About PROTECTRAIL

Objectives

The PROTECTRAIL objective is to provide a viable integrated set of railway security solution, by considering:

• • the extent of the assets involved,
  • the nature of the possible threats,
  • the amount of technical requirements and operational constraints.

The integration will follow an innovative way and will extend the scope of the project beyond the mission addressed by the EC call.

PROTECTRAIL will develop mission oriented solution vs. asset-specific threats and will make them interoperable by designing a modular architectural framework where each solution can be “plugged”.

PROTECTRAIL will also provide the basis for a streamlined process of federation, integration and interoperability of the developed solutions

The project will ensures that appropriate solutions and innovations are favored over isolated questions and solution, and will represent a comprehensive and scalable answers to rail security.

The assumption made is that on this frame of solutions, each railway operator in Europe should be able to compose its integration of existing technological tools by using the same architecture according to its own needs, requirements and budget, and subsequently assess the security potential of the solution.

In the dissemination process the project will initiate a cooperation framework with the National and EU authorities and the standardization bodies, in view of future proposals for recommendations to be adopted, for enhancing security in railway context

Approach

PROTECTRAIL will tackle the railway security problem from a layered “system integration” perspective.

The concept of the project is to address this main goal by dividing the global mission into a limited number of submissions that respond to well identified needs/concerns of rail operators, within a framework of general coherence and integration of technical and organizational solutions.

Each sub-mission oriented solution will cover significant areas of interest, resulting both from specific risk analysis and from users priorities (rail operator and infrastructures managers). By selecting the performance goals, for each sub mission will be defined, developed and demonstrated effective solutions in terms of system architecture, technology deployment, procedures, tools and organizations to manage specific threat scenarios.

Security sub-missions

• protection of signal and power distribution systems
• track clearance
• clearance of trains before and after daily use
• staff clearance
• luggage clearance control
• passenger clearance control
• freight clearance control
• tracking and monitoring of rolling stock carrying dangerous goods
• protection of communication and information systems
• stations, buildings and infrastructure protection

Expected results

The main scientific and technological expected results of the project are to:

• develop an exhaustive common vision of actual and future risks regarding many different assets and regarding and assessing disparity aspects;
• implement asset oriented integrated solutions (sub-mission level) based on
  mature technologies;
• integrate the asset oriented solutions and demonstrate a global architecture,including modularity and interoperability;
• derive from these results a future design for homogenous security.

The project will show the implementation potential of short/medium term solutions.

The project will also vision out the development of prospected solutions to match
the future challenges.

The market up-take potential is guaranteed by the participation of:

• main railway and security solutions suppliers, enhancing the capability of producing standard systems;
• research groups
• major railway operators (under-takings and infrastructure managers), guaranteeing that project solutions will satisfy user needs and fulfill railway requirements
• railway organizations at EU and international level

Duration

42 Months (September 2010 - March 2014)