Your Personal Guide
Choosing the Right Railway Router
If you operate new rail lines and are responsible for modern onboard connectivity, you face a crowded market. Railway routers vary widely in features, performance tiers, and certifications — picking the right one is no small task.
The Key Questions When Choosing a Router
- Which router best fits my project’s requirements?
- Which router features are critical for stable, efficient rail operations?
- How do I keep my router reliable and future-proof in the long run?
This whitepaper works through the key questions that come up when selecting a modern railway router.
You’ll learn which features really matter in practice — reliable connectivity, intelligent network management, secure remote access, and robust protection against cyberattacks.
We also show how the right combination of hardware and software can significantly extend your routers’ lifespan — in many cases nearly doubling their service life. The key is an often underestimated but decisive factor: continuous software support and professional lifecycle management.
With this knowledge, you can make informed decisions that improve operational reliability, get more out of your investment, and keep your rail infrastructure future-proof.
Finding the Right Railway Router
Four Steps to the Right Choice
To guide your router selection, we offer a clear step-by-step method:
Step 1
Define Your Deployment Scenario
- Basic operational communication (Light Rail): Core functions like telemetry and vehicle-to-wayside data transmission.
- Non-critical, high bandwidth demand (Heavy Rail): Solid bandwidth for Wi-Fi, video surveillance, basic edge computing, and VPN functionality.
- Performance-intensive applications (High-Speed Rail): Premium Wi-Fi, real-time communication, and multiple parallel edge applications.
Step 2
Review Technical Requirements
- Form factor & mounting: Check available installation space, temperature ranges, and mechanical compatibility.
- Power supply: Check compatibility (24-110V, PoE).
- Network performance: Ethernet bandwidth (100 Mbit/s, 1-10 Gbit/s).
- Cellular & Wi-Fi: Matching LTE/5G standards and Wi-Fi specifications.
- Other interfaces: GNSS functionality and OT interfaces (Serial, CAN).
- Computing power: Processor architecture (ARM vs. x86), RAM, and AI acceleration.
Step 3
Plan Network Capacity
- Calculate required bandwidth: Based on passenger numbers and expected data consumption.
- Set router count & cellular connectivity: Factor in vehicle length, passenger numbers, available cellular technologies, and satellite options where relevant.
- Optimize Wi-Fi coverage: Plan access points around passenger density for stable, high-performance connections throughout the vehicle.
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The whitepaper also covers:
- Step 4 in full: Vendor support, OTA updates, and platform flexibility as selection criteria that let you nearly double your routers’ service life.
- Comparison table of 11 leading railway routers: Cellular, Wi-Fi, interfaces, certifications, plus strengths and weaknesses — from Teltonika and Netmodule to Duagon and Lanner.
- Practical values for network planning: Bandwidth per passenger, routers per car, and Wi-Fi sizing — ready to drop into your project planning.
- Standards in flux: RED, EU Cyber Resilience Act, IEC 62443, IEC 63452, and NIS-2 — and which of them become mandatory for your procurement, and when.
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Get the Whitepaper by EmailFAQ
How much bandwidth does my train need?
Here’s how to calculate the bandwidth requirements for your router infrastructure:
- 0.5–0.7 Mbps per passenger for commuter trains
- 1–2 Mbps per passenger for long-distance services
- Multiply by the number of seats and factor in a concurrent usage rate (usually below 50%)
This gives you accurate sizing for cellular uplinks and Wi-Fi capacity.
How do I choose the right railway router for my train type?
Router configuration requirements vary by train type:
- Trams (light rail): Compact routers with 1–2 LTE/5G modems
- Regional trains: Modular routers with multiple uplinks and edge computing capabilities
- High-speed trains: High-performance rack routers with satellite connectivity and 4–6 cellular modems
Tip: Before choosing, always assess the specific use case, passenger numbers, and operational requirements.
Is Wi-Fi 7 necessary for railway routers?
No — Wi-Fi 7 is currently not required in most rail scenarios.
- Wi-Fi 6: Best balance of performance, device compatibility, and future-proofing
- Wi-Fi 5: Can become a bottleneck under heavy load
- Wi-Fi 7: Still expensive, with limited added value in rail today
How many railway routers does my train need?
Rule of thumb:
- 1 router supports up to 4 single-deck cars
- 2+ routers for double-deck trains or long trainsets, for better bandwidth aggregation
Recommendations:
- For basic requirements: LTE CAT12+
- For demanding requirements: 5G with 2–3 modems
- Avoid more than 3 modems — antenna cabling becomes too complex
- LEO satellite uplinks (e.g. Starlink) can further improve performance — where available
Which certifications and cybersecurity standards should a railway router meet?
Certification requirements differ by operator, region, and use case.
Essential in procurement:
- EN 50155 (operational safety)
- EN 45545 (fire protection)
Depending on timing and deployment:
- RED (EU 2022/30) — mandatory from 2025
- EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA)
- IEC 62443 / DIN EN 50701 (IT/OT security in rail)
- NIS 2 Directive and GDPR
Recommendation: Choose platforms with proven certifiability through documentation, test evidence, and OTA updates. That avoids costly upfront certification and keeps you flexible as requirements evolve.
