French transport company Alstom – which, as part of the Gibela concession, is currently involved in the R51-billion upgrade of South Africa’s rolling stock – has revealed plans to improve the commuter experience through interactive technology.
Demonstrating the technology at the biennial InnoTrans fair in Berlin, in September, Alstom Transport technical sourcing director Cyril Martin explained that the company aimed to achieve increased comfort, fluidity, connectivity and interactivity between the passenger and the train.
Speaking to Engineering News, Martin noted that the systems were already available, but needed to be ruggedised for the market. “We have already seen significant interest in the system, with the Spanish and French Transport Ministers. . . particularly interested. We are expecting this technology to be rolled out in Europe first before being introduced to the global market.”
He expected the system to be implemented on most first-class trains, “where there is a lot of competition”, within the next five years.
Using a smartphone, a passenger can reserve a seat on the train by booking a ticket online, after which the passenger will receive information about the station, and where he or she will board the train, in real time.
When boarding the train a light beam will guide the passenger to his or her seat. The beam will be the colour that the passenger received when he or she was making the reservation.
The seat is fitted with a built-in noise reducer, an interactive touchpad and a smart glass that displays information concerning the journey and destination.
Other Innovations
Alstom also introduced the latest evolution of its Citadis range at InnoTrans. The tramway was upgraded to deliver extra configurations, capacity, flexibility, speed and enhanced passenger experience.
“Alstom’s Citadis tramway has been at the core of multiple city-renewal projects since 1997. The Citadis X05 is based on a 17-year proven record, with more than 1 800 Citadis sold worldwide. Research on the new evolution of Citadis took Alstom’s product improvement, as well as the return on experience from customers, into account,” Alstom light rail vehicles VP Bernard Dailly said in a statement.
The Citadis X05 integrates new technologies, such as permanent magnet motors that reduce energy consumption, and maintenance, which decrease life-cycle costs. The new Citadis will be able to run at 80 km/h, which is faster than its predecessor and will enable operators to increase the distance between stops on the outskirts of a city.
It is also fully customisable, enabling cities to design their own livery and nose, as well as different external and internal light-emitting diode lighting systems.
Further, Alstom also launched the HealthHub, a new tool for predictive maintenance. The tool can monitor the health of trains, the infrastructure and the signalling assets using advanced data analytics to predict the trains’ remaining life.
The tool is supported by technology data capture solutions, such as TrainScanner, which is an automated diagnostics portal that can measure the condition of three key consumables – wheels, brake pads and pantograph carbon strips – of a train as it moves through a portal. The solution allows for up to 15% of material costs to be saved by replacing parts only when needed.
Alstom Transport strategic planning manager Franz-Jochim Wegner told Engineering News that although the TrainScanner was useful for large and often used fleets, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa and Gibela trains, in South Africa, would be fitted with a maintenance box that monitors and captures the data needed by Alstom to supply technical support and materials to reduce the chance of any in-service failures.
Gibela will provide technical support and supply of spare parts over an 18-year period.