EGNOS Controlled Railway Equipment (ECORAIL)

Due to ongoing developments with the European Geostationary Overlay Service (EGNOS) and Galileo, satellite navigation is about to become an interesting innovation for all fields of transport.

One of these domains is the railways, which could profit considerably from the implementation of autonomous on-board positioning systems. Especially on local and regional railway lines there are various possible applications which could enable cost-effective modernisation and an increase in efficiency.

Train control poses high demands on positioning with respect to availability, reliability and integrity. These requirements can only be fulfilled by means of integrated positioning systems, which combine Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) with other sensors.

The EGNOS Controlled Railway Equipment (ECORAIL) project deals with the implementation of satellite navigation into the railway domain to demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of GNSS in combination with the European Train Control and Rail Traffic Management System (ETCS/ERTMS).

The ECORAIL project started in September 2001. The preliminary design was completed by June 2003 and a demonstration took place in June 2005. The project ended in January 2006.