It also serves as the basis for the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS), which supports more resilient, efficient and sustainable railway operations through greater digitalization, capacity and reliability of service.
This deployment marks a significant step in the rail sector's transition from the legacy Global System for Rail Mobile Communications (GSM-R) to the 5G-based FRMCS standard, designed for real-time, mission-critical communications between infrastructure and trains. Created to support full rail automation, FRMCS integrates advanced technologies such as AI and fosters a more competitive, capable, and future-proof industry.
Rainer Fachinger, Head of Telecom Platforms at DB InfraGO, stated: “ Deutsche Bahn wants to leverage modern 5G-based telecommunications to enhance its railway communications infrastructure. Collaboration with technology experts like Nokia is essential for DB to integrate the latest innovations into our real-world operations. This pilot implementation builds on a successful pre-FRMCS 5G trial conducted with Nokia and aims to standardize our private mobile network as a foundation for future pilot tests and deployments.”
The technology is being implemented at DB's digital rail test range in the Ore Mountains (Erzgebirge, Germany) and is running on actual trains. Key features include integrated failover, self-repair capabilities, and real-time monitoring to ensure high availability and efficiency. The solution will also be used for the European FP2-MORANE-2 project, which builds upon previous FRMCS initiatives to advance rail digitalization across Europe.
Rolf Werner, Nokia's Director for Europe, stated: “Nokia and DB have been pioneers in advancing FRMCS. We are proud to offer the first commercial 5G solution using the 1900 MHz spectrum band on railways. This milestone will bring significant benefits to DB, including the automation of rail operations, intelligent maintenance, and smart infrastructure and stations. We believe this launch will serve as an important benchmark for FRMCS upgrades on rail networks worldwide in the coming years.”
The contract expands Deutsche Bahn's ongoing trials with Nokia's 5G SA core and 3700 MHz (n78) radio network, while also upgrading to a new solution that includes Nokia's 1900 MHz (n101) 5G radio network equipment from its AirScale portfolio and the optimized 5G SA core. Designed for a seamless migration from GSM-R to FRMCS, it offers the high reliability and low latency required by modern railways.
