Projects Evaluations by ERRAC

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Aljoin Plus Project Evaluation ALJOIN PLUS was commissioned as additional work to the European collaborative project ALJOIN, developed under the aegis of Competitive and Sustainable Growth, one of the four thematic programmes of the Fifth RTD Framework Programme (1998-2002 which was set up with the aim of improving the crashworthiness of future designs of rail vehicles. ALJOIN PLUS was commissioned to provide the necessary information to create a bench mark for joints in aluminium rail vehicles against which improvements in joint design are measured and was funded by the UK Railway Safety & Standards Board (RSSB) with contribution from Bombardier Transportation.

Aljoin Project Evaluation The project has been developed under the aegis of Competitive and Sustainable Growth, one of the four thematic programmes of the Fifth RTD Framework Programme (1998-2002), conceived to tackle the key challenges facing European industry – sustainable transport, efficient and quality-based production, materials for the 21st century, measurement for quality control and more. In particular, ALJOIN focuses on the development of joining technologies for the manufacture of rail vehicles in order to improve their performance in the event of a collision and thus enhance the safety of rail passengers and staff.

CAESAR Major drawbacks to the European transport system are the growth of congestion, and the harmful effects to the environment and public health. In addition, the challenges of the enlargement are compelling us to make new choices in order to promote transport policy with a more balanced, smarter, and an environmentally lower impact to mobility systems.

CAESAR Project Evaluation The CAESAR (Coordination Action for the European Strategic Agenda of Research on intermodalism and logistics) major drawbacks to the European transport system are the growth of congestion, and the harmful effects to the environment and public health. In addition, the challenges of the enlargement are compelling us to make new choices in order to promote transport policy with a more balanced, smarter, and an environmentally lower impact to mobility systems. Intermodal aspects must be brought in at all phases of transport policy and planning, based on costeffective, implementable research and technological development. Efficient logistics and transport operations require an harmonious flow of goods and traffic throughout both the transport and logistics chains. While in the past, infrastructure investment programmes were developed from a single mode approach, global logistics operations today favour the integration of modes and impose new priorities in the decision-making process. Substantial research has been developed in the last five years in the area of emerging logistical requirements and their impact in freight transport and intermodality. It is therefore necessary to bring together authoritative individuals with decision making capabilities to contribute significant advice, and to influence the stakeholders in their planning of research and technology programmes, i.e., the European Intermodal Research Advisory Council (EIRAC). CAESAR is the Coordination Action aiming at fostering the creation of a new and common vision of intermodal research in Europe, by achieving the following objectives: •to establish the EIRAC (European Intermodality Research Advisory Council) •to support the EIRAC to define their Terms of Reference; •to support the EIRAC to draw their Strategic Research Agenda for Intermodal Transport and Logistics, in conjunction with business scenarios; •to set-up and run the EIRAC Communication Strategy, to liaise with mode-specific Advisory Councils; •to facilitate the EIRAC to define the Implementation Plan of their Strategic Research Agenda.
This is a policy-oriented project.

Cargospeed The primary aim of system CargoSpeed is to bring to road/rail intermodalism much of the Roll On - Roll Off efficiency enjoyed by road/short-sea RO-RO ferry services which are - notably - nearly all in the private unsubsidised sector.

CARGOSPEED Project Evaluation The CargoSpeed (Cargo Rail Road Interchange at Speed) Project : According to a variety of European Commission and national studies and referring to practical experiences on the roads, parts of the European Union’s road systems have already reached the limits of their capacities. For example the M6 motorway in the Birmingham area is carrying 170,000 vehicles per day, which is more than six times the design capacity. Congestion times on European roads are constantly increasing and the costs and damages to the environment are rising tremendously. Road transport is the largest consumer of non-renewable energy in the EU, resulting in air pollution levels which are a very real cause for concern. Building more roads to cope with existing and projected levels of road freight is socially unacceptable, and ways must be found to move a significant proportion of road freight onto rail. CargoSpeed is an innovative solution to the transfer of semitrailers permitting a functioning rail freight system to operate within a truly balanced and sustainable intermodal transport system. CargoSpeed is at the forefront of freight transfer technology and demonstrates the enormous potential of freight intermodalism in the supply chain. The CargoSpeed road/rail interchange system is unique, applying technologies in an innovative way to improve the road/rail interchange. The CargoSpeed road/rail interchange RoRo system has an enormous potential to exchange standardised and non-standardised semitrailers in a space-saving dedicated terminal. Funded as part of FP5 Competitive and Sustainable Growth programme, addressing Key Action 3: Land Transport and Marine Technologies, section 3.1: Critical technologies for road and rail transport, research target 3.1.1: Efficient, clean & intelligent road and rail transport vehicle technologies.

CONVURT (Effectiveness of Different Track Structures in Controlling Ground Vibration) Project Evaluation Electrified underground rail systems provide the apparent solution to mass transport of people in cities but their future success and growth require a high degree of ecoefficiency. Metro rail systems cause vibrations, which create noise disturbance in adjacent habitation. CONVURT was aimed at creating the innovative tools where ground borne vibrations can be predicted and minimized. The project planned to create a validated computer based prediction model as well as prototype innovative vibration reducing products, both able to be applied to worldwide sales. CONVURT was also to develop novel monitoring and maintenance techniques that will prevent deterioration of vibration performance with time. The project was intended to provide invaluable input to the development of ISO rail noise standards and produce "Best Practice Guidelines".

Crossrail CROSSRAIL was set up to contribute to the reduction of the environmental impact of traffic and ensuring the use of existing infrastructure in the most efficient way. This will be achieved through the promotion of more environmentally friendly transport in urban areas, the reduction of roadtraffic congestion and the improvement of the quality of city centres. The resulting improvement in accessibility will stimulate economic growth as well.

CROSSRAIL Project Evaluation CROSSRAIL was set up to contribute to the reduction of the environmental impact of traffic and ensuring the use of existing infrastructure in the most efficient way. This will be achieved through the promotion of more environmentally friendly transport in urban areas, the reduction of roadtraffic congestion and the improvement of the quality of city centres. The resulting improvement in accessibility will stimulate economic growth as well.

DARTS Project Evaluation The project has been developed under the aegis of Competitive and Sustainable Growth, one of the four thematic programmes of the Fifth RTD Framework Programme (1998-2002), aiming at a European wide ‘problem-solving approach’, in which research supports the development of a coherent, interconnected and eco-efficient industry capable of responding both to the market and to the general needs of society. Efficient and high-quality manufacturing lies at the heart of this approach. The goal is to encourage the development of dynamic, flexible and successful European organisations of all sizes, producing high-quality, environmentally friendly goods and services while sustaining industrial employment.

EDIP European DIstributed Power Control To develop and promote an on-board radio-based control system based on a unique frequency range common in all the European Countries that allows the operation of multiple locomotives, and other traction units, on freight trains all across Europe. • To define functional and interoperability specifications for distributed power control that could be proposed as a European pre-standard.

EDIP Project Evaluation The EDIP (European DIstributed Power Control) Project objectives are • To develop and promote an on-board radio-based control system based on a unique frequency range common in all the European Countries that allows the operation of multiple locomotives, and other traction units, on freight trains all across Europe. • To define functional and interoperability specifications for distributed power control that could be proposed as a European pre-standard and the major operational requirements for this project are : • Non-specifically equipped wagons – i.e. non “wired” or “bussed” – must be included in any number and at any location in the freight train. • Traction units have to be controlled by means of radio-based communications.

EU research on Fire and Safety in tunnel A major objective of several programs within the 5th Framework was to support actions for competitive and sustainable growth of European industry. In view of progress towards this general objective, the European Commission together with other actions in the legislative domain has embarked upon a major review of tunnel safety (both for road and railways), especially in consequence of severe fire accidents in road and rail tunnels happened in the last 12 years (1996 Channel Tunnel, 1999 Mont Blanc and Tauern Tunnels, 2001 Gotthard Tunnel).

EUFRANET - HIGH SPEED MIX In addition to the IT-oriented projects ROSIN – TRAINCOM – EUROMAIN the analysis of a second cluster of EU research projects should complement the initial work of the ERRAC WG Evaluation. • Rail freight included a wide area of research activities, from technical development to transport modelling. Three sub-clusters have been selected: EUFRANET / High Speed Mix: Network solutions EDIP / INTELFRET: Operation Technology F-MAN / FIRE: IT Applications

EUFRANET/HISPEEDMIX Projects Evaluation The EUFRANET project objective is • to identify and evaluate strategic options for the developments of a Trans European rail network mainly dedicated to freight transportation. • to analyse the present situation and to proposes concepts and solutions to decrease freight transport cost and improve transport quality and services • to deal with the improvement of the rail freight transport organisation and interoperability and the identification and evaluation of the new rail technologies for freight. • to establish a global strategy for the implementation of a freight network and its operation system. The project will help rationalise the use of existing national networks to develop in the long term (2010-2015) a strong and efficient European network for freight transport, fully interfaced with other TEN and networks of regional interest. The HIGH SPEED MIX project objective is • to target the definition of the main guidelines ruling the freight and passenger management on the existing and future European High Speed Rail Network, taking into account the peculiar aspects related to the medium and long term transport planning. • to examine two different scenarios for offering freight services on the European High Speed Rail Network: a) to assess the market requirements for high speed freight traffic and the capability of the existing high speed lines to cope with such a traffic b) to study the utilisation of the high speed network for traditional freight traffic in mixed traffic conditions.

FIt - SIRTAKI - Virtual Fires - UPTUN - SAFET EU research on Fire and Safety in tunnel

FIT/SIRTAKI/VIRTUALFIRES/UPTUN/SAFET Projects Evaluation The Fire In Tunnels (FIT) project launched as “Thematic Network” of 33 partners from 10 European countries, aimed to enhance the exchange of knowledge and develop a European consensus on fire safety for road, rail and metro.
Safety Improvement in Road and rail Tunnels using Advanced information technologies and Knowledge Intensive decision support models (SIRTAKI) aimed at developing an advanced tunnel management system that specifically tackled safety issues and emergencies and was fully integrated in the overall network management.
Virtual Fires (Virtual Real Time Fire Emergency Simulator) aimed at developing a system for assessing the fire safety of tunnels, training of rescue personnel, planning rescue scenarios with real fire tests.
UPTUN intended to develop: o validate and promote innovative, sustainable and low-cost measures, where appropriate, to limit the robability and consequences of fire in existing tunnels o demonstrate and promote a holistic evaluating and upgrading procedure for existing tunnels to allow owners, stakeholders, designers and emergency teams to evaluate and upgrade human and structural safety levels
Safety Tunnels (SafeT) intended to draft harmonized European guidelines for tunnel safety drawing upon the knowledge accumulated and developed in the other EU funded projects but with a focus on the management and cross-border issues.

GREEN Among surface transport modes, road transport and international waterway navigation produce the largest fraction of the pollutant emissions (Ox, PM) I this group. Due to an increase in transport by waterway navigation, emissions increased between 1990 and 2001, whilst road transport emissions decreased. Rail’s share of emissions is comparably small (1-3%), but emissions generated locally by individual diesel vehicles may be highly perceived by the population living nearby. This is to be particularly considered since increasing attention on air quality is paid by the public and authorities, and it seems that often air quality limits are being exceeded in various European hot spots

GREEN Project Evaluation The development of heavy-duty (HD) engines is undergoing a rapid step in its evolution. Increased demand for fuel efficiency, emissions and global competition are driving forces. The HD engines operate under constraints much more severe than those of passenger cars, such as: • higher durability (> 600,000 km) of the engine and of the related after-treatment; • higher mechanical and thermal stress of the engine (heavier load factor); • higher pressure on reliability (up-time), investment and fuel economy. The above constraints characterise the HD engines for their more general applications: not only trucks and urban vehicles but also the rail traction and the inland waterway vessels of the directive 2002/765. New technologies will help in meeting future emission and fuel consumption targets by: • a new combustion process enabled by variable components; • new control strategies; • considering the engine and the exhaust after-treatment as one system; • considering sustainable fuels.

HEROE Project Evaluation The HEROE (Harmonisation of European Rail Rules for Operating ERTMS) project was structured in order to: draw up appropriate rules in view of ERTMS operation, to allow an operational interoperability as broad as possible, propose to the railways but also to the supervision authorities some keys to solve the most fundamental safety issues that would be set by progressive ERTMS implementation, set a joint approach to the safety analyses for the main sub-system which could permit to harmonize the safety standards At the beginning, the project was divided into 7 work- packages: - 1 management of the project, - 2 study of the current state of art, - 3 determination of new ERTMS rules and regulations, especially for the driver and the signalman, - 4 ways to harmonise rules and regulations during the transition period, - 5 study of safety problems related to rules and regulations, - 6 tests of the results, - 7 writing of pre-standards and their dissemination. After the re-start of the project the Work Packages were organized into 5 groups: WP0 Management and administration, WPA statement of ERTMS rules and regulations, WPB assessment and tests of rules and procedures, from the point of view of safety, WPC description of actual rules and regulations associated with ERTMS implementation, WPD pre-standardisation for ERTMS rules and dissemination of results At the time the project started the System Requirement Specifications (SRS) for ERTMS were still being defined within EEIG-ERTMS, and only the Functional Requirement Specifications (FRS) were available, though not in the finalised version. HEROE paved the way for the definition of the SRS, initiating a task that supplied methodology, a picture of the state of the art and a functional analysis that was brought ahead by the Operational Rules project, which also saw the participation of EEIG-ERTMS as active member, and which used the finalised version of SRS made by UNISIG.

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