Taking the high-level objectives set out in the Shift2Rail Master Plan as a starting point, and considering the role that rolling stock plays within the whole railway system, the high-level objectives for IP1 can be summarised as follows:
1. Increase the physical capacity of vehicles and promote the enhancement of transport capacity of railway lines.
2. Reduce the travel disruptions for passengers by increasing operational reliability and availability of vehicles, either through the use of fundamentally more reliable components or system/subsystem architectures.
3. Reduce life cycle cost of the vehicle (reduction of maintenance, energy consumption …) and of other subsystems interfacing with the vehicle (reduction of track damage …).
4. Increase energy efficiency of the vehicle and reduce vehicle mass. Fulfilling these objectives will guarantee that the Shift2Rail global objectives are achieved.

RUN2Rail will take up some of the key results from past and current EU R&D projects such as Roll2Rail, REFRESCO, DYNOTRAIN, EURAXLES etc. and will contribute, together with the corresponding CFM Projects PIVOT and FINE-1, to the EU rail passenger vision of IP1 in line with the goals set in the 2011 EC Transport White Paper.