Positive Train Control - April Update
February 22, 2016
SEPTA Operations
Updated Thursday, April 8, 2016
The Federal Transit Administration (FRA) has given SEPTA written authorization to commence Provisional Revenue Service Operations for our Positive Train Control (PTC) system.
As reported in previous updates, our plan is to launch the PTC program on the Warminster Regional Rail Line. Now with FRA approval, we will implement PTC Revenue Service Operations on this Line on Monday, April 18, 2016, beginning with the first scheduled train.
SEPTA has a strong commitment to safety and the introduction of the Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System (ACSES) as a PTC compliant system on our Regional Rail network is an important milestone in our on-going efforts on behalf of our customers, employees, and neighbors.
We are the first commuter railroad operation in the country to implement ACSES and an important part of our PTC rollout program will be continuing to work cooperatively with Amtrak regarding the operations of our trains, under ACSES, on their PTC equipped lines.
Getting to this point has taken an extensive and intensive period of testing to ensure that every aspect of the system meets the guidelines established by the FRA and our own reliability requirements for this critical safety system.
To fully prepare for the April 18th service day, we will operate shuttle buses in place of Warminster Line service on Sunday, April 17, 2016 in order to conduct one last round of checks and testing of the PTC system and our Rail equipment.
We ask for your full cooperation and support as we rollout this vital safety improvement.
Updated March 8, 2015
The Federal Rail Administration (FRA) has decided to conduct additional tests on our PTC system. These tests are being conducted at night on the Warminster Regional Rail Line this week. SEPTA is optimistic the new tests will go as well as the first round of testing did last month.
SEPTA is the first commuter agency to implement the Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System (ACSES) as a PTC system. Given these unique circumstances, the process for approval is prone to change. SEPTA is working well with the FRA and we are optimistic to gain approval to conduct our Revenue Service Demonstration on the Warminster Line soon.
Please check the Positive Train Control section of the septa.org website for updates.
Posted February 22, 2016
With the final phases of testing and preparations almost done, there are still 2 tasks remaining before we can officially launch Positive Train Control (PTC) on SEPTA Regional Rail:
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FRA testing and approval of the SEPTA PTC system
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Software revision upload on Regional Rail cars
In addition to reviewing our Safety and Implementation Plans, the FRA must also conduct an on-site test of our PTC system and that is scheduled to take place next week. Once completed, we will request concurrence from the FRA to conduct a Revenue Service Demonstration (RSD) and begin operating this groundbreaking safety system on the Warminster Regional Rail Line. Starting Tuesday, February 23rd, SEPTA staff will be out at Warminster Line Stations to talk about the launch of our PTC program. Please take a moment to stop and talk with them - they'll be clearly identified by their yellow safety vests.
While we wait for the testing to take place, work will continue to upload the software revisions on the 110 Regional Rail cars that will be used for the RSD. The earliest date we anticipate being able to launch PTC on the Warminster Line would be Monday, February 29th but that is contingent on successfully passing the testing program and the FRA declaring us ready to operate our PTC system.
With Amtrak's launch of their Advanced Civil Speed Enforcement System (ACSES), we have identified Wilmington/Newark and Trenton Lines as high priorities for our PTC rollout. While we want to bring all our routes, on-line as soon as possible, we will not expand our deployment program beyond the Warminster Line until we're comfortable with operating PTC in our own territory.
It's taken a tremendous investment of time and energy by SEPTA staff, from many parts of the organization, working in concert with the project contractors to design and build our PTC system. The end result is the greatest customer service initiative we can offer - safety for our Regional Rail riders and the employees operating our system - and that makes it all worthwhile. We want to thank the FRA for cooperating with our efforts to bring this important safety technology to the SEPTA Regional Rail system.
