Italian groups Italo and Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) were shortlisted for the UIC International Sustainable Railway Awards 2022. The award, promoted by the International Union of Railways (UIC) and IRITS Events, celebrates innovative and sustainable solutions in mobility.
UIC, the international railway association, was founded in 1922. It promotes the development of rail transport, and it has been focusing more and more on sustainable mobility.
Italo was nominated for the Best Contribution to COVID Emergency category, thanks to the installation of HEPA filters on all trains in the company fleet. The other nominees are French railway operator SNCF and Germany’s DB Engineering & Consulting.
HEPA filters use innovative microfiber to purify the air from viruses and other pathogens. Thanks to their use, Italo guarantees a continuous and complete air exchange in the train. The system mixes the filtered air with fresh air taken from the outside, completely regenerating the air in the carriages every 3 minutes.
RFI, a RFI, a company of the FS Group that manages the Italian rail stations network, participates in the Best Multimodal Partnership category with the StationLAND project. of the FS Group that manages the Italian rail stations network, participates in the Best Multimodal Partnership category with the StationLAND project.
StationLAND is a location intelligence platform that analyses the relationships between train stations and the surrounding territory. StationLAND aims at enhancing accessibility to rail transport and its connections with other mobility networks.
Over the years, RFI forged several partnerships with institutions, local authorities, and mobility operators. An example is a recent allocation by the Italian Ministry of Sustainable Infrastructure and Mobility of about €150 million to build cycle lanes that will connect railway stations to university campuses.
Gianbattista La Rocca, CEO of Italo, commented on the nomination received by his company: “It is a great satisfaction to be among the finalists of the UIC International Sustainable Railway Awards 2022. Such an award testifies to how much good we have done so far and represents a further stimulus to improve ourselves day after day“.
The final winners will be announced at a gala ceremony hosted by UIC on the evening of 1 June 2022 in Berlin. The awards are part of UIC’s vision for the future of rail, celebrating and sharing worldwide best practice and promoting growth in the sector.
