SPANISH infrastructure manager Adif has awarded Alstom a contract to develop a new ERTMS application for low-density lines based on satellite technology and using public telecommunications networks.
The contract includes installation and testing of the system on the La Asunción Universidad - Guardo section of the León - Aranguren metre-gauge line. The contract is valued at €13.7m.
The system will use a mixture of sensors, including satellite-based train location, and public telecommunications networks instead of GSM-R. It will feature less wayside equipment while offering the same levels of safety as ETCS applications used on the Spanish high-speed network. It will also be interoperable with legacy equipment.
Alstom will manage the research project from its railway safety and signalling technology centre in Madrid.
