GERMANY: Ruhrbahn has awarded Siemens Mobility a €180m contract to replace 1970s relay-based light rail signalling and control technology in Essen and Mülheim an der Ruhr with Trackguard digital equipment by 2031.
The supplier says this includes digitalising Europe’s largest light rail interlocking at Essen Hbf, which sets turnouts around 5 000 times a day and switches signals 23 000 times.
As part of the project, Siemens Mobility will install LED signals and axle counters and replace the automatic safety system on 28 km of route. The project covers both metre and standard gauge tracks.
‘When the renewal project is completed, there will be fewer disruptions and downtimes, making the use of public transport even more attractive for our passengers’, said Ruhrbahn CEO Michael Feller on September 4.
