The key to quality of life and competitiveness in many regions and cities around the globe today is reliable and fast public transportation. Sustainable and interconnected mobility is one of the crucial issues of the 21st century. With its “Complete Mobility” approach, Siemens is aiming to adjust the transportation links between large cities and within conurbations according to today's mobility needs. Siemens railway systems are environmentally friendly, use less energy, and therefore emit less CO2. Siemens will be presenting some typical examples at its stand at the UITP Congress in Helsinki in May: metro rolling stock with significantly improved environmental impact assessment, a powerful tramcar for attractive urban mobility, and automation solutions that increase the transport capacities of mass transit services and allow greater flexible adjustment to changing demand.

Environmental protection and energy efficiency are the major themes at this year's UITP World Congress. Green mobility is therefore a key focus of the Siemens exhibition portfolio at the Helsinki Fair Center. The metro vehicle for Oslo Sporveier will enable Siemens TS to demonstrate how environmental protection has been brought to new heights by the Group. All materials used in the car were carefully chosen with the environment in mind. A disposal plan including a profitability analysis based on a detailed material declaration for the entire Oslo MX metro train was assessed and calculated. A recycling quota of 94 percent of the vehicle underpins the outstanding environmental performance, when compared internationally, and is a key aspect of its excellent product image.

The energy efficiency study underscored an average saving of 30 percent compared to the previous Oslo Sporveier vehicles. By using less energy the trains have less impact on the environment. Siemens was able to quantify the environmental impact of a metro for the first time with an environmental ISO 14040 performance evaluation. The vehicle for the Oslo Metro emits only two grams CO2 eq (CO2 equivalent) per kilometer and per metric ton compared to other means of transportation – thus making a major contribution to climate protection. 

An attractive mass transit service: Combino Plus

People living in built-up areas are more inclined to use public transportation instead of private means of transportation if a good, alternative mass transit service is available to them. Modern 100% low-floor trams like the Combino Plus from Siemens offer not only a high degree of riding comfort but also a real alternative for commuters and other passengers. Transit operators can choose between tram configurations ranging from two to eight modules with a low floor that ensure end-to-end accessibility and better passenger distribution throughout the vehicle. The tram for Budapest, for example, illustrates the flexibility and quality of the design concept: six modules with an overall length of 54 meters, making it the longest tram in service today with the transport capacity of a metro; it carries approximately 10,000 passengers per hour and direction on one of the busiest tram lines in operation anywhere. At its stand in Helsinki, Siemens will be displaying a model of the Combino Plus with a new front design. There will be a screen presentation as well.

Also on show will be a model of the Cityval. Like the Airval, it is a development of Val system which is the focus of the Neoval research project that Siemens is currently pursuing together with Lohr Industries. In addition, a model of the Desiro ML will be exhibited. The Desiro ML represents the new Siemens product platform for electric and diesel multiple-unit trains for use in suburban rapid transit, regional and intraregional rail services. The Desiro ML allows the train operator, for example, to change the number of intermediate cars in a train in order to adjust to the changing numbers of passengers. Finally, a model of the Syntegra running gear will be on show at the stand. This direct-drive bogie with flexible frame has advantages such as reduced net mass, higher useful load, and lower life-cycle costs due to improved efficiency and lower maintenance costs. This innovation will be covered in a presentation by Siemens in Expo Forum 16 “Innovations in Urban Rail Systems” (Exhibition hall 6, Thursday, May 24, 2007).

More Efficient Thanks to Trainguard MT

The efficiency of a metro system depends to a great extent on the automatic train control system. Siemens shows two applications of its radio-based automatic train control Trainguard MT: namely, the Canarsie Line in the New York Subway and the Metro Line 1 upgrade in Paris. The Paris Metro Line 1 upgrade to fully automatic operation is also the subject of a Siemens presentation at Expo Forum 7 (exhibition hall 6, Wednesday, May 23, 2007).

The number of trains and thus the transport capacity in a metro system can be increased significantly by deploying Trainguard MT. Train headways of 85 seconds and operation in moving block mode become possible. Trainguard MT allows different system expansions: the degree of automation ranges from monitored, through semi-automatic, up to driverless trains. The system is installed without interrupting daily operations. Trainguard MT increases system reliability and safety, and availability and punctuality. The system provides the control center with real-time information on the position of trains in the route network.

The Siemens upgrade of the Canarsie Line in New York – a line that is over one hundred years old – was the first time in the world that a line operating with conventional signaling equipment and fixed blocks was upgraded to an automatic train control system with moving block signaling and communication-based train control (radio with free propagation). Siemens upgraded the line without interrupting normal operations, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. In January 2006 the line started passenger service with Trainguard MT. The service consists of mixed traffic, i.e. trains with and without Trainguard MT components run at the same time on the line. The customer, New York City Transit, officially accepted the system at the end of December 2006.

Paris (Line 1, etc.), Budapest (Lines M2 and M4), Guangzhou, Beijing, Barcelona and Algiers have also upgraded their metro lines with Trainguard MT. Just like the Canarsie Line in New York, line 1 in Paris has been in service for more than 100 years. Siemens will upgrade it for fully automatic operation. The Paris Transport Authority (RATP) will also refurbish lines 3, 5, 9, 10 and 12 with Trainguard MT in the course of its Ouragan refurbishment program. The trains on these lines will continue to be operated by drivers.

The Sicas S7 Interlocking Based on Simatic

Siemens will present the Sicas S7 interlocking (Siemens Computer Aided Signaling – S7) for the first time at the UITP. The Sicas S7 is aimed at the light rail transit and industrial railroads markets, where economical operating concepts for less challenging service conditions are needed. The Sicas S7 interlocking is based on the standardized, highly reliable industrial components of the familiar automation system Simatic S7F from Siemens. Sicas S7 is just as suited to controlling switches or signals as it is to reliable automation in large train stations. Hundreds of control units can be connected depending on the application.

Siemens presents the train communications system, Railcom Manager, based on software from Transmitton, a Siemens affiliate in Ashby-de-la-Zouch in the UK. The software package, which goes by the name of “Cromos,” marshals a number of communication subsystems in a single integrated network, which it controls from a central graphical user interface: the Rail-Info manager delivers automatic real-time information to passengers via integrated loudspeakers, passenger information displays and info terminals; the Rail-Security manager bundles remotely supervised stations with TV closed-circuit television (CCTV), video monitoring of the platform from the train, emergency telephones and info terminals (HPI), alarm sensors, crisis management, and intelligent video image processing; Rail-Control manager bundles property protection systems, SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition), Life-Cycle Management, Voice over IP, radio systems, and network management.
Cromos is installed and up and running in King’s Cross St. Pancras underground station in London where it provides integrated station management. It also provides real-time passenger information at the 29 train stations of the Transpennine Express network in the UK.

The Siemens exhibition program is completed with components for railway electrification: the combined DC protection and control unit Sitras PRO protects DC switching units and contact line systems from critical operating states, and detects short-circuits in the current rise before maximum short-circuit currents are reached. Series Sicat 8WL6134 isolators to 3 kV DC for overhead line equipment are designed to supply, disconnect, and connect sections of track, and to connect parallel contact wires. The use of corrosion-resistant materials ensures a high resistance to the influences of weather. This makes the outdoor switchgear especially suited for use in maritime climates.

Siemens Presentations at the Expo Forum - New Technologies for Metro Systems:
Corinne Braban, Siemens Transportation Systems
Resignalling the Paris line 1: from driver-operated line to driverless line
May 23, 2007, 9:00 - 10:30 AM / Expo Forum 7 (exhibition hall 6)

Siemens Presentations in the Expo Forum - Innovations in Urban Rail Systems:
Lars Löwenstein, Siemens Transportation Systems
Syntegra: total integration of traction, bogie and braking technology
May 24, 2007, 9:00 - 10:30 AM / Expo Forum 16 (exhibition hall 6)

Pictures: http://www.siemens.com/ts-pictures/UITP
 
The Siemens TS exhibit is in hall 6, stand no. 6D310 at the Helsinki Fair Center
 
Helsinki Fair Center
Messuaukio 1, P.O. box 21
00521 Helsinki, Finland
http://www.finnexpo.fi

The Helsinki Fair Center is 3.5 km from Helsinki city center. It can be reached with tram lines 7A and 7B which go to the Fair, as well as the number 17 bus, or by train from Pasila train station.