Railways are the nervous system of modern cities, keeping them vibrant and connected to the world at large. They ensure the free movement and exchange that underpins economic prosperity and the well-being of people and communities. Surging demand for transportation, rapid technological advancement, environmental upheavals, geopolitical and economic uncertainty—cities can only thrive in the face of these pressures if their railway systems are something they can depend on.
We at Alstom define resilience as the ability of a rail system to resist, absorb, adapt to and recover from adverse events or stresses while maintaining safety and performance. The first line of defence is robustness. We use tough, high-quality components and materials, and our high-performance trains and infrastructure are designed for long lifecycles. We also work to anticipate all possible disruptions, including digital, that railway operators will face both short and long-term, and we design products and services that can absorb these pressures with as little disruption as possible. This is railway resilience: the capacity to absorb stress and recover quickly from adverse events.