The global rail freight market will see substantial growth of trackers installed on rolling stock in the coming years, according to market researcher Berg Insight. It projects that there will be some 1.4 million tracking devices installed by 2030, compared to 875,000 at the end of 2025.
Sweden-based Berg Insight believes that the market for real-time trackers on locomotives, multiple units and rail wagons will continue to grow in the coming years. There is a confirmed ongoing trend of growth already. At the end of 2024, 775,000 trackers were installed worldwide. By the end of 2025, this number had grown to 875,000.
Berg Insight projects that the global rolling stock fleet will have 1,400,000 trackers installed by 2030. The market researcher has adjusted its expectations compared to last year, when it projected 1,300,000 trackers to be installed by 2029, with 360,000 annual shipments. It now expects 350,000 units to be installed annually by 2030.
Better maintenance and service quality
If the projections prove to be accurate, then a quarter of the worldwide rolling stock fleet will be trackable in real-time in four years from now. Currently, around 17% is equipped with trackers.
“The value of railway telematics extends beyond knowing where a wagon or locomotive is located”, commented Martin Apelgren, Principal Analyst at Berg Insight. The ability to combine positioning data with sensor data such as mileage, shocks, temperature, load status and component condition significantly broadens the range of applications. It also helps to plan more proactive maintenance and offer improved service quality, according to Berg Insight.
“Growing demand for higher transport reliability, improved rolling stock utilisation and better information sharing across the rail value chain will continue to drive the adoption of telematics solutions in the coming years”, concludes Apelgren.
Tracking and monitoring solutions for rail freight wagons are primarily provided by specialist telematics companies offering aftermarket solutions, says Berg Insight. Leading providers in this segment include the European companies Nexxiot (Switzerland), DOT Telematik und Systemtechnik (Austria), SAVVY Telematic Systems (Switzerland), Intermodal Telematics (Netherlands), Level Systems (Czech Republic), Giesecke+Devrient (Germany), Cargomon Systems (Austria) and PJM (Austria), as well as the North American companies Amsted Rail (US), BlackBerry (Canada) and ORBCOMM (US).