In a major update for the Kolkata Metro, trials are being conducted for the synchronisation of all trains with driverless technology or Automatic Train Operations (ATO) of all the rakes running on the Green Line.
The stretch has recently received the mandatory safety clearance from the Commissioner of Railway Safety for running driverless trains in the ATO mode in the Green Line.
With the safety nod, the stretch is now eligible for running trains commercially using the advanced technology. However, before stepping into the new era of ATO-run services, a series of tests and trials are being carried out to achieve maximum accuracy of the system while running trains.
According to official sources, the trials are being carried out at night after commercial operations are over.
“Generally, the trials are done between 11 pm and 4 am. During the period, around three round journeys are being tried with the help of two BEML rakes,” informed an official source in the Railways. “The tests are being conducted for three days in a week as maintenance work is done on the other days,” he added.
As elaborated by the official, the tests are important to achieve accuracy of synchronisation between the new and upgraded technology and the rolling stock.
During the trials, detailed accounts are noted to see the areas of errors or problems that could occur while running trains commercially. Apart from this, the fleet is also being upgraded with the installation and operation of the new system of ATO.
“One of the crucial parts of the process is upgrading the fleet with the new system. There are about 16 rakes being used to run commercial services in the Green Line presently. Of the total, about half the fleet has been upgraded with the new technology while the remaining are under the process of being synchronised with it,” he said.
One of the crucial benefits of running trains in the ATO mode is that frequency could be enhanced as the room for human errors would be minimised.
The Kolkata metro authorities have also requisitioned four to five additional BEML rakes. The proposal of more rakes is however, at the initial stage as rakes are yet to arrive and undergo the mandatory trials before being rolled out commercially.