# What is MORANE, and what role does MORANE-2 play for FRMCS?

Canonical: https://frmcs.org/knowledge/what-is-morane-and-morane-2
Last reviewed: 2026-10-02
Status: editorial reference page (static legacy content, no stored approval record)

## Short answer

MORANE stands for Mobile Radio for Railway Networks in Europe. The original European project supported the development and testing of GSM-R. Its successor, MORANE-2, now tests specifications and the interoperability of components for FRMCS — the future railway communication system based on 5G and mission-critical services.

MORANE stands for Mobile Radio for Railway Networks in Europe. The original European project supported the development and testing of GSM‑R. Its successor, MORANE‑2, now tests specifications and the interoperability of components for FRMCS — the future railway communication system based on 5G and mission-critical services. [1][2]

This article is aimed at decision-makers, project managers and technical professionals in the rail sector. It explains the connection between MORANE and MORANE‑2, the structure of the test programme, and its significance for the introduction of FRMCS.

## Key points at a glance

* MORANE‑2 is a European testing and validation project, not a radio standard in its own right.
* The project is intended to provide insights for FRMCS V3, also referred to as FRMCS 1st Edition.
* Three laboratory environments and five field test tracks are planned.
* The official project period runs from December 2024 to September 2027.
* A successful project demonstration must be distinguished from the operational readiness of a complete railway system. [2][3]

## Contents

1. MORANE and MORANE‑2 compared
2. Why FRMCS needs a joint test programme
3. Objectives and key data of MORANE‑2
4. Organisations involved
5. Technology and test environments
6. Project status and timeline
7. Significance for railways and manufacturers
8. Limits of the evidence to date
9. Frequently asked questions
10. Sources

## MORANE and MORANE‑2 compared

### The original MORANE project

The story begins with the railways' requirements for a cross-border digital radio system. In the EIRENE project, the UIC, together with other parties, described the operational requirements. These included communication functions that were also meant to work between neighbouring rail networks.

MORANE complemented this requirements work with technical specification and practical validation. Following a European tender in 1995, a consortium of railways, GSM suppliers and laboratories was awarded the project in 1996. Test environments in France, Germany and Italy supported the testing of the GSM‑R specifications. [1]

### MORANE‑2 for the next generation of railway radio

MORANE‑2 takes up this approach: requirements must prove themselves in the interplay of real implementations. This time, the technical subject is FRMCS, the Future Railway Mobile Communication System. [3]

| Aspect | MORANE | MORANE‑2 |
|---|---|---|
| Reference system | GSM‑R | FRMCS |
| Historical context | Development of digital railway radio in the 1990s | Preparation of the GSM‑R successor |
| Core task | Technical implementation and validation of requirements | Systematic testing and further development of the FRMCS specifications |
| Testing | Test environments in France, Germany and Italy | Laboratories and field tests in several European countries |

Sources: UIC on the history of MORANE and official MORANE‑2 project objectives. [1][3]

FRMCS denotes the communication system. MORANE‑2 denotes a project intended to validate its specifications and technical implementation.

## Why FRMCS needs a joint test programme

FRMCS is intended to replace GSM‑R while also creating additional possibilities for the digitalisation of railway operations. The UIC cites two key drivers: the foreseeable technological obsolescence of GSM‑R and the growing need for data communication. This affects radio technology, onboard equipment, control centres and applications. [4]

A new communication system must, for example, work together with train control, operational voice communication and automated operating functions. Components in this context come from different manufacturers. MORANE‑2 is intended to investigate this interaction under realistic conditions and feed identified gaps back into the specification work. [3]

A simplified example: a train uses onboard technology from supplier A, a network from supplier B, and a control-centre application from supplier C. All three may implement the same specification. Only a joint test shows whether their interaction actually works in the tested scenario.

This example illustrates the task but is not a report on a specific MORANE‑2 test configuration.

## Objectives and key data of MORANE‑2

The official project is called FP2‑MORANE‑2. It builds on earlier FRMCS work, including the 5GRAIL prototype project and FRMCS-related activities under R2DATO. The results are intended to support the further development of V2 and V3 target requirements into an implementable first FRMCS edition. [2]

| Key data | Official information |
|---|---|
| Coordination | International Union of Railways (UIC) |
| Start | 1 December 2024 |
| Planned end | 30 September 2027 |
| Duration | 34 months |
| Funding framework | Horizon Europe, with Europe's Rail JU and SNS JU |
| EU funding contribution | €13,499,875.24 |
| Grant Agreement | 101196125 |

Source: European Commission, CORDIS. The amount is reported there as the EU funding contribution. Total project costs are not given in the relevant CORDIS field. [2]

The ambition goes beyond finding software defects. Findings can also show that an interface needs to be described more precisely, a requirement needs to be added, or a process needs to be revised. The intended outcome is therefore both a more robust specification package and a more mature cross-manufacturer product environment. [3]

## Organisations involved

MORANE‑2 brings together railway undertakings, infrastructure managers, telecommunications and railway-technology manufacturers, and public mobile network operators. The UIC coordinates the project; UNIFE represents the European rail supply industry. The joint public project communication names the following organisations. [5]

| Group | Named organisations |
|---|---|
| Associations | UIC and UNIFE |
| Railways and infrastructure managers | ADIF, Banedanmark, Bane NOR, Deutsche Bahn, Infrabel, Network Rail, ProRail, RFI, SBB, Trafikverket and Väylävirasto |
| Industry | Alstom, CAF, Ericsson, Eviden, Frequentis, Funkwerk, Hitachi Rail GTS, Kontron, Nokia, RideOnTrack, Siemens, Teltronic and VIAVI Solutions |
| Public mobile network operators | KPN and Telia |

SBB is involved as an associated partner. It is not among the operators of the five designated field test tracks. [6]

Membership is, in the first instance, evidence of involvement. Which systems a company supplies, which tests it is responsible for, and what results are available must be additionally verified using concrete project or manufacturer information.

## Technology and test environments

### Which applications are being considered

At the project's midpoint, the consortium names in particular voice communication, the Railway Emergency Call, the ETCS train control system, Automatic Train Operation (ATO), and Train Control and Monitoring Systems (TCMS).

For this purpose, among other things, cab radios, dispatching systems, 5G networks, mission-critical components and functions for interworking with GSM‑R are being integrated. According to a project announcement from July 2026, the first unified set of system test cases is based on FRMCS V2.2. It covers onboard and trackside systems as well as their interfaces. [7]

The mention of an application does not yet mean that every conceivable variant or every level of automation has been fully demonstrated. For technical decisions, the specific test scope and the underlying specification version remain decisive.

### Why migration functions are particularly important

During a migration, the old and new communication worlds must fit together. An Interworking Function (IWF) serves as the mediating function between GSM‑R and FRMCS. Mission-critical services are often grouped together under MCX; these include MCPTT for voice, MCData for data, and MCVideo for video.

As a concrete manufacturer example, Eviden describes its project contribution as comprising an MCX server, an IWF and a dispatching system. This manufacturer information documents the announced scope of delivery, not the full validation of all the services named. [8]

For the operational assessment, it is therefore also relevant whether the required communication with the existing operational environment is preserved in the respective migration scenario.

### Three laboratories as an integration stage

The laboratory environments are operated by Ericsson, Nokia and Kontron. There, the systems are brought together before being tested under field conditions. The project is thus pursuing a staged approach of laboratory integration followed by testing on railway lines. [9]

A concrete example is provided by RideOnTrack: the manufacturer reports a successful test of the TS controller interface in the Ericsson laboratory against a Kontron FRMCS server. This interface is used to connect controller and dispatching applications to FRMCS. According to the manufacturer, Ericsson Core and RAN were used. [10]

This evidence is relevant for the combination described. It must not be transferred to other versions, other interfaces, or the operational readiness of the entire product.

### Five field test tracks with different focus areas

| Test environment | Published focus |
|---|---|
| Spain, ADIF, conventional line | Basic functions, performance and transitions between n100 at 900 MHz and n101 at 1900 MHz |
| Spain, ADIF, high-speed line | Function and performance at speeds of up to 300 km/h |
| Germany, Deutsche Bahn | Cross-border scenarios as well as GSM‑R/FRMCS interworking for voice and network handovers for data |
| Netherlands, ProRail with KPN | Multipath and hybrid connectivity with public mobile networks |
| Sweden, Trafikverket with Telia | Basic functions, performance and MOCN configurations for shared use of the radio access network |

Source: Technical article by DB authors. The table describes planned test focus areas, not trials that have already been fully completed. [6]

The different environments complement one another: a high-speed test answers different questions than the investigation of public mobile networks or of interworking with GSM‑R.

## Project status and timeline

### What has been publicly reported so far

For the reporting period from 1 December 2024 to 31 December 2025, CORDIS cites the definition of the test scope, an initial test specification, and a laboratory system architecture. The summary also reports successful system integration in representative laboratory environments. However, it does not contain complete sets of measurement results or pass/fail lists. [11]

The project announcements from July 2026 describe the transition into the comprehensive integration and laboratory test phase. In parallel, the field environments are being prepared; operational tests on the railway lines are announced to begin from 2027. [7][12]

In September 2026, Ericsson describes the validation of FRMCS connectivity, GSM‑R interworking and cross-manufacturer interoperability in the three laboratories as still an ongoing activity ahead of the field tests. [13]

### What is planned for 2027

The official project completion is scheduled for September 2027. The project brochure also lists individual target dates for laboratory and field tests as well as for the final field test report. Such roadmaps are planning states: they do not in themselves prove that a milestone has been reached. [2][14]

The finalisation of the FRMCS specifications, their regulatory adoption, and a national rollout are also separate processes. The UIC develops the FRMCS requirements and interface specifications; ETSI supplements these with technical specifications. MORANE‑2 provides practical findings for this work. [4]

The ERA opinion from 2024 belongs to the assessment record for FRMCS V2 at that time; it does not independently confirm the current MORANE‑2 schedule. For decisions, the current CORDIS project dates are therefore the relevant reference. Older presentations citing an earlier MORANE‑2 end date no longer reflect the project period recorded there. [2][15]

## Significance for railways and manufacturers

The following assessment describes how the published project objectives can be used in practice. It is not a commitment regarding future procurement or products.

### For infrastructure managers

MORANE‑2 can help to check architecture decisions and migration assumptions against practical experience. Particularly relevant are the transitions between network domains, the collaboration of different suppliers, and the handling of the existing GSM‑R infrastructure.

For future procurement, what matters is which requirements have been demonstrated with which system combination. A supplier's participation in the project is a starting point for this, but not yet complete proof.

### For railway undertakings and those responsible for rolling stock

Onboard equipment must match the infrastructure over which the vehicles are intended to run. Relevant factors are therefore the supported interfaces, software versions, communication services and migration configurations.

A successful trial in a particular environment is valuable, but it does not replace checking whether the conditions there cover the intended use case of one's own fleet.

### For control centres and operational communication

For control centres, the issue is end-to-end workflows. A new radio technology should not cause operational communication between the control centre, vehicles and personnel to fail at system boundaries.

Controller interfaces, emergency-call procedures and GSM‑R interworking therefore deserve particular attention. Technical evidence should always be checked against the operational scenarios actually required.

### For manufacturers and integrators

Joint tests create an opportunity to identify differing interpretations of a specification at an early stage. This can lead to adjustments in products, integration procedures and documentation.

The strongest form of evidence is a traceable chain: requirement, test case, tested configuration, result, and remaining limitation. A general statement such as "FRMCS-ready" does not yet contain this information.

## Limits of the evidence to date

MORANE‑2 pursues a comprehensive validation goal. However, this must not be taken to imply a blanket seal of approval for all participating products.

| Statement | What does not automatically follow from it |
|---|---|
| A company is a project partner | All of its products meet the full FRMCS scope |
| An interface has been successfully tested | The entire end-to-end system is ready for operational use |
| Two components are interoperable | Every version and every further combination also works |
| A roadmap names a completion date | The relevant milestone has already been reached |
| An application is named in the test programme | All variants and operating cases of that application are validated |

These distinctions constitute an editorial assessment framework. As of the research date, the public sources reviewed do not contain a complete, consolidated list of results for all test cases and manufacturer combinations.

### Checklist for assessing new MORANE‑2 announcements

1. Source: Does the announcement come from the consortium, a body, or an individual manufacturer?
2. Date: When did the described test take place, and when was it reported?
3. Scope: Which function or interface was actually tested?
4. Configuration: Which manufacturers, products and software versions were involved?
5. Evidence: Is there a report, measurement data, or only a summary statement?
6. Limitations: Which scenarios, constraints and open issues are mentioned?
7. Transferability: Does the test correspond to one's own intended use case?

The checklist helps to put technical progress into perspective without over-interpreting individual announcements.

## Frequently asked questions

**What does MORANE mean?**

MORANE stands for Mobile Radio for Railway Networks in Europe. The original project supported the technical development and testing of GSM‑R. MORANE‑2 builds on this approach and directs its validation work towards FRMCS. The two projects belong to different generations of railway communication. [1][3]

**Is MORANE‑2 the same as FRMCS?**

No. FRMCS is the future railway communication system. MORANE‑2 is a time-limited European project that tests its specifications and technical implementation. It is intended to provide findings for the further development of the requirements and for an interoperable environment of solutions from different manufacturers. [3]

**Does MORANE‑2 replace GSM‑R?**

Not directly. The intended successor to GSM‑R is FRMCS. MORANE‑2 supports its preparation through testing. The migration itself requires separate decisions and measures on the part of railways and manufacturers. The completion of the project is therefore not to be equated with a simultaneous conversion of all European rail networks. [4]

**When does MORANE‑2 end?**

CORDIS states 30 September 2027 as the official project end date. The start was 1 December 2024, giving the stated duration of 34 months. The end date is a project milestone and not a guarantee that commercial FRMCS systems will be operating everywhere by that time. [2]

**What role do public mobile networks play?**

KPN and Telia are project partners. In the Netherlands, hybrid connectivity is among the aspects being investigated; in Sweden, MOCN configurations are part of the published test scope. This does not imply that ordinary public mobile coverage, without further technical and operational provisions, is sufficient for all railway communication. [5][6]

**Does a successful test mean product certification?**

A single test initially demonstrates a result for the documented scope and the tested configuration. Without additional evidence, it should not be presented as comprehensive certification or a general approval for operational use. For procurement, requirements, versions, interfaces and operational conditions must in particular all align.

## Conclusion

MORANE‑2 links FRMCS specification work with practical testing. The project is intended to show how components from different manufacturers work together and which requirements need to be refined for a robust first FRMCS edition. [3]

To assess progress, what matters is which functions have been demonstrated under which conditions, and which questions remain open.

Those planning or assessing FRMCS should track new MORANE‑2 results on the basis of this kind of concrete evidence. This is how project announcements become usable information for architecture, migration and procurement.

## Sources

1. [UIC – Geschichte von EIRENE und MORANE](https://uic.org/rail-system/telecoms-signalling/frmcs) — UIC ([archived copy](https://web.archive.org/web/20260908063008/https://uic.org/rail-system/telecoms-signalling/frmcs))
2. [CORDIS-Projektakte FP2-MORANE-2](https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101196125) — Europäische Kommission
3. [Offizielle Projektziele](https://www.fp2morane2.eu/objectives/) — FP2 MORANE-2
4. [FRMCS und Spezifikationsarbeit](https://uic.org/rail-system/telecoms-signalling/frmcs) — UIC ([archived copy](https://web.archive.org/web/20260908063008/https://uic.org/rail-system/telecoms-signalling/frmcs))
5. [Projektankündigung und Konsortium](https://uic.org/com/IMG/pdf/joint_press_release_morane-2.pdf) — UIC und UNIFE ([archived copy](https://web.archive.org/web/20250222063615/https://uic.org/com/IMG/pdf/joint_press_release_morane-2.pdf))
6. [MORANE-2 als Validierungsschritt für FRMCS Edition 1](https://digitale-schiene-deutschland.de/Downloads/SD_2025_05_Holfeld_RuhrigDSD.pdf) — SIGNAL+DRAHT
7. [Rail Goes 5G](https://www.fp2morane2.eu/news/rail-goes-5g-european-rail-launches-major-frmcs/) — FP2 MORANE-2
8. [Eviden joins FP2 MORANE-2 consortium](https://eviden.com/insights/press-releases/eviden-joins-fp2-morane-2-consortium/) — Eviden
9. [Projektstruktur](https://www.fp2morane2.eu/project-structure/) — FP2 MORANE-2
10. [First FP2 MORANE-2 test case](https://www.rideontrack.com/news/rideontrack-completes-first-fp2-morane-2-test-case/) — RideOnTrack
11. [CORDIS periodic report (period 1 Dec 2024–31 Dec 2025; updated 25 May 2026)](https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101196125/reporting) — European Commission
12. [Mid-Term Conference report](https://www.fp2morane2.eu/news/fp2-morane-2-mid-term-conference-marks-major-progress-towards-europes-future-railway-communications/) — FP2 MORANE-2
13. [FP2 MORANE-2 and the path to FRMCS deployment](https://www.railwaygazette.com/sponsored-content/2026/09/07/fp2-morane-2-and-the-path-to-frmcs-deployment-in-europe/) — Railway Gazette International
14. [MORANE-2 project brochure](https://www.fp2morane2.eu/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Morane-Mid-Term-Conference-brochure-2026-Final.pdf) — FP2 MORANE-2
15. [Technical Opinion on FRMCS V2](https://www.era.europa.eu/content/opinion-eraopi2024-10-european-union-agency-railways-regarding-version-2-future-railway) — ERA

## Cite as

What is MORANE, and what role does MORANE-2 play for FRMCS?. FRMCS Atlas. https://frmcs.org/knowledge/what-is-morane-and-morane-2 (last material update 2026-10-02)

> FRMCS Atlas is a personal editorial project by Ante Samardzic (employed by Frequentis), not an official Frequentis, UIC, ETSI or ERA publication or endorsement. Claims are source-linked; review status is stated per page — database articles pass a stored quality review and human approval of the exact version, legacy static pages are marked as such.