to enable the safe introduction of ERTMS. Finally, generic observations are made on the factors that impact safety and human factors as a result of the introduction of new technologies and procedures into existing railway environments.