Advanced Train Control Systems

Advanced Train Control Systems (ATCS) are playing an important role in improving the efficiency and safety of train operation, acting as their "brains and nerves." ATCS's needs highly reliable and safe systems using complex computer tools. Normally, these systems consist of the four parts: the central control system; the station control systems and wayside systems; the on-board control systems and the communication network including mobile communication. From the point of view of the whole life cycle, an ATCS includes design and development; re-design for a special line application; simulation verification and test; plus safety assessment of the system and subsystems. These concepts are known to those who are familiar with typical ATCS such as ETCS, CTCS for main line railways and CBTC for transit systems. This special volume on Advanced Train Control Systems consists of selected papers from Comprail, which is the most successful series of conferences in the areas of railways and other transit systems. This will be of valuable interest for signalling engineers, designers, manufactures and operators.