Hitachi Rail on-board digital technology to allow SNCF and Eurostar to run trains across European boarders

The contracts will enable passengers to more easily travel by train across European borders and help achieve the goal of a better-connected Europe, using sustainable transport.

The agreement will see Bi-Standard cab signalling installed to upgrade eight trains operated by Eurostar and the development of a new version of the Bi-Standard on board high-speed trains operated by SNCF in Italy and Switzerland.

The Bi-Standard combines TVM (Transmission Voice-Machine) and ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management System) (*) technologies to enable the Eurostar E300 and SNCF high speed trains to operate safely on both the French and cross border high-speed networks.

Hitachi Rail's Bi-Standard product line was first introduced into revenue service in France in 2007 for SNCF on the Paris-Strasbourg line. In 2009 it equipped Thalys trains to run in ERTMS mode on the Dutch and Belgian networks.

Since these first milestones, around 1 000 Bi-Standard product have been put into revenue service, on board different types of trains, mainly in Europe (France, England, Belgium, Holland, Italy, Luxembourg and Germany) and in Asia (South Korea and China).

Hitachi Rail continues to evolve this product family to gradually integrate ERTMS developments, meeting the highest standards of interoperability, safety and sustainability, and contributing to as the rail industry’s position as the leader of smart and sustainable transport.