Alstom at UITP Summit 2025 in Hamburg

Railways are the nervous system of modern cities, keeping them vibrant and connected to the world at large. They ensure the free movement and exchange that underpins economic prosperity and the well-being of people and communities. Surging demand for transportation, rapid technological advancement, environmental upheavals, geopolitical and economic uncertainty—cities can only thrive in the face of these pressures if their railway systems are something they can depend on.

We at Alstom define resilience as the ability of a rail system to resist, absorb, adapt to and recover from adverse events or stresses while maintaining safety and performance. The first line of defence is robustness. We use tough, high-quality components and materials, and our high-performance trains and infrastructure are designed for long lifecycles. We also work to anticipate all possible disruptions, including digital, that railway operators will face both short and long-term, and we design products and services that can absorb these pressures with as little disruption as possible. This is railway resilience: the capacity to absorb stress and recover quickly from adverse events.

Moving people and things around the world creates a lot of pollution. In fact, it's responsible for more than a third of all energy-related carbon dioxide emissions[1]. That's why we need to find better ways to move. Norway, famous for its beautiful fjords and its dedication to protecting the environment, is taking a big step forward. They're upgrading their entire railway network, from the tracks to the trains themselves. This isn't just about making it easier to get from place to place. It's about using trains to cut down on pollution.

Tackling transport emissions requires a multi-faceted approach. The potential of modernised railway networks to move large volumes of people and goods with low environmental impact is immense. Norway’s transformative project includes modernising over 4,200 kilometres of track and equipping more than 400 trains with cutting-edge train control technology. This project success relies on collaboration among various stakeholders, including providers of trackside signalling, train management, and Alstom, playing a key role in integrating the intelligence onboard the trains that weave the rail network together.