Automatic train operation
Encyclopedia
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
piloting and driverless functions.
Most systems elect to maintain a driver (train operator) to mitigate risks associated with failures or emergencies.
Many modern systems are linked with Automatic Train Control
Automatic Train Control
Automatic Train Control is a train protection system for railways, ensuring the safe and smooth operation of trains on ATC-enabled lines. Its main advantages include making possible the use of cab signalling instead of track-side signals and the use of smooth deceleration patterns in lieu of the...
(ATC) where normal signaller operations such as route setting and train regulation are carried out by the system. The ATO and ATC systems will work together to maintain a train within a defined tolerance of its timetable. The combined system will marginally adjust operating parameters such as the ratio of power to coast when moving and station dwell time, in order to bring a train back to the timetable slot defined for it.
Examples
The earliest ATO system on a full Underground line was on the Barcelona Metro line 2Barcelona Metro line 2
Line 2 is a metro line in Barcelona operated by TMB, coloured purple and sometimes simply called línia lila. It's part of the city's ATM fare-integrated transport network...
(now integrated on L5
Barcelona Metro line 5
— Line 5, currently known as Cornellà Centre - Vall d'Hebron, its termini, and often simply called "Línia Blava" is line belonging to the Barcelona Metro network operated by TMB, and part of the ATM fare-integrated transport network....
), which ran from 1963 until 1970 on its seven trains. Another example was on the Victoria line
Victoria Line
The Victoria line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the south to the north-east of London. It is coloured light blue on the Tube map...
of the London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
, opened in 1968. The ATO system performs all functions of the driver except for the opening and closing of the doors. The driver needs only to press two buttons to start the train and, if the way is clear, then the train will automatically proceed to the next station. Many newer systems are now computer-controlled, including London's Docklands Light Railway
Docklands Light Railway
The Docklands Light Railway is an automated light metro or light rail system opened on 31 August 1987 to serve the redeveloped Docklands area of London...
, the Central Line
Central Line
The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground...
and Jubilee Line
Jubilee Line
The Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects...
of the London Underground, Line 14
Paris Metro Line 14
Line 14 of the Paris Métro system connects the stations Saint Lazare and Olympiades on a north-west south-east diagonal across the centre of Paris. It is the twelfth busiest of sixteen lines on the network, and as of 2011, the only one to be operated completely automatically; the second such line...
of the Paris Métro
Paris Métro
The Paris Métro or Métropolitain is the rapid transit metro system in Paris, France. It has become a symbol of the city, noted for its density within the city limits and its uniform architecture influenced by Art Nouveau. The network's sixteen lines are mostly underground and run to 214 km ...
, Copenhagen Metro
Copenhagen Metro
Copenhagen Metro is a rapid transit system serving Copenhagen, Frederiksberg and Tårnby in Denmark. The system opened between 2002 and 2007, and has two lines, M1 and M2. The driverless light metro supplements the larger S-train rapid transit system, and is integrated with DSB local trains and...
, Kelana Jaya Line
Kelana Jaya Line
The Kelana Jaya Line is a medium-capacity rail transport system and one of the three rail transit lines in the Kuala Lumpur Rail Transit System operated by RapidKL Rail network...
of Kuala Lumpur Rail Transit System, the Washington Metro
Washington Metro
The Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
MTR
MTR
Mass Transit Railway is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system now includes 211.6 km of rail with 155 stations, including 86 railway stations and 69 light rail stops...
, Manila Light Rail Transit System
Manila Light Rail Transit System
The Manila Light Rail Transit System, popularly known as the LRT, is a metropolitan rail system serving the Metro Manila area in the Philippines. Although referred to as a light rail system because it originally used light rail vehicles, it has many characteristics of a rapid transit system, such...
, North East Line
North East MRT Line
The North East MRT Line is the third Mass Rapid Transit line in Singapore and the world's second longest fully underground, automated and driverless, rapid transit line after Singapore's Circle MRT Line. The line is 20 km long with 16 stations and operated by SBS Transit. Travelling from one end...
, Circle Line
Circle MRT Line
The Circle Line is Singapore's fourth Mass Rapid Transit line, operated by SMRT Corporation. This underground line is currently long with 28 stations and is fully automatically operated...
and the future Downtown Line
Downtown MRT Line
The Downtown Line will be the fifth Mass Rapid Transit line in Singapore. When completed, the line will be about 42-km long with 34 stations and serve about half a million commuters daily, making it the longest underground and driverless MRT line in Singapore. Travelling from one end to the other...
of Singapore MRT
Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore)
The Mass Rapid Transit or MRT is a rapid transit system that forms the backbone of the railway system in Singapore, spanning the entire city-state. The initial section of the MRT, between Yio Chu Kang Station and Toa Payoh Station, opened in 1987 establishing itself as the second-oldest metro...
, Tokyo Metro Namboku Line
Tokyo Metro Namboku Line
The is a subway line owned and operated by Tokyo Metro in Tokyo, Japan. Its name literally means South-North Line. The line runs between Meguro in Shinagawa and Akabane-Iwabuchi in Kita...
, Kobe Municipal Subway
Kobe Municipal Subway
is the subway of Kobe. It has two lines.-Lines:- External links :****...
, a number of ART
Bombardier Advanced Rapid Transit
Advanced Rapid Transit or ART is the current name given to a rapid transit system manufactured by Bombardier Transportation. The original versions look like small subway cars that typically run in two-, four- or six-car trains, but the latest versions are more streamlined two-car articulated...
-based and VAL-based systems.
| Network | Lines |
|---|---|
| CPTM Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos is a commuter rail company owned by the São Paulo State Secretariat for Metropolitan Transports. It was created in 1992 from several railroads that already existed in Greater São Paulo, Brazil.... |
7 Line 7 (CPTM) Line 7 is a line of the Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos commuter rail system in São Paulo, Brazil. -External links:... , 9 Line 9 (CPTM) Line 9 is a line of the Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos commuter rail system in São Paulo, Brazil. -External links:... and 12 Line 12 (CPTM) Line 12 is a line of the Companhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos commuter rail system in São Paulo, Brazil. -External links:... |
| London Underground London Underground The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England... |
Victoria Line Victoria Line The Victoria line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the south to the north-east of London. It is coloured light blue on the Tube map... , Central Line Central Line The Central line is a London Underground line, coloured red on the tube map. It is a deep-level "tube" line, running east-west across London, and, at , has the greatest total length of track of any line on the Underground. Of the 49 stations served, 20 are below ground... , Jubilee Line Jubilee Line The Jubilee line is a line on the London Underground , in the United Kingdom. It was built in two major sections—initially to Charing Cross, in central London, and later extended, in 1999, to Stratford, in east London. The later stations are larger and have special safety features, both aspects... |
| Milan Metro Milan Metro The Milan Metro is the rapid transit system serving Milan, Italy, operated by Azienda Trasporti Milanesi. Milan metro is the longest metro system in Italy, and is the core of the Milan Transportation System... |
Lines 3 |
| Barcelona Metro Barcelona Metro The Barcelona Metro , part of the public transportation system of Barcelona, Catalonia, is an extensive network of electrified railways that run underground in central Barcelona and above ground into the city's suburbs. Since July 31, 2010, Barcelona Metro system consists of 11 lines with 165... |
Lines 2 Barcelona Metro line 2 Line 2 is a metro line in Barcelona operated by TMB, coloured purple and sometimes simply called línia lila. It's part of the city's ATM fare-integrated transport network... , 3 Barcelona Metro line 3 — Line 3, currently known as Zona Universitària - Trinitat Nova, coloured green and often simply referred to as Línia verda , is a metro line in Barcelona operated by TMB, and therefore part of the fare-integrated ATM transport network of the urban region... , 5 Barcelona Metro line 5 — Line 5, currently known as Cornellà Centre - Vall d'Hebron, its termini, and often simply called "Línia Blava" is line belonging to the Barcelona Metro network operated by TMB, and part of the ATM fare-integrated transport network.... and 11 Barcelona Metro line 11 Barcelona Metro line 11 is a full metro line with short trains in Barcelona, Spain. — Line 11, coloured light green and currently known as Trinitat Nova - Can Cuiàs, is a recently built line in the Barcelona Metro network, operated by TMB, and part of the ATM fare-ingrated transport network in the... are ATC operation |
| Madrid Metro Madrid Metro The Madrid Metro is a metro system serving the city of Madrid, capital of Spain. The system is the sixth longest metro in the world though Madrid is approximately the fiftieth most populous metropolitan area in the world... |
All lines except line 2 Line 2 (Madrid Metro) Line 2 of the Madrid Metro was opened on 11 June 1924 between Sol and Ventas. It was later extended fron Sol to Quevedo on 27 December 1925 and from Quevedo to Cuatro Caminos on 1 September 1929. In 1932, a branch from Goya to Diego de León was added. This branch was transferred to Line 4 in 1958... |
| New York City Subway New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system owned by the City of New York and leased to the New York City Transit Authority, a subsidiary agency of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and also known as MTA New York City Transit... |
L line BMT Canarsie Line The Canarsie Line is a rapid transit line of the BMT Division of the New York City Subway system, named after its terminus in the Canarsie neighborhood of Brooklyn... to begin full ATO in 2012. 7 line IRT Flushing Line The Flushing Line is a rapid transit route of the New York City Subway system, operated as part of the IRT Division and designated the 7 route... undergoing track and signal modernization, with completion in 2018. |
| Nuremberg U-Bahn Nuremberg U-Bahn The Nuremberg U-Bahn is a metro run by VAG Nürnberg , which itself is a member of the VGN . The Nuremberg U-Bahn is Germany's newest metro... |
Conversion the existing U2 to ATC operation |
| Rio Tinto Group Rio Tinto Group The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the... |
Iron ore railway driverless go ahead |
| San Juan Tren Urbano Tren Urbano The Tren Urbano — or Urban Train in English — is a fully automated rapid transit that serves the metropolitan area of San Juan, which includes the municipalities of San Juan, Bayamón and Guaynabo. It is electrified by third rail at 750 V DC... |
Has an Siemens ATC system that allows fully automatic operation possible |
| Seville Metro Seville metro The Seville metro is a light metro network serving the city of Seville, Spain and its metropolitan area. The system is totally independent of any other rail or street traffic. All stations were built with platform screen doors.... |
ATO has been installed shortly after its inauguration |
| Metro de Caracas | ATO has been installed on his inauguration, this system have all lines. |
| Valencia Metro | Line 1 Line 1 (Metro Valencia) Line 1 is one of the five lines of Metrovalencia. It is the oldest line of the system, opened in 1988. The line has 59 stations with a total of 98.159 km . This makes Line 1 the longest line of the Metrovalencia, almost four times longer than the second one .On July 3, 2006, an accident... has ATO installed in the underground section of the line. Lines 3 and 5 are preinstalled as ATO |
| Praha Metro (Cz) | On Line C, ATO (automatic target braking, door control, passenger information system control,...) operated sice 1978 till 1996 (installation of MATRA ATP). Producer: VUZ Praha, analogue solution, direct commands coded by permanent magnets |
| Praha Metro (Cz) | Line A has ATO (automatic target braking, door control, passenger information system control, traction energy consumption optimisation, travelling time control, driverless turn in terminal station...) operated sice 2003. Producer: AZD Praha, computer solution, data from trackside part transferred via ATP data channel (ATP provided by Bombardier ZWUS Katowice, PL) |
| Ceske Drahy (Czech railways) (Cz) | ATO (automatic target braking, traction energy consumption optimisation, travelling time control, ...) is being operated sice 1991 (test runs with passengers), since 1993 in commercial operation. At present, over 200 vehicles (75+75 pcs EMUs class 471, 20 pcs high-speed el.locos class 380, 19 refurbished diesel locos class 750.7, 37 refurbished diesel railcars class 842) equipped with on-board part, over 300 km of tracks equipped with lineside part (Praha - Pardubice 100 km, Praha - Decin 120 km, Hranice n.M - Ostrava 50 km, Ostrava - Opava 30 km, some other short pieces), next 300 of track km prepared for GPS orientation (no necessary trackside part). ATO also successfully cooperated with ETCS. Producer: AZD Praha, computer solution. |
Records
For the purpose of these records, a "driverless" train is defined as one that normally operates fully automatically, with no on-board human intervention.- Longest fully automatic driverless network: Vancouver SkyTrain, 68.7 km (42.7 mi) on three lines
- Longest partially automatic driverless line: Lille MetroLille MetroThe Lille metro is a driverless metro in and around Lille, France. The system was inaugurated on 25 April 1983 and was the first to use VAL system....
Line 2, 31.7 km (19.7 mi) - First partially automatic driverless line: London UndergroundLondon UndergroundThe London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
, Victoria LineVictoria LineThe Victoria line is a deep-level London Underground line running from the south to the north-east of London. It is coloured light blue on the Tube map...
, 1968 - First Complete automatic / semi-automatic Line 1,2,3 and 4 : Caracas MetroCaracas MetroThe Caracas Metro is a mass rapid transit system serving Caracas, Venezuela. It is constructed and operated by Compañía Anónima Metro de Caracas, a government-owned company that was founded in 1977 by José González-Lander who headed the project for more than thirty years since the early planning...
, on 1983
- Longest fully automatic driverless underground line: Circle MRT LineCircle MRT LineThe Circle Line is Singapore's fourth Mass Rapid Transit line, operated by SMRT Corporation. This underground line is currently long with 28 stations and is fully automatically operated...
, SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, 35.7 km (22.2 mi) - First fully automatic driverless underground line: Paris Métro line 14Paris Metro Line 14Line 14 of the Paris Métro system connects the stations Saint Lazare and Olympiades on a north-west south-east diagonal across the centre of Paris. It is the twelfth busiest of sixteen lines on the network, and as of 2011, the only one to be operated completely automatically; the second such line...
, ParisParisParis is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, 1998
The Dubai Metro
Dubai Metro
The Dubai Metro is a driverless, fully automated metro network in the United Arab Emirates city of Dubai. The Red Line and Green Line are operational, with three further lines are planned. These first two lines run underground in the city centre and on elevated viaducts elsewhere...
(about 70 km in the first phase, inclding 50 km in one line) and Singapore's Circle MRT Line
Circle MRT Line
The Circle Line is Singapore's fourth Mass Rapid Transit line, operated by SMRT Corporation. This underground line is currently long with 28 stations and is fully automatically operated...
(33.3 km) are likely to take over the longest network/line and longest underground line records respectively when completed.
The future
Many railways are planning on using ATO in the future. It has been partially implemented on the Delhi MetroDelhi Metro
Delhi Metro is a rapid transit system serving Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad in the National Capital Region of India. It is one of the largest metro networks in the world. The network consists of six lines with a total length of with 142 stations of which 35 are underground...
with plans of full ATO operations by the year 2013. ATO will be introduced on the London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
's Northern line
Northern Line
The Northern line is a London Underground line. It is coloured black on the Tube map.For most of its length it is a deep-level tube line. The line carries 206,734,000 passengers per year. This is the highest number of any line on the London Underground system, but the Northern line is unique in...
in 2012. Although ATO may also be used on the future Crossrail
Crossrail
Crossrail is a project to build a major new railway link under central London. The name refers to the first of two routes which are the responsibility of Crossrail Ltd. It is based on an entirely new east-west tunnel with a central section from to Liverpool Street station...
and Thameslink trains, it has not yet been implemented on any UK mainline railways
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
.