Towards integrated railway protection

Abstract

Since their inception, railways have been built upon the need for transport to be as safe as possible. Although incidents remain a fact of life in railway field due to the volumes carried, the density of traffic and the extent of services offered by railways, rail transport remains one of the safest mode of transport. However, another threat is jeopardizing the railway sector: crime and terrorist. Over the past 10-20 years, security issues have increasingly come to the fore, requiring strong sector action. This chapter presents a briefly overview about the present challenges for security in railway system. It provides a clear picture of the current scenario illustrating the most relevant threats, experiences, best practices and possible counter measurements all matured by the experience of UIC, in about one century of activity in the railway sector.