Railway transport produces less CO2, and consumes less energy than road and air transport modes; it also requires less space than road transport. However, noise and vibration (N&V) levels in the vicinity of railways are a major environmental challenge for the railway sector. Whilst a modal shift to rail traffic is important for environmental reasons, N&V remains one of the biggest environmental challenges for the rail sector. Controlling noise inside rail vehicles is also important to maintain their attractiveness. There is a need for new modelling and experimental techniques that will enable a new generation of low noise vehicles and improved certification techniques at a lower cost, leading to a reduced environmental impact, higher comfort and, thus, greater public acceptance of railway transportation. The overall goal of TRANSIT is to provide the railway community with a proven set of innovative tools and methodologies, to reduce the environmental impact, and to improve interior acoustic comfort of railway vehicles.
