Interaction with passengers, a duty or a commercial argument?
If you’re looking for an expert view on passenger information, you should take a look at the latest International Railway Journal (IRJ) issue – the article ‘A new age of communication’. Niren Choudhury, Global Director for Strategic Industries at Alcatel-Lucent explains that telecom technology is providing railway operators with more opportunities to connect and interact [...]
Today’s perspective on tomorrow’s telecoms
By the TrackTalk team Commercial LTE networks are already coming on stream in many countries and within a few years high-speed mobile broadband will be an everyday commodity for millions of people around the world. 4G will also have a transformative effect on the railways, allowing multiple operational functions to be consolidated into a single [...]
Tecrail project provides the foundation for adoption of LTE
SPAIN’s rail infrastructure manager Adif is responsible for managing the country’s 11,000km conventional mainline and 2,900km high-speed railway networks. With technological innovations promising to enhance efficiency in railway operations, the infrastructure manager is focusing on planning for the future of its railway operations by investing and participating in a new collaborative research and technical innovation [...]
With: A. Berrios Villalba, Adif’s head of innovation and technological development - 04 Dec 2012
Meeting public demand for onboard Wi-Fi
The increasing status and importance of the internet in our everyday lives has led many people to admit that they can no longer live without access to internet-based services through their smartphones, laptops and tablets. The reliance is so strong that some rail passengers are left feeling frustrated that they are unable to access these [...]
With: J. van Ooteghem, Ghent University - 04 Dec 2012
Do I Really Need an IP/MPLS Network? Check it out at Innotrans!
Over the past decade, commercial telecommunication services have evolved to IP-based technologies delivering wire and wireless broadband connectivity and leading to the explosion of Internet, smartphones and new technologies. What could we learn from this transformation? It’s one of the questions addressed by Alcatel-Lucent at its booth (133 – Hall 4.1). You will learn how [...]
Traveling Now with Your Future Passengers
Could the train be an extension of my office, my home, my social spaces? This is one of the questions asked by more and more passengers. With comfort and security considered as a given, they expect now to be informed, entertained and remain productive. The good news is that new technologies are future-ready! Location services, [...]
Broadband Everywhere and Why Not Also in the Rail Environment?
In this ever competitive world, guaranteeing security and safety in trains and stations, improving efficiency of operations and delivering added value services to passengers, remain key objectives of the industry and the good news is that broadband applications could address all of them. The 4G (4th Generation) mobile communication technology named also as Long-Term Evolution [...]
From cloud confusion to clear opportunities
By Olivier Andre, Alcatel-Lucent’s Vice President of Business Development – Transport This week we held a technology day with one of our valued customers, who happen to be one of the largest Rail infrastructure managers in Europe. This was an eye opener on the gap between what, in the telecoms world, the specialists take for [...]
A holistic approach to railway security
By TrackTalk editors Passengers need to feel safe. Waiting for a train at a dark and empty station with inadequate service information and an absence of visible staff can be an unnerving experience. For many this is often too much to bear, leading them to choose other modes of transport. Research shows that passengers feel [...]
Making the case for enhanced rail security systems
Security is essential to the modern railway, protecting passengers, staff the operator’s assets from diverse range of risks including terrorism, crime, trespass, and vandalism. Few security systems are installed without the support of a robust business case, and it is recommended that operators create a systems requirements specification (SRS) that outlines the safety, operational, and [...]
With: D. Gorshkov, CEO, Digital Grape Business Services - 20 Jan 2012
