India will soon see a major shift from traditional railway signaling systems to an indigenous communication-based train control system (i-CBTC).
Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Limited (DMRC) have agreed to collaborate on the development of i-CBTC.
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India, is overseeing the project. The goal is to leverage the complementary skills and strengths of BEL and DMRC.
i-CBTC is being developed for the first time in India. It is a cutting-edge communications-based system that transmits precise and timely train control information via radio communications.
The system will make subways and trains driverless, a major advance in automation.
Modern communication-based systems use telecommunications between trains and track equipment to regulate traffic and control infrastructure.
It tracks the exact location of the train more efficiently than traditional signaling systems. As a result, rail traffic management becomes safer and more efficient.
Traditional railway signaling methods rely on colored light signals, axle counters and track circuits to detect trains. Although this technology is suitable for train detection and control, it still cannot fully utilize the section capacity.
“This is an important step towards the development of an indigenously built signaling system in India and a big step towards making metro signaling and train control systems self-reliant. This will foster and facilitate innovation, improve local skills and reduce metro cost of deployment and lead to the development of the country’s expertise in the field of train control signaling systems,” the DMRC said in a communiqué, according to economic times Report.
More than one hundred i-CBTC systems have been installed worldwide, making it the first choice for public transport rail operators. The technology is also being used in India’s subways.