ROLLING STOCK
Cab radio upgrade for Tyne and Wear Metro
The Tyne and Wear passenger transport executive, Nexus, is buying a new digital radio system for its fl eet. David Stevenson reports.
A
new digital radio system is replacing the analogue technology that has been in use
on the Tyne & Wear Metro network since the early 1990s.
The new radios will be installed in the driver’s cabs and in the Metro Control Room at South Gosforth in Newcastle by autumn 2015, as part of the £389m ‘Metro: all change’ 11-year modernisation programme.
Raymond Johnstone, director of rail and
infrastructure for transport authority Nexus, said: “The new technology will provide the Metro drivers with a vastly improved, digital communications system which is fi t for the 21st century.
“Replacing the radio system is perhaps a less glamorous part of our modernisation work, but it is probably one of the most important upgrades that we will make.”
The £7.7m radio system is being supplied to Nexus by Austrian company Kapsch CarrierCom.
It said introducing the digital trunked radio technology during the next 18 months without impairing ongoing operations, with a migration phase featuring both the old and new technologies, would be a challenge requiring “intensive planning and preparation”.
The technology will be in use across Metro’s
77km network of 60 stops, two lines, 90 Metrocars and three shunting cars.
In an earlier interview with RTM, Johnstone said the new TETRA system is being installed because their current system is “obsolete”. He explained: “In terms of quality, it still functions reliably, but you’ve always got to keep ahead of the game when it comes to essential kit like radios.”
Kapsch will build the entire TETRA infrastructure, deliver the cab radios and the terminals for the control centres.
www.nexus.org.uk/metro FOR MORE INFORMATION
Preventing broadcast storms on the Qinghai-Tibet Railway
Menglei Zhang, on behalf of Korenix UK, writes about rail improvements on a high-elevation, 2,000km railway in east Asia and the lessons for the UK.
By
installing more than 100 Korenix industrial ethernet switches in 22 of
its trackside railway stations and 96 fi eld level sites, the rail operator of the Qinghai- Tibet Railway has now eliminated the risk of broadcast storms on its environmental monitoring and control system network.
The Qinghai-Tibet Railway is the highest plateau rail line construction in the world and also one of the most challenging in terms of the environmental conditions. Lying on frozen ground 3,000 metres above sea level, the railway is subjected to extreme climactic conditions: strong winds, heavy sandstorms and frequent thunderstorms. During the course of the day, the temperature can fl uctuate by more than 30C.
Monitoring the railway system’s live status,
managing any unforeseen disasters instantly, and to ensure reliable operation, are the most important issues for the rail operating authority. This authority has designed and built a comprehensive environmental monitoring and control system on a power SCADA system, wireless base stations and equipment rooms along the trackside.
In 2009, Korenix’s industrial ethernet switches were successfully chosen as the main network system in the 763km-long Seager line, the main stem of the Qinghai-Tibet railway. To put this into perspective, the equivalent distance in the UK would be a 481-mile train journey from London to Dundee. Korenix switches are able to operate reliably in extreme environments with rapid, wide temperature variations. The switch has an IP31 protected aluminium housing, which acts as a large heat sink, offering
excellent cooling effects, as well as protecting the device from heavy sandstorms.
The company was chosen because of the wide temperature range of its ethernet switches and their reliable operation in extreme environments with rapid temperature variation; their strong EMS Protection (EN50121-4 EMC rated for trackside applications); the IP31 aluminium housing for improved protection from heavy sandstorms; the high RSTP/MSTP conformance, ensuring stable interoperability with third-party switches in the large network system; and Korenix’s patented MSR Redundant Ring technology – 5ms fast recovery time and 0ms seamless restoration.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
T: +44 (0) 1527 529 774 E:
santos.m@mac-solutions.co.uk W:
www.korenix.co.uk
rail technology magazine Jun/Jul 14 | 127 rail technology magazine Jun/Jul 14 | 127
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