The Spanish Railway Technology Platform (PTFE) met this week for its 17th Assembly. The meeting served to approve the document: ‘Innovation in energy management: Contribution of railways to sustainable mobility’, available at:
https://www.ptferroviaria.es/docs/Documentos/GestionEnergetica2021_en/index.html.
This document is an updated version of the previous one created in 2016 and accounts for the fact that the sector continues to position innovation in energy management as a strategic priority, due in large part to economic cost, but also to the need for administrators and operators to continue to promote and enhance rail transport as a sustainable mode of transport.
The document was created at the end of 2021, which was the European Year of Rail. This decision was adopted by the Council of the European Union in December 2020, in line with EU efforts to promote sustainable modes of transport, such as rail, and its commitment to achieve climate neutrality by 2050 through the European Green Deal. Although transport accounts for around 25% of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU, rail is only responsible for 0.4% of these emissions. It is also the only means of transport that has substantially reduced its emissions since 1990, which justifies its fundamental role in sustainable mobility.
This position paper on ‘Innovation in energy management: Contribution of railways to sustainable mobility’ re-analyses the role of innovation in energy management in infrastructure, rolling stock and operation, as well as future trends and applications. The document is coordinated by ADIF’s Research, Development and Innovation Area with the participation of companies, technology centres and research groups from different universities, all members of the PTFE. It has been validated by the majority of national, regional and metropolitan railway operators and administrators, and identifies new challenges and recommendations in this context, while analysing the achievements and status put forward in the initial document.
The PTFE is an industry-led tool at the service of the railways sector, set up to define a “long-term vision” and the “Strategic Research Agenda”, with the aim of achieving the scientific and technological advances required to ensure competitiveness, sustainability and growth in the Spanish railway sector. Its main mission is to align the strategies of the various agents, to concentrate R&D and innovation efforts, and to reduce the fragmentation of research fields. It has defined the ‘Strategic Research Agenda for the Railways Sector’, which is kept permanently up to date. The PTFE takes part in the European Rail Research Advisory Council (ERRAC) and its aim is to strengthen the position of the Spanish railway industry in Europe.
(Source: FFE)
