The York & North Yorkshire Rail Innovation Cluster

04 Aug 2026 | York Central

York Central is proud to be part of the York and North Yorkshire Rail Innovation Cluster, which is an expanding partnership of committed industry, civic and academic collaborators, unified behind a shared mission: "To Make York and North Yorkshire the place where operational rail innovation is applied, proven and made to work on Railways worldwide."

Building on York’s longstanding history as a national rail hub, the cluster will address some of the major operational challenges facing the railway. By connecting industry challenges with specialist expertise and new technologies, supported by research infrastructure and a growing focal point for collaboration at York Central, the cluster is helping develop practical solutions, attract investment and create new opportunities for businesses across the region.

Through the cluster, businesses can connect with industry partners and respond to operational needs, developing commercially viable solutions with the potential to scale across UK and international rail markets.

For York and North Yorkshire, building on our strengths means delivering innovative solutions across three priority technology areas:

1) Advanced operational energy management, supporting more efficient electricity demand and greater grid resilience.

2) Advanced communications, enabling high-performance and secure communications across the rail network.

3) Automation and autonomous systems, including safety and assurance for deployment of AI and other forms of automation in safety-critical environments.

Backed by a growing coalition of leading rail organisations, innovative businesses, universities and public sector collaborators, the cluster is building the partnerships and pipeline of projects needed to turn promising ideas into practical, investable solutions.

York and North Yorkshire’s Rail Innovation Cluster is being delivered by a partnership comprising York Central, York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, City of York Council, University of York, A.G.H Engineering Ltd, Hitachi, Siemens, GBRX and Network Rail.

Metro Dynamics – an economic development consultancy with expertise in building and supporting clusters – worked with the partnership to develop the mission and strategy.

You can read the full Rail Innovation Cluster strategy here as well as the evidence that sits behind it here.

To find out more about the York and North Yorkshire Rail Innovation Cluster or for collaboration opportunities please contact ynyrailinnovation@metrodynamics.co.uk.