SPECTRUM · Solutions and Processes to Enhance the Competitiveness of Transport by Rail in Unexploited Markets

Modern manufacturing techniques and logistics require reliable, time sensitive delivery of lower density and higher value goods. This presents a market opportunity for rail freight to grow, partly due to increasing congestion on roads, and mainly due to the need for reliable and environment friendly transport of goods. At the same time, to meet customer requirements, rail freight has to rise to the challenge of needing to be reliable and available, as well as complying with other market demands. Depending on the market segment these may be faster transport time, specialised goods systems, tracking and tracing, greater flexibility, lower prices or premium services. Furthermore in congested situations rail freight may have a competitive advantage compared to other modes of traffic.SPECTRUM will develop a railfreight train that provides a higher speed service for high value, low density and time sensitive goods with the performance characteristics of a passenger train. SPECTRUM takes a longer term, radical and first principles approach to deliver a new railfreight offering that can compete with road and air in the growing sectors of logistics where railfreight has traditionally little to offer. We shall work towards a freight train that: Behaves like a passenger train in terms of speed, acceleration, braking, momentum: allowing full scheduling on urban and sub urban train networks;Has a standardised and universal power supply system for the delivery of power to temperature controlled containers (reefers) in a controllable fashion.