Skip to main content

GSM-R market coverage grows nearly 50 per cent

GSM-R has been used in Europe for more than ten years to provide voice and data communications for railway and acts as a radio bearer for train control messages. Mandated by the European Commission and supported by the dynamic railway industry in the region, the GSM-R system has established a significant market in Europe. Over the past few years the market extended to regions outside Europe including Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa. Led by Nokia, Kapsch CarrierCom, and Huawei, GSM-R track coverage
December 19, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
GSM-R has been used in Europe for more than ten years to provide voice and data communications for railway and acts as a radio bearer for train control messages. Mandated by the 1690 European Commission and supported by the dynamic railway industry in the region, the GSM-R system has established a significant market in Europe. Over the past few years the market extended to regions outside Europe including Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa.

Led by 183 Nokia, 81 Kapsch CarrierCom, and 6787 Huawei, GSM-R track coverage is growing to 190,000 km by 2020, according to 5725 ABI Research.

Despite being the latest technology that caters to railways needs, GSM-R itself is based on 2G GSM which is now a declining technology. However, in the absence of strong alternatives, GSM-R continues to be the technology of choice for many new railway projects. System evolution and the development of the next-generation networks go hand in hand creating a transition period over the 2020’s. “GSM-R structure is migrating to an IP-based transmission network to improve performance, and lower OPEX, and is a step towards the next generation network,” comments Ahmed Ali, research analyst at ABI Research.

LTE is emerging as a strong candidate to succeed GSM-R considering the growing adoption in the commercial sector and the support from the majority of equipment manufacturers. Embracing LTE-based networks introduces new areas of growth and new market players to the industry.

“One interesting scenario is the collaboration between public network operators and railway operators to create a converged network and reduce cost. With LTE, providers like 4054 Alcatel-Lucent and 5650 Ericsson can further improve the railway solution market and drive competition,” continues Ali.

I’ll send the news to Natalie next week. Have a great Christmas and best wishes for 2015.

Related Content

  • January 29, 2014
    Kapsch highlights new projects at Middle East Rail exhibition
    Kapsch CarrierCom will take advantage of its presence at Middle East Rail, the region's largest rail exhibition and conference from 4 to 5 February in Dubai to highlight its new all in-one cab radio for locomotives, designed for simplified deployment and offering a feature set which supports new, value-added applications and an option to activate a fully Arabic user interface. The company will also provide detailed information about new projects in the region, where it is to provide GSM-R technology for
  • May 22, 2015
    Advanced telematics and integration to revolutionise global connected car market
    Advanced infotainment systems, over-the-air (OTA) updates, big data analytics, mobility services and in-car security are key technologies that will shape the global connected car market in 2015. Human machine interface (HMI) input and output solutions, as well as, heads up display (HUD) are set to take centre stage. However, car makers must create consumer-centric HMI solutions that will strike a balance between reducing driver distraction and meeting consumer need for connected services. New analysis f
  • June 3, 2016
    Automated fare collection market predicted to almost double by 2021
    According to a new market research report, Automated Fare Collection Market by Application (Rail and Transport, Parking), by Service Type (Consulting, System Implementation), by Technology, by Industry, by Region - Global Forecast to 2021, published by MarketsandMarkets, the global automated fare collection (AFC) market is estimated to grow from US$6.42 billion in 2016 to US$11.95 billion by 2021, at an estimated compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.2 per cent. Automated fare collection applications
  • August 23, 2012
    Global ADAS revenues to reach $460 Billion by 2020
    ABI Research is predicting that global advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) revenues will surge from $22.7 billion in 2012 to $460.8 billion in 2017, with Asia-Pacific remaining the leading ADAS market throughout the forecast period. “Both commercial and regulatory drivers are expected to boost the ADAS market in the coming years,” says VP and practice director Dominique Bonte. “On the one hand, OEMs such as Ford have started rolling out ADAS features on medium to low-end cars in order to bolster their