The Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) initiative will take a further step in 2027 with the start of large-scale tests in commercial operations. RailFreight.com had an exclusive interview with Heiko Radke, General Manager of VERS, to get a clearer picture of what these tests entail.
The initiative is called Pioneer DAC Train, PioDAC for short, officially started last November and has a duration of 36 months with a total budget of around 50 million euros, Radke explained. Around half of it is financed by the Connecting Europe Facility, while “the remaining funding is provided by the project partners themselves”.
“This shared financial responsibility highlights that PioDAC is an industry-driven project aimed at preparing the market introduction of DAC under real operating conditions, rather than a purely theoretical research exercise”, he underlined. The project is coordinated by Trafikverket and brings together railway undertakings, wagon owners, workshops, industrial partners and shippers from across Europe.
The large-scale tests
The first phase concerns the installation of roughly 500 DAC units “on approximately 250 freight wagons and 15 locomotives”, Radke said. This phase will be overseen by the VPI service company VERS, which coordinates installation on freight wagons and monitors maintenance aspects throughout the project. From 2027 onwards, DAC-equipped trains will run across Europe, carrying different types of cargo.
At the same time, economic validation and the development of a standardised rulebook are addressed within the project framework, ensuring that technical, operational and regulatory aspects are considered in parallel. The International Union of Railways (UIC) contributes to the development and refinement of the standardised rulebook, ensuring that operational experience from the project feeds directly into European-level standards.
“Large-scale means that DAC is tested in regular commercial operations, embedded in existing logistics chains and railway processes”, Radke added. “This includes cross-border services, different traction concepts, various wagon types, diverse commodities and a wide range of environmental and operational conditions.” By operating in day-to-day commercial service rather than isolated pilot settings, the Pioneer DAC Trains are expected to generate robust evidence on technical performance, operational reliability and maintenance requirements.
The companies participating in the tests planned for 2027 come from Germany, Austria, Italy, Luxembourg, Slovenia, Sweden and Norway.
- DB Cargo – transporting salt
- Rail Cargo Group – transporting gravel
- Mercitalia Intermodal – intermodal services
- CFL Cargo – transporting scrap metal
- SŽ-Tovorni – bulk traffic with double traction
- Trafikverket – transporting steel
- Jernbanedirektoratet – intermodal services
“Cross-border operations will take place, among others, between Austria and Hungary, Luxembourg and Germany, and Germany and Poland, complemented by domestic routes”, Radke pointed out. “The mix of operators, commodities and operating concepts is intended to ensure that DAC is tested under realistic conditions across Europe”.
What to do with the results?
“The primary objective is to demonstrate that DAC-equipped trains can operate reliably and safely in commercial service across Europe”, Radke stated. Operational and maintenance data will be systematically collected and analysed over the project duration to create a solid evidence base covering performance, robustness and cost implications. The data gathered will be used to support a coordinated, EU-wide DAC migration.
From the VPI’s perspective, such coordination is essential to avoid fragmented or nationally isolated approaches and to safeguard interoperability in European rail freight. In addition, “the intention is that the trains can continue operating beyond the project phase and remain in productive service.” At the same time, Radke stressed that the immediate priority is to use the project results as a sound technical and operational foundation for a future Europe-wide decision on the introduction of the DAC.
