Tech support:The new systems will reduce congestion and improve safety, line capacity and punctuality.PTI  

The Railways will roll out its new signalling system from April 2020 onwards. It is expected to make train travel faster and safer, a senior railways official said.

The implementation will begin with four sections of about 640 route kilometres with an estimated cost of around Rs. 1,810 crore.

This is expected to be a pilot project for pan-India implementation of the nearly Rs. 78,000 crore project to modernise the signalling system, which was included in the works programme of 2018-19.

"We are yet to get approval for this [entire project] from NITI Aayog, the extended Railway Board and the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA),” Pradeep Kumar, member (Signal & Telecom), Railway Board, said. The four sections where the plan will be implemented first are the Renigunta -Yerraguntla section of the South Central Railways, the Vizianagaram-Palasa section of East Coast Railway, the Jhasi-Bina on North Central Railway and the Nagpur-Badnera on Central Railway.

Modern technologies

"These four sections are some of the busiest routes on Railways, with heavy traffic. These will act as a pilot for signal modernisation across the 70,000 km network of the Railways,” Mr. Kumar said.

The modernisation of the signalling system will include implementation of technologies such as the automatic train protection system that helps in adhering to permissible speed limits without driver intervention and the 4G-based mobile train radio communication system, which can be used for emergency communications.

The implementation of these new systems will improve safety, reduce congestion, increase line capacity and improve punctuality, Mr. Kumar said.

Besides a centralised traffic control system similar to the air traffic control system, a remote diagnostic and predictive maintenance system will be implemented.

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