On 17 November, UIC Director General François Davenne addressed the issue of connectivity for rail and the outlook post-Covid at the UNECE Working Party on Rail Transport. He noted a paradoxical decrease in traffic despite a greater willingness of customers to take the train, with greater understanding of the advantages of this mode of transport.

Even without any particular innovation, rail provides the best solution for passenger and freight transport. It is five times more efficient than road transport. By shifting a significant proportion of transport to rail, we can except to see a significant reduction in emissions.

Mr Davenne also presented examples of short-term initiatives to make the use of rail as easy as possible. Finally, he spoke about how to design a better future, starting today. We must work together if rail is to be the backbone of mobility. In addition, we must integrate major technical breakthroughs such as digitalisation, 5G, automation, artificial intelligence, and overcoming cyber risks. All of this will accelerate the innovation cycle.

The UIC 2030 Vision is available at https://bit.ly/3wW3DMF

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