The system is currently undergoing testing and final installation, with the line due to be closed for a week in the lead up to the launch.
“We are looking forward to using the new signal system on the first stretch in eastern Denmark in December, because it will give passengers more trains on time,” says Banedanmark director of signalling systems, Mr Søren Boysen. “Along the way, however, we cannot avoid the impact of traffic as we often test and install, while in addition, we expect minor operational disruptions in the period when the system is put into service. In the end, however, it is about achieving the common goal of providing more trains on time.”
ERTMS was first commissioned in Denmark on the Frederikshavn - Lindholm line in Jutland in October last year.
The rollout of ERTMS across the entire Danish network was originally scheduled to be completed by 2023, but in November 2017 the Danish government pushed that deadline back to 2030 in light of serious difficulties with the installation of onboard equipment.
When fully installed, the system is expected to save long-distance passengers 790,000 hours of delay and Copenhagen S-Train passengers 140,000 hours of delay each year.
