In its Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy , the European Commission targets an increase of the rail freight transport in Europe by 50% by 2030. To reach this goal, several technologies and methods will play a significant role: digitalisation and automation of rail freight operations lead to novel solutions with a major impact providing a critical opportunity to shift the freight transport from road to rail. Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) is seen as a “game-changer” solution, a feasible and effective way for the transformation to full digital rail freight operations in Europe to deliver on the Green Deal and Digitalisation Package 2022 objectives. The advantages of DAC stretch across the rail freight sector, from railway undertakings and infrastructure managers including their staff to wagon keepers, society and environment, ultimately delivering benefits for rail freight customers. DAC makes automation possible, increases coupling efficiency and safety.
Therefore, DACcelerate aims to manage and directly support the European DAC Delivery Programme in close cooperation with all stakeholders, while continuously engaging with experts and policy makers on EU & member state levels. It will provide strategies, methods and guidelines for successful and cost-efficient transition to fully automatized and digitalised rail freight transport. The project will tangibly illustrate the required future technology innovation bricks and respectfully updated operational procedures in an early phase of the roll-out and migration process. Hence, DACcelerate will establish and apply a framework allowing identification of bottlenecks, provide a means of cross-sectorial communication between stakeholders and develop a consolidated migration plan to tackle the individual challenges, while harmonizing technical approaches and developments. In order to perform these tasks in an efficient manner, the efforts will be aligned with existing European structures and activities with relevance for the EDDP.g broad engagement of sector actors and all EU Member States
The objectives of DACcelerate for laying the foundation for an effective and cost-efficient DAC roll-out and for full digital rail freight operations in Europe are:
(1) Systemic EDDP implementation for accelerating the adoption of a European DAC solution
(2) Harmonized European DAC specification ready for product development, integration into operations and for the EU regulatory Framework (TSI)
(3) European Migration Strategy for effective roll-out and full integration by 2030
(4) Impact Assessment and Attractiveness: Assessment of the wider socio-economic benefits of a DAC introduction for network capacity and contribution to the targets of the EU Green Deal; Preparation for the transformation of job profiles and required new skills for shaping attractive new workplaces
(5)DAC Impact awareness by stipulating broad engagement of sector actors and all EU Member States
