Rethinking first- and last-mile rail: Rail Cargo Group's approach to restoring competitiveness

Introduction

Single wagonload transport is under mounting pressure across Europe. Rising operational costs, shunting complexity, and intense competition from road freight have eroded its competitiveness making it increasingly difficult for industrial shippers to justify rail for short-distance, point-to-point logistics. Yet for the chemicals, steel, construction, agribusiness, and automotive sectors, there is often no viable alternative.

Rail Cargo Group believes the answer lies in automation. And they are already building it.

Through the SARI initiative (Self-propelled Automated Railwagon Integration), Rail Cargo Group is exploring how existing freight wagons can be equipped with new components to operate autonomously for short-distance, first- and last-mile movements. The project is currently in active testing and aims to remove the operational bottlenecks that make single wagonload transport uncompetitive today.

In this RailTech Master Class, Sebastian Sperker presents the initiative exclusively, its strategic rationale, the technology approach, and the roadmap ahead.

What You Will Take Away From This Session

This session is structured around five concrete areas:

1. Context and challenges in first- and last-mile rail operations: why the current model is under pressure
2. The current technology environment, with real-world examples of what is already being deployed
3. The SARI initiative: project scope, pilot details, and technical insights from the testing phase
4. Potential impact and challenges : high-level business cases for industrial shippers
5. Outlook and next steps: project timeline and key milestones ahead

Why This Matters to You

If you manage rail freight strategy or supply chain operations in an industrial sector, single wagonload transport is a challenge you know well:

• Operational costs that make short-haul rail difficult to justify against road
• Shunting operations that introduce delays and reduce service reliability
• Limited first and last-mile flexibility between the rail network and plant sidings
• Declining route availability as operators concentrate on higher-volume corridors

SARI targets these constraints directly. By enabling wagons to move autonomously over short distances, the initiative aims to reduce the manual operations, shunting dependencies, and fixed infrastructure requirements that drive cost and inflexibility in single wagonload transport.

This session gives you early visibility on an initiative that is shaping the future of industrial rail logistics, before it becomes mainstream.

Who Should Attend

This Master Class is designed for supply chain and logistics professionals who are:

• Responsible for rail freight strategy and evaluating automation as a lever for cost reduction and operational flexibility
• Working in industries that rely on single wagonload transport: chemicals, petrochemicals, steel, construction, agribusiness, automotive
• Tracking innovation in European rail freight: autonomous wagons, Digital Automatic Coupling, first- and last-mile automation
• Looking for early insight on initiatives that could reshape the economics of industrial rail logistics

Session Format

• Duration: 30-45 minutes
• 20-30 minutes: Presentation by Sebastian Sperker
• 10-15 minutes: Interactive Q&A
• Platform: Livestorm
• Cost: Free

Register

Wednesday, May 6, 2026 | 11:00 AM CET | Online | Free

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