£7.6 million pledged to support rail innovations

The UK’s Rail Minister has announced a £7.6 million competition to secure funding for innovations that will improve train travel.

Rail Minister Wendy Morton has officially launched the First of a Kind competition, promising successful bids a share of £7.6 million government funding to bring cutting-edge technology and innovative ideas of the rail network. Bids are being welcomed from businesses and organisations of all sizes for projects that could improve passenger experience, make services more cost-effective or decarbonise and reduce the environmental impact of the railways. The competition is being hosted in partnership with Innovate UK.

The competition officially opens to applicants on 20 April 2022 and closes on 8 June 2022. Previous rail innovations to have secured funding include the UK’s first hydrogen powered train, an app to give passengers the opportunity to learn about the sights they can see from the train window, and tools to improve accessibility for deaf travellers. This year’s competition is focusing on technologies that improve the industry’s cost efficiency and network performance to support a more reliable railway for passengers and improving rail freight.

Rail Minister Wendy Morton said:

“I am incredibly excited to launch the sixth round of our First of a Kind competition. In partnership with Innovate UK, we have already invested £35.4 million into over 100 groundbreaking projects.

“We’ve seen cutting-edge technologies such as HydroFLEX developed, the first ever trial of a hydrogen-powered train on the UK mainline and software improving accessibility such as the Hearing Enhanced Audio Relay app.

“As part of our Plan for Rail, it’s key we continue breathing life into new ideas and supporting innovation and design to deliver greener rail journeys and transform rail travel for all passengers.”

The First of a Kind competition is now in its sixth year, and funding has helped trial and launch over 100 projects in the UK. Last year saw 33 innovators receive grants of up to £400,000 each.

A briefing event will be hosted by Innovate UK in Birmingham for potential applicants to find out more.