Digital automatic coupling (DAK) in the final spurt to series production readiness
The development of digital automatic coupling (DAC) for freight trains is making further progress. The German Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) has provided research funding of 8.25 million euros to support the pilot project "DAC4EU" (Digital Automatic Coupling for Europe). This will enable the DAC4EU consortium to further develop the DAC to series maturity and towards its use in European rail freight transport. From 2026, up to 100 pioneer trains with production-ready DACs will be rolling through Europe.
In addition to Deutsche Bahn and DB Cargo, the Swiss and Austrian rail freight companies SBB Cargo and Rail Cargo Austria as well as Ermewa, GATX Rail Europe and VTG are also part of the DAC4EU consortium.
Dr. Sigrid Nikutta, Member of the Management Board for Freight Transport at Deutsche Bahn AG and Chair of the Management Board of DB Cargo AG: "The European economy needs efficient and reliable freight transport by environmentally friendly rail. DB Cargo makes an important contribution to this with Europe's largest single wagonload network. The DAK and with it the digitalization of rail freight transport enable new attractive and economical logistics offers for our customers throughout Europe - climate-neutral from door to door, from factory gate to factory gate. With digital automatic coupling, we can put our trains together faster and more efficiently and reduce costs. This is an important building block in DB Cargo's transformation process towards becoming a competitive rail logistics provider."
Coupling at speed
The DAK automatically connects freight cars to each other. It establishes a mechanical and electrical connection between the wagons and automatically connects the compressed air line for the brakes without any manual work by the shunting personnel. This makes it much quicker and easier to assemble freight trains and send them on their way. This makes rail freight transport and the rail system as a whole much more efficient and economical.
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