ALL IMAGES: SIEMENS MOBILITY Welcome hat a difference a year makes! If tough challenges to meet. Net Zero by 2050 anyone had asked me last year will be no walk in the park, and UK. As a Wwhat my priorities might be in result, the Department for Transport is in the my first year as CEO of Siemens Mobility middle of consulting on its decarbonisation Limited, I’m not sure that my answers would plan. Eliminating diesel trains from the have been wholly accurate! network and looking again at electrifying Without a doubt, the COVID-19 pandemic large parts of our railway is just one part of has been the number one topic on my mind. the solution. Investment in infrastructure Brexit has all but been forgotten by most and clever thinking is needed. Luckily I’m people as a result. COVID-19 has changed surrounded by very clever people! what we do and how we do it and, for our I hope that when we look back, a year industry in particular, the impact has been from now, we’ll see some very positive pretty phenomenal. Instead of capacity developments for our rail industry and our constraints we’ve been talking traveller (and country. Part of our job is to guide and advise staff) confidence. Instead of face-to-face on reaching productive solutions for us all. meetings we’ve become experts on video After all, we employ many thousands of people conferencing and collaboration platforms. here and have been present in the UK since I’ll be the first to admit it has altered my Victorian times, so we have a vested interest in views on productivity and effectiveness. WILLIAM WILSON helping the UK economy get back on track. To More generally, it has triggered the SIEMENS MOBILITY CEO UKI coin a phrase… build back better, build back reassessment of future working patterns greener, build back faster. ■ and places. For Siemens this has been a very our roads congested. We now have an clear message – even post-COVID-19 our opportunity to reassess and do this right. working model will mean people working And that means bringing about the best CONTENTS from home or other remote locations for two/ economic benefit for the UK. My colleagues three days per week. As a result we will very and I have spent many hours and days much focus on outcomes, rather than time looking at what we can do. In the following Mobilising the spent at the office. Of course, we’ve adopted pages you’ll be able to read about real-life economy flexible working policies for many years now, examples of what we’ve been doing. It may 38Squaring up to COVID-19. but this takes things a step further. We’ll involve using ‘blue sky thinking’ to come help our people choose where they are most up with new solutions, or considering what Green light productive and what works best for them. It’s already exists that could be used in different Helping the UK to meet its a win-win scenario. ways. I’m proud that Siemens Mobility can I mentioned traveller confidence at the be so innovative and entrepreneurial. 40targets for zero-emissions. start of my introduction. As an industry it One by-product of the global pandemic is clear we have a significant part to play has, of course, been the reduction in CO2 Innovation station in this. We need to help people feel safe to emissions. As fewer people have travelled, Siemens Mobility’s £200m travel. Whether that’s two days a week in the so pollution has decreased. That’s brought investment in Goole. future or whether that’s the pre-COVID-19 into sharp focus the topic of decarbonisation. 42 five-day commute. There are a lot of people It’s not that people weren’t aware of this who’ve been very nervous about passenger before, it’s more that they’ve had the time Digital Railway number reductions. I’m pretty clear about to consider it more and see the positive The benefits of intelligent this. Our railways were at bursting point, environmental impact. The UK has some 44rail systems. 37 IN PARTNERSHIP WITH MOBILISING THE ECONOMY he far-reaching effects of the coronavirus pandemic have been Siemens Mobility is poised to turn keenly felt in all areas of society, but adversity into opportunity as the rail Tperhaps nowhere more visibly than on public transport. industry squares up to the challenges Owing to a national lockdown of everyone except key workers from late March, combined of coronavirus and the lockdown with the continued need for social distancing, passenger numbers remain far below what education and leisure activities, public feel more confident.” they were just six months ago. transport is also vital to ensuring that the The solutions that have subsequently Travel restrictions have now largely been recovery is environmentally sustainable and been developed include a variety of journey lifted as we adjust to the ‘new normal’ of living that congestion and pollution arising from planning and contactless ticketing HAFAS web with the threat of the disease while mitigating private car use is minimised. apps from HaCon, a Siemens company, that the risk of transmission. Siemens Mobility recognises that people help travellers to make safe decisions about Demand for public transport is once more need to feel safe to travel by public transport their end-to-end journeys and to be better on the rise, although it is accepted that fully again and have approached the challenge both informed. restoring passenger confidence will take much from the point of view of the operator and of The apps allow users to keep away from longer to achieve. the passenger. congested areas by predicting occupancy levels Indeed, research conducted by Siemens It has subsequently developed a suite of for lines, stations and services more than seven comply with social distancing is its Digital Our on-board custom-made 3D-printed parts to replace Mobility in the UK indicates that some bespoke tools, products and options that will days in advance. Station Capacity Solutions software. frequently touched surfaces on trains. They are 86% of the public associate rail travel with a not only help to restore confidence but also In and around London these capabilities By gathering data from 3D sensors, wifi technology offers the made out of polymers which are easy to clean, heightened risk of exposure to coronavirus. increase the resilience of public transport to have been enhanced by the availibility of access points and more established customer install or remove. This rises to 95% of those who exclusively COVID-19. passenger loading detection and location systems such as CCTV or ticketing and operator detailed Options to reduce the spread of viruses and use the railway to commute in normal times, Alex Stewart, general manager Inter Modal technology installed on Siemens Class 700s integrated train sensors, the software enables bacteria include increasing fresh air volume despite separate research conducted by RSSB Solutions at Siemens Mobility Limited operated by Govia Thameslink Railway. operators to take action to avoid overcrowding, insight into flow rates and air filtration systems with pointing to the risk of infection being broadly explains: “When the first cases of coronavirus The real-time data that the ‘700s’ provide or in case the limit of people allowed in a usage. HVAC. The company is additionally piloting the same for rail as travelling by car. were confirmed in the UK in January, I don’t is designed to give operators a more detailed specific area, such as platforms, is reached. Simon Rennie, an innovative fan with a decontamination think that many people realised what it would view of the utilisation of their rolling stock This lack of confidence among passengers The Capacity Solution can be adapted to Head of Digital, chamber that uses a combination of has led to a difficult financial climate for mean for the country. But after most of us were assets, but can also be incorporated by meet operators’ requirements but will typically photocatalytic coating and UVC light to operators and also governments, with told to stay at home from March 23 we were passenger facing apps like the HAFAS multi- provide insights from live or historical data Siemens Mobility remove pollutants, pathogens and CO2. increased public spending often required to pretty quick to look at how we could make a modal tool. to help tailor train schedules to improve An active coating that can be applied to hard keep transport networks fully functioning. difference. Simon Rennie, head of digital for Siemens passenger flow or to provide guidelines and passenger flow can also be circulated via surfaces in driving cabs that prevents droplet This is compounded by uncertainty over “We saw very rapidly that at some point we Mobility says: “Our on-board technology generate instructions to passengers. passenger apps or to operator staff on handheld based infection by providing continually what permanent changes to travel patterns would need to get people back onto public offers the operator detailed insight into usage. Amar Sansoa, technology manager for devices because we have such a wealth of data sterilised surfaces, plus the use of UVC light, will now follow owing to the recent and well- transport and in early April published our Passengers want to be confident that social Siemens Mobility Limited, says: “Given that that can be interrogated and then relayed in a to rapidly disinfect surfaces using a handheld embraced rise in home working. ‘four Cs’ concept of cleanliness, confidence, distancing can be maintained, and we knew we all need to adhere to social distancing, succinct and accurate manner.” device is also on trial.