Lithuania Leads with Baltic's First
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WNALYSES/ by Victoria Tchouikova lithuania leads with Baltic's first GSM-R Compliant Railway Delivering the ultimate safety level of rail traffic is our major goal in implementing this projecr. Lithuanian RaiZwayscontinuously im• Lithuanian Railways is the first and Lithuania) are all members of the European proves passenger fand cargo transportation Union. Since joining the EU, these countries by railway services. This work covers many Baltic country to comply with have made a significant contribution to becom• areas such as rails, rolling-stock, automation, ing "full-format" members of the community information, and undoubtedly communica• EU Railway standards with the attendant commitment to implement tion systems. Many technological processes all EU-required standards, processes and proce• in railway services increasingly depend on dures. This list includes the implementation of the development level of information and the ERTMS (European Rail Traffic Management communication systems. Being aware of important step towards the clear vision of System) control and signaling system utilizing an this, Lithuanian Railways gives special at• Lithuanianseamless movementRailways (LitRail)of trainsachievedacross thean interoperable GSM-R communication system. tention to modernisation and development European rail network. In a historie event, Lithua• GSM-R, the international wireless commu• of their communications network. Installing nian Railways made the first GSM-R call in the nications standard for railway communications the GSM-R wireless communication system Baltic countries using GSM-R technology from helps to increase the efficiency and safety oi the would not only improve safety of rail traffic, Nortel. The call was completed on the Vilnius railway by supporting reliable and secure voice but would also help to reduce operational - Kaunas route which is one of Lithuania's busi• and data communication among railway opera• costs and increase service quality. Also, it I est rail lines. The event took place on June 11, tional staff, including drivers, dispatchers, train is important that the implementation of the 2009, and marked the official start of the field engineers and station controllers. GSM-R is part GSM-R system which complies with the EU pilot phase of the LitRail GSM-R project that is of the new European Rail Traffic Management i interoperability requirements clearly signals scheduled to be completed by the end of 2010, System (ERTMS) standard and carries signalling of Lithuania's aim to get integrated into the I when the country-wide network of 1,563 km has information directly to the train driver, enables to be in commercial operation. faster train speeds and increases traffic density butEuropeantechnicallevelCommunitytao.not only at a political I The EUR 50.5 million country-wide GSM-R while maintaining a high level of safety. GSM-R Today the radio communication equipment contract was signed in December 2007 be• is specified for train speeds up to 500 km/h, so it used by Lithuanian Railways is not certified tween LitRail and the Nortel/Belam Consortium. is ideally suited for the planned speed increases and does not meet requirements laid down in The deployment includes the implementation in conventional rail networks as weil as for new the Technical Regulation for Radio Equipment of a GSM-R radio communication system along high-speed routes. Most significantly GSM-R and Telecommunications TerminalEquipment 1,560 km (approximately 88% of the country's provides operational and commercial advantage approved' by order No. 738 of the Director rail network) of Lithuania's rail routes. The re• to railways and makes them more competitive of the Communications Regulatory Author• mainder of the railway network will be covered modes of transport in achanging environment. It ity under the Government of the Republic via a roaming agreement with one of the local helps to reduce operational costs through ease• of Lithuania of 74 October 2002, and their public mobile operators in Lithuania. This is the of-maintenance, improved networkmanagement further usage is in contradiction with the im• first GSM-R project in the Baltic region and it will features and the ability to operate efficiently plementation of directive 7999/5/EC of the enable LitRail to comply with European Commis• using less power. For the Baltic Countries, the European Parliament and of the Council of sion (EC) railway standards and provide high• opportunity to improve transportation links with 9 March 7999 on radio equipment and tele• speed, dependable communications to help their fellow EUmembers was a major imperative communications terminal equipment and the make the railways in Lithuania faster and safer. for joining the EU. The EU similarly recognizes mutual recognition of their conformity. Thera• The June GSM-R call marked the conclusion the importance of safe and efficient transporta• dio equipment is old physically, often causes of the first successful phase of this multi-year tion links which is one of the reasons why it set problems, can hardly be used tagether with project. Now almost the entire fleet of electric up a special financing program to accelerate the the new rolling-stock. and does not comply trains is equipped with cab radios. The remain• modernization of the Baltic Railways. Lithuania with the requirements for high-speed (760 ing diesel locomotives and road machines will was the first of the Baltic States to seize the km/h) rails. The implementation of wireless be ready by November 2010. The pilot line sites opportunity, announcing its tender for GSM-R in• communication system GSM-R will help to were all built by July 2009. Fifteen dispatchers frastructure in 2006. The Lithuanian government meet the requirements of EUlegislation relat• (of the 190 dispatchers to work with this equip• supported this tender and put forward local co• ed to the use of wireless communication sys• ment) were equipped with new terminals. Stage financing - in addition to European Union financ• tems in the railway industry. Thenew system 1 sites will be completed by the end of this year. ing according to the original EUrequirements. will help to increase the rail traffic safety and Altogether 603 km of tracks will be covered by reduce the risk of accidents that may cause GSM-R. Local subcontractors are used for fiber The lithuanian Railways Project injuries to people, damages to properly, and optical cable laying; also towers and containers With the Lithuanian government providing may be hazardous to the environment. Also, are manufactured by domestic manufacturers. the necessary political and financial support to plans are to expand the volume of radio com• Civil engineering work (building foundations, make this large-scale railway modernization munication services provided to passengers erecting towers) are also being performed by process real, Lithuanian Railways turned its at• and cargo carriers, as weil as other enter• local subcontractors. tention to finding a vendor that could meet their prises related to railway operations, and to The June GSM-R call signified the first major requirements. Lithuanian Railway worked out use functions and new opportunities offered milestone on the way to Lithuanian Railways' and presented a very detailed tender proposal by GSM-R to ensure better functionality of integration into the European Railway "eco• with requirements for a turn-key solution - the communication services. system". The Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia wireless communication infraSLructure with ac- 58 Rai/way Market . CEE Review Ho. 3 2nnS NALYSES/ cess and core network, network management, Nortel's GSM-R technology will help to in• "Belam has worked with Nortel for more than locomotive cab radios and handsets, dispatch• crease railway efficiency and safety by provid• 15 years, and /'m confident that tagether we ing system and a full cycle of necessary services ing reliable and secure communications among will bring the project to a successful and - RF engineering, radio-towers construction, railway operational staft, including conductors, timely implementation, acting in strict com• equipment installation, and end-ta-end integra• dispatchers, train engineers and station con• pliance with the project timeline and original tion of all systems and network optimization trollers. GSM-R is also part of the European Rail tender requirements. We are combining the services based on the EIRENEI ERTMS stand• TrafficManagement System (ERTMS)standard technology, global experience and commit• ards. that combines GSM-R for voice communication ment to innovation and continuous R&D to Ta date a completely new central switching and European Train Control System (ETCS)for produce the very best solution for LitRail," site has been built close to the main railway sta• signaling systems. ERTMS carries the signal• said Dmitry Krupnikov, Director for Business tion in Lithuania's capital Vilnius, hosting all core Development, Belam. "The LitRail GSM-R network elements as weil as the network moni• ing information directly to the train conductor and operates traffic crossroad signals, enabling project is a good example of how telecom toring and operating center. After the comple• faster train speeds and higher traffic density technologies can hi:dp.f region's economy, tion of the pilot line including the transmission while maintaining a high level of safety. as an effective transportation system for the network, base station installation and dispatcher The new network includes