FRMCS Roadmap: When Will the Successor to GSM-R Arrive?

The FRMCS roadmap is becoming more concrete: the International Union of Railways (UIC) plans the V3p preliminary version for November 2026 and the ERA-aligned V3 specification set for December 2027. V3, described as the “FRMCS 1st Edition”, is intended to provide the basis for introducing the successor to GSM-R. Both dates are planning targets. (uic.org)

For the recommendation by the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), the planning corridor runs from December 2027 to September 2028. The UIC is aiming for V3 to be incorporated into the CCS TSI in 2028. This does not establish a uniform Europe-wide start date for commercial operation. (era.europa.eu, uic.org)

Infrastructure managers, railway undertakings and suppliers therefore need to distinguish four steps: specifications, regulatory incorporation, available products and operational deployment.

The FRMCS Roadmap at a Glance

FRMCS stands for Future Railway Mobile Communication System. It is intended to replace GSM-R and provide a more capable communications foundation for digital rail operations. Development encompasses specification work, technical trials and preparation of European interoperability requirements. (5grail.eu)

• FRMCS V2: ERA Technical Opinion — December 2024 (addendum May 2025): Documented intermediate step towards further validation; Europe’s Rail notes the opinion found the V2 specifications not yet mature.
• FP2-MORANE-2 — December 2024 to September 2027: Laboratory and field tests to verify and develop the specifications.
• FRMCS V3p — November 2026, planned: Preliminary version of V3; final MORANE-2 results are still outstanding.
• FRMCS V3 / “1st Edition” — December 2027, UIC target: Planned ERA-aligned specification set.
• ERA recommendation including FRMCS specifications — December 2027 to September 2028: Published best-/worst-case planning corridor.
• Incorporation of V3 into the CCS TSI — 2028, UIC planning target: Intended regulatory incorporation; no confirmed effective date.
• National deployment and migration — according to the respective implementation plan: Infrastructure deployment, vehicle equipment and gradual operational transition.

The dates are based on publications by ERA, UIC and the EU's CORDIS project database. They describe different deliverables and must not be combined into a single “FRMCS launch date”. (era.europa.eu, cordis.europa.eu, uic.org)

What Distinguishes V1, V2, V3p and V3?

The FRMCS versions indicate the maturity of the rail-specific specification set.

V1 forms the initial basis. It supported early standardisation, regulatory preparation and prototype trials. Its inclusion in the European regulatory framework does not imply complete product or operational maturity.

V2 supports further trials. Europe's Rail describes V2 as the basis for testing and validation on the way to V3. For 2025, ERA also confirms the review and support of FRMCS FRS and TOBA FRS v2.2 by the Extended ERA Core Team for Railway Mobile Radio (EECT RMR). This statement relates to those named documents. (rail-research.europa.eu, era.europa.eu)

V3p is the planned interim delivery. According to UIC, it is intended to be aligned with V3 while final findings from MORANE-2 still need to be incorporated. (uic.org)

V3 is intended to become the first implementable overall specification. Europe's Rail explicitly associates this stage with the maturity needed for procurement. This does not mean that publication of the specification set will automatically make every required product available or all systems operationally ready. (rail-research.europa.eu)

What Role Does MORANE-2 Play?

FP2-MORANE-2 is the European validation programme on the path to FRMCS V3. According to CORDIS, the project runs from 1 December 2024 to 30 September 2027 — a total of 34 months.

Laboratory and field tests are intended to show where existing specifications need to be confirmed, supplemented or corrected. The findings are intended to feed into a market-oriented V3 specification set, creating an important technical foundation for later deployment. (cordis.europa.eu)

This dependency also explains the distinction between V3p and V3: an earlier preliminary version supports preparation, while the final specification set is intended to incorporate additional findings from validation.

Why Does an ERA Recommendation Not Yet Mean Operational Launch?

In its 2025 annual report, ERA gives a period from December 2027 in the best case to September 2028 in the worst case for the recommendation including FRMCS specifications. This corridor describes a regulatory step. It is neither a binding TSI effective date nor a commitment that complete systems will be commercially available. (era.europa.eu)

The UIC communication of June 2026 identifies the 2028 CCS TSI as the target for incorporating V3. For implementation, operators and suppliers must additionally meet their respective technical, operational and regulatory requirements. (uic.org)

A completed 3GPP release is not an FRMCS deployment date either. 3GPP provides essential telecommunications standards; FRMCS additionally requires an aligned rail-specific specification set and its validation. (rail-research.europa.eu)

Will GSM-R Be Switched Off in 2035?

2035 is an important target horizon, but it is not a binding Europe-wide switch-off date established by the sources reviewed here.

In a publication last updated in June 2024, SNCF Réseau gives a national migration phase from 2028 to 2035 and gradual commercial operation from 2032. These figures describe the French planning position at that time. They cannot be transferred unchanged to every European railway. (sncf-reseau.com)

Nor should GSM-R switch-off, technological obsolescence and the end of vendor support be treated as the same event. The SNCF publication, for example, points to possible maintenance restrictions from individual vendors as early as 2030. The concrete system landscape and applicable agreements remain decisive. (sncf-reseau.com)

What Does the Roadmap Mean for Planning?

Three planning scenarios can be derived from the published milestones. They are an editorial assessment, not official European deployment dates.

• 2026–2027: Validation, interoperability tests, supplier qualification and preparation for V3.
• 2028–2030: V3-based procurement, national pilots and initial productive deployments, depending on regulation and product maturity.
• 2030–2035 and possibly beyond: Broader migration, vehicle retrofitting and parallel operation in line with national programmes.

A robust project roadmap should answer four questions:

• Specification basis: Which FRMCS documents and version levels form the basis of the project?
• Product maturity: Which functions and interfaces have actually been implemented and demonstrated?
• Deployment conditions: Which regulatory and operational steps are required for the specific area of use?
• Migration: How will vehicle equipment, cross-border operation and GSM-R support be coordinated over time?

The FRMCS roadmap therefore provides a common development framework. Investment and commissioning decisions must connect it with the concrete plans of infrastructure managers, vehicle keepers and suppliers.