Alcatel and Tube Lines Demonstrate
Successful Automatic Train Operation on London Underground Line
Canada NewsWire
October 13, 2004
Alcatel today announced that it has completed first stage testing and a
successful demonstration of its transmission-based automatic train control
system it is supplying to Tube Lines, the company responsible for upgrading and
maintaining track, trains, signalling and stations on London Underground’s
Jubilee Line and Northern Line. Equipped trains performed for a select guest
list of local politicians and stakeholders by shuttling at varying speeds up to
50km/h on a dedicated test track at Highgate, North London.
Tube Lines has a 30 year private-public partnership (PPP) with London
Underground and as part of this arrangement is managing a 1 billion pounds
investment program to upgrade the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines — one
of the largest upgrades of an existing metro system anywhere in the world. Each
of the lines will have a new signalling system and Alcatel’s SelTrac(R), proven
in use around the world for two decades, has been chosen for the Jubilee and
Northern Lines.
The Alcatel contract, which was announced in October 2003, is valued at Euro 450
million and lasts for seven and a half years. Alcatel’s signalling system will
be implemented completely by 2009 on the Jubilee Line and by 2011 on the
Northern Line when the new systems are to go into full revenue service. New
equipment on both lines, comprising 63 trains, 27 stations on 37km of Jubilee
Line and 106 trains, 50 stations on 58km of Northern Line, will be installed and
commissioned in sections before the old signalling system is disabled,
minimizing disruption in passenger service.
Commenting on the successful test, Tube Lines Chief Executive, Terry Morgan said
“Effective, modern signalling systems make a huge difference to passengers’
journeys by improving services and reliability, which is why it’s our priority
to install the best signals on our lines. When the new system is installed, more
trains will be able to run each hour and passengers will reach their
destinations more quickly. We chose Alcatel’s system because it is tried and
tested on light railways around the world, although none present such a
challenging environment as the London Underground. By reaching this milestone in
our rigorous testing, we’re a step closer to introducing a robust, reliable
signalling system on the Northern and Jubilee Lines.”
In a further comment, Mark Halinaty, General Manager of Alcatel’s transport
automation activities in the UK, said, “Today we have seen implemented, albeit
in a test scenario, prototype automatic train operation and protection. This
completes our initial system design phase of the project. We’re on schedule and
now we can move ahead with physical design followed by section-by-section
installation, testing and commissioning of our train control system. SelTrac
technology gives our customer, Tube Lines, the ability to improve customer
throughput safely and reliably using an existing infrastructure.”
About Tube Lines: Tube Lines is responsible for the maintenance and upgrade of
the infrastructure on the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly Lines. London
Underground is responsible for operating the Underground, for employing drivers
and station staff, for ticketing and fares, and for the Tube’s safety regime.
The Tube Lines consortium consists of Amey, Bechtel and Jarvis. |