201010 – Lawrie – Next Generation Signalling Capacity

Next Generation Signalling is a generic term that is being used in Victoria to describe a new signalling system. It is used is to enable deliberation about the concepts and principles, not about the technology or the supplier systems. It has been adopted to remove any ambiguity that arises when industry specific terms are used.

Capacity is a key driver for a deployment of a Next Generation Signalling system. The existing signalling system imposes constraints on the capacity that can be delivered by the infrastructure. The Next Generation Signalling system seeks to address these constraints and enable a higher capacity railway whilst maintaining the high level of safety that the railway enjoys.

This paper describes the constraints the existing signalling system imposes on the capacity of the railway and explores how the Next Generation Signalling principles can address these constraints and enable operations at a higher capacity than that traditionally available.

Whilst the existing signalling system has served the railway well for almost a hundred years, Next
Generation Signalling will offer Victoria significant benefits to capacity and bring Victorian signalling into the modern world.