Trains are the drivers of Europe’s industrial revolution. But can they play a part in our rapidly digitizing future? CCTV’s Guy Henderson reports from one of the world’s largest railway trade fairs in Berlin.

European Union Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc said, “We as a Commission decided to extend the European Fund for Strategic Investments — and to increase its firepower to reach at least half a trillion Euros of investments by 2020: infrastructure plays an essential role in that story."

Digital infrastructure is a theme this year. Such modernisation comes with sector-specific challenges — across networks that are often ageing, complex and disconnected from each other. But leading players reckon their cutting-edge technology can still offer a competitive edge.

Peter Thomas from General Electric said, “If we have an on-board system that can act like cruise-control to drive the train — and we have a network optimisation solution that knows the state of nature of that network — where there are congestion points and problems — the ability to communicate between those two can help us to better automate the flow of traffic”.

For others, passenger comfort is the focus. That romantic feel of traditional train travel.

Yang Jillian of China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation said, “Sometimes maybe you can imagine even one thousand kilometres an hour. Can you imagine that right? Yeah — hahah! So maybe next time — in maybe several generations — CRRC’s high speed trains, maybe 5 hours Berlin - Beijing. Or maybe 5 hours Frankfurt - Beijing."

Perhaps train-spotting could be cooler than it looks.

“Trains have their limitations — they’re big beasts, they travel along a single track — so perhaps it’ll never be quite as simple as ordering an 'Uber' or a 'Didi'. But exhibitors here say they offer different strengths - and believe the sector can play a significant role in the digital future, just as it has in the industrial past," said Henderson.