A breakthrough year? 2004 promises to be a significant year for CBTC in the U.S. as some systems enter revenue service and new pilot projects get under way

Railway Age, May, 2004 by William C. Vantuono

Signal engineers from all areas of the railway industry have been developing various forms of communications-based train control for the better part of 25 years. They've been addressing such complex issues as cost-effectiveness, interoperability, safety certification, even the possibility of a federal mandate for freight railroads to employ the technology. While CBTC development has been more of a gradual evolution than a rapid revolution, the pieces seem to be falling into place this year rather quickly, as evidenced by a plethora of maturing U.S. projects. Transit agencies are leading the way with new technology, and the freight railroads may be on the verge of a breakthrough.

Transit activity is moving along at a steady pace:

* This September, MTA New York City Transit is preparing to place a pilot radio-transmission-based CBTC system into revenue Service on the Canarsie "L" Line, following more than a decade of development and testing. The technology, a system from Siemens based on one installed on RATP's (Paris) Meteor Line, is expected to be deployed on the entire Canarsie Line by March 2005. NYCT is looking to maximize reuse of the Meteor Line design to support equipped and non-equipped trains, and develop interoperability specs that will enable other suppliers to provide CBTC. NYCT is also looking beyond Canarsie, design-lug the new 2nd Avenue Subway with CBTC, and starting Flushing Line (No. 7) CBTC design, including a proposed extension to Manhattan's West Side. A consultant contract for design and construction support services for both projects was awarded to a consortium of Parsons Transportation Group, Booz Allen, ARINC, Abacus Technology, Dnutch Associates, and KKO & Associates.

* In December 2003, AirTrain JFK, the first driverless, CBTC equipped rail rapid transit system in the U.S., entered revenue service. Though the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey officially calls the system "light rail," its top speed (60 mph), fully-grade separated guideway, and moving-block train control (Alcatel Canada's inductive loop SELTRAC CBTC) are anything but LRT. This year, AirTrain's SELTRAC will be enhanced with "Auto Restart," a software function that permits a CBTC system to cold restart into fully automatic operation and safely account for all trains.

* In the first quarter, Philadelphia's SEPTA expected to place a CBTC system in revenue service in its 2.5-mile Light Rail Tunnel, where five surface routes converge into two tracks at two portals. SEPTA's objective is to improve safety while maintaining efficient railcar movements. The RF-based Flexiblok CBTC system from Bombardier is designed to support 6070 LRVs per hour, with 30 plus LRVs normally operating in the tunnel during peak hours under present scheduling, and will be capable of handling up to 75 LRVs per hour as well as multi pie berthing of cars in all stations. The system provides train separation and civil speed control with continuous overspeed protection.

* In San Francisco, BART's AATC (Advanced Automatic Train Control) system is designed to increase the number of trains that can be operated through the Transbay Tube into downtown San Francisco from the current 16 trams per hour to a minimum of 30 trains per hour. AATC, supplied by GE Transportation Global Signaling, utilizes spread-spectrum radio-positioning technology to continuously communicate with and locate trains. AATC is being tested as an overlay on a segment of the Alameda Line. Under way is an extension to a 25-mile section from San Leandro and Oakland through the Transbay Tube to Daly City. Phase 3, originally scheduled for mid 2004, in which all trains will be equipped and wayside CBTC equipment will be deployed on about one-fourth of the BART system, is in process, but funding constraints have delayed completion for up to two years.

For freight railroads, the breakthrough they will most likely need for widespread implementation of interoperable, cost-effective Positive Train Control (PTC) could occur this year on the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe. On March 1, on the Beardstown Subdivision, BNSF embarked upon a PTC pilot program with ETMS (Electronic Train Management System), an overlay technology developed by Wabtec Railway Electronics (RA, February, p. 31). BNSF has specified that ETMS must prove to be at least as safe as its existing signal systems and use proven, low cost components. The pilot will determine whether there is a business case for PTC. The initial application of ETMS, which is based upon CSX Transportation's CBTM (Communications-Based Train Management, p. 68), will be in dark territory. ETMS is designed to enforce train speed and civil speed restrictions, and provide automatic train roll-up (releasing territory behind a track warrant), among other functions.

The Michigan High Speed PTC Project, which employs GE's ITCS (Incremental Train Control System), is in the midst of obtaining FRA certification for 95-mph Amtrak operations. ITCS has been in revenue service since April 2000 on a 71-mile segment of Amtrak-owned territory between Kalamazoo, Mich., and Michigan City, Ind. Amtrak and Norfolk Southern trains operate under full enforcement and continuous train supervision, with Amtrak operating at 90 mph. The goal of 110 mph is expected to be achieved by fourth quarter 2005. ITCS is also an overlay system, among whose functions are speed enforcement and crossing status indication.