The Signalling Company launches its PZB app at InnoTrans

At InnoTrans in Berlin, The Signalling Company launched its PZB app on the RailOS platform — delivering the German national train protection system as software. With PZB added to its application portfolio, RailOS now covers 22 countries, up from 13, combining European ETCS with the national systems still required to actually run a train across countries like Germany and Austria.

First out of the gate: Lineas

Belgian freight operator Lineas will be the first to equip its HLD77 locomotive fleet with the integrated solution, combining ETCS and national train protection covering Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands — a single platform standing in for three separate national systems on one international route. “We are fully focused on reducing risk, optimising costs and accelerating deployment,” said Alexandre Bétis, CEO of The Signalling Company. “We are achieving these objectives in Germany, Austria and other countries by adding PZB to our platform’s application portfolio, building on more than six years of operation, continuous testing and debugging on the Belgian railway network — the most comprehensive and complex ETCS network in the world.”

Two years from Belgium to 22 countries

The launch caps two years of rapid growth for the platform: since debuting at InnoTrans 2024 certified for Belgium, it has achieved full ETCS certification, passed the halfway mark on Lineas’s 109-locomotive retrofit, and expanded onto new Škoda-built trains. “We are excited to be at the forefront of a new approach to onboard ETCS that is fully aligned with the objectives of European and international railway directives,” said Petr Novotný, CEO of Škoda Group. “This is an exceptional achievement in just twenty-four months, and we look forward to further developing the platform and entering new markets as ETCS continues to expand worldwide.”