Britain’s infrastructure manager Network Rail (NR) has issued a tender worth between £35 million and £55 million for the design, supply, delivery, commissioning, support and maintenance of an integrated ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 2 and TMS (Traffic Management System).
NR intends to deliver — via “an early design and build deployment” on the Norwich-Yarmouth/Lowestoft lines — a digital railway tool-kit that will become the standard building blocks for the future national roll-out of ETCS. The TMS will be designed to interface with a connected-driver advisory system (C-DAS).
The tender will be divided into three lots, from which bidders can choose: ETCS, TMS, or both systems together. Maintenance and support will be required for both ETCS and TMS for 10 years, with an option to extend the contract for a further five years.
The project covers 99km of track, and retrofitting five Class 153, nine Class 156 and 12 Class 170 DMUs (diesel multiple units), 47 locomotives, a Class 37 locomotive-hauled train, and a Class 66 hauled ballast train. The project will entail the closure of eight signal-boxes, plus several level crossings.
Work on the project is expected to start in January 2017, with the development of ETCS Baseline 3.5.0 completed and available for deployment by December 2017.
The TMS training system should be ready by June 2018, with the commissioning of both systems envisaged by the end of
December 2018.