Further rail innovation funding

The Department for Transport is launching the fifth round of the Accelerating Innovation in Rail (AIR) scheme, with a total of £7.9 million on offer to winning innovations.

All entries must be collaborative, involving at least two different organisations and at least one small to mediumsized enterprise. Entries will be accepted from September 18 to November 15.

Announcing the latest round of funding, Rail Minister Paul Maynard said: “We want to see ideas that improve reliability on the network for passengers.

“We have a wealth of pioneering, innovative companies out there ready to put their ideas into practice. This is about nurturing innovation on the railways and about developing trains that are less reliant on complex and expensive infrastructure.

“We want to tap into these inventive and ground-breaking ideas for the benefit of rail passengers across the country, and to support the biggest modernisation programme in rail since the Victorian era.”

The last funding round in March this year attracted a range of entries covering track inspections, drainage improvements and software to predict train breakdowns.