Successful tests of passenger self-driving train in Netherlands
Dutch infrastructure manager ProRail is performing the weeklong tests of a passenger train equipped with Automated Train Operation (ATO). The pilot ride was made on the evening of 15 March. The trials are being carried out on the Groningen – Zuidhorn line in the Northern Netherlands. The initial tests have shown that ATO is compatible with passenger trains.
The Arriva’s train is equipped with the second grade of the automation system (GoA2) that requires the presence of a train driver in the cab. The initial trials have been carried out smoothly without any complications. ProRail together with Arriva, Stadler and local authorities have collected valuable data to be used for the future implementation of the ATO system on the Dutch railway network. “The first test results are hopeful. The test has shown that ATO is suitable for passenger trains on the Dutch railways,” CEO of ProRail Pier Eringa noted.
Betuweroute ATO tests
The ATO tests on the Groningen – Zuidhorn railway is the second project of ProRail in order to implement the automated train traffic on the Dutch rail network. In December 2018 the pilot ride was made on the Betuweroute freight line. The infrastructure company together with rail freight operator Rotterdam Rail Feeding and Alstom tested a freight locomotive equipped with ATO Level 2 system. The vehicle has run a distance of 100 kilometres. The testing was also successful.
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