The railway electrification standard roadmap, led by the CSA Group and supported by CIMA+ through a comprehensive research study, focuses on advancing railway electrification as a key strategy to reduce GHG emissions and support sustainable transportation across Canada.
The study’s primary objective was to assess the current standards landscape for railway electrification and identify gaps that could present challenges with respect to efficient design, implementation, interoperability and innovation. It examined critical infrastructure, such as traction power substations, overhead catenary systems (overhead wiring used to supply electricity to trains) and power distribution networks, while also considering operational, maintenance and workforce requirements.
Building a nationally adapted framework
Based on standard and literature reviews, stakeholder surveys and expert interviews, the roadmap identifies significant inconsistencies in standards, particularly in the adaptation of international frameworks to Canada’s unique climatic, regulatory and operational conditions. The high-level goal was to develop a harmonized standardization roadmap that will enable more consistent, cost-effective and scalable electrification projects across the country.
CIMA+’s recommendations within the report emphasize creating Canada-specific standards, improving maintenance and safety practices, standardizing training and certification, and establishing unified project frameworks and performance metrics. Thanks to CIMA+’s engineering expertise, technical analysis and industry insight supporting the research, a detailed gap analysis was performed that will contribute to the development of actionable recommendations for advancing railway electrification in Canada.