Regulatory Compliance News

EU Draft Decision Expands Railway Use of the 900 MHz Frequency Band

The European Commission has released a draft amendment to Decision (EU) 2021/1730, aiming to broaden the technical use of the 874.4–880 MHz and 919.4–925 MHz bands (the 900 MHz frequency band) to support the Future Railway Mobile Communication System (FRMCS).

The update reflects recent advances in standardisation and proposes new configurations to allow both GSM-R and FRMCS to operate simultaneously, easing migration while preparing the sector for 5G-enabled railway communication.

Key Highlights

• - Introduction of new channel sizes below 5 MHz and above 1.4 MHz for flexible 5G integration.
• - Extended narrowband support beyond NB-IoT for FRMCS applications.
• - Concurrent operation of GSM-R and FRMCS systems to reduce migration costs.
• - Harmonised technical conditions covering bandwidth, power levels, and interference control.
• - Based on CEPT Report 90, which outlines harmonised rules for FRMCS deployment in the 900 MHz band.

Impact

This amendment will accelerate Europe’s transition to FRMCS, strengthening railway safety, efficiency, and readiness for next-generation communication technologies.