NET-Lab: National ETCS Test Lab

MARKETS: Transportation

LOCATION: Epsom, UK

CLIENT: Network Rail

COLLABORATORS: Network Rail, Multitel

COMPLETION DATE: January 2024

In-cab European Train Control System (ETCS) digital signalling will deliver big benefits.

To meet today’s challenges and confront tomorrow’s, the UK rail industry has embarked on a journey to digitalise the railway, including the transition to digital signalling deploying the European Train Control System (ETCS). Network Rail’s Long Term National ETCS Masterplan, developed in response to the Rail Sector Deal and supported by government and industry, defines the deployment plan for digital signalling across the network.

Yet without a common, repeatable testing capability and process, rollout is risky. While the on-board and trackside ETCS solutions developed by signalling equipment manufacturers accord with the European Railways Agency specifications, they must also be proven to conform to UK- specific requirements. Otherwise, we risk incompatibility, safety issues, and costly delays. The UK Railway needs a common, repeatable testing capability and acceptance process to ensure these new products, and their software upgrades, are certified rigorously and efficiently – to enable and expedite the national ETCS rollout.

AtkinsRéalis were selected by Network Rail to operate the National ETCS Test Lab.

To ensure that interoperable, consistent and compliant solutions are deployed across the UK, an independent National ETCS Testing facility was developed to support product acceptance, systems integration and cyber security testing. Since 2023, AtkinsRéalis have provided the facility where products from different suppliers can be tested for compliance with both ETCS and the GB Reference Design - expediting a fast, safe, and secure ETCS rollout.

From fragmented to integrated

The National ETCS Test Lab (NET-Lab) is part of our concerted cross-industry effort to facilitate the introduction of ETCS onto the UK Mainline rail network - from our work as Rail Systems Integration Partner (RSIP) to our development of the DRACAS software, the dynamic test track at RIDC, and developing the business case for Department of Transport funding. The UK government is fully supportive of this transformation as demonstrated by the commitment of funding for the East Coast Digital Programme, through the Integrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands commitments, HS2 and other routes in the early definition phases.

However, despite this backing, the reality is that the UK rail industry is highly fragmented, and the ensuing silos obstruct rapid rollout of innovations such as ETCS. That’s why our role as RSIP was so important. This is the first time that the model of appointing a partner in a specific industry integration role has been attempted. In its prioritisation of supporting collaboration between stakeholders at key organisations, our work as RSIP represents a clear shift away from traditional procurement models towards something much more dynamic, collaborative and future-facing. It’s a new way of working - partnering with suppliers to design, develop and deploy ETCS.

Technology through transparency

Integrating a fragmented industry takes more than technical excellence. It demands trust, transparency, and cooperation. At the NET-Lab, where the products of competing suppliers are tested, trust is vital. While equipment supplied by different manufacturers must demonstrate compliance to the relevant interoperability standards, differences in interpretation can cause conflict. For instance, equipment from different manufacturers often do not work together as intended at first integration, and the cause of the issue can sometimes be unclear. These issues impede the interoperability upon which industry-wide ETCS rollout depends.

That’s why AtkinsRéalis and the NET-Lab are wholly independent of the equipment under review. We offer pragmatic, trusted technical advice to resolve test failures and achieve a successful retest at the earliest opportunity. This clarity provides the most efficient route to safe and reliable interoperability between products from different manufacturers. Throughout rail, our neutral status is well established. Our UK Technical Investigation Centre, where all in-service signalling safety failures are investigated, has built a reputation for independent and unbiased expertise, providing this service since privatisation and winning endorsement from the Rail Industry Association. This sector-wide trust enables us to help our industry achieve operational consistency in the deployment of ETCS.

Tight rules define compliance with the GB reference design. These are broken down into 40 design topics, which describe how ETCS should be applied on the GB railway. For every design topic, Operational Test Scenarios (OTS) ensure all equipment intended for GB ETCS applications behaves as it should. By feeding in realistic data, such as odometer input from wheel revolutions, we run tested equipment through each OTS on a simulated railway environment based on a real-physics model. By linking supplier’s equipment with reference onboard and trackside systems - simulated Radio Block Controllers (RBC - trackside), European Vital Computers (EVC - on-board) and a GSM-R Radio Network Emulator (RNE) - we create an accurate model of a real-world application, allowing us to test ETCS products for compliance with the GB reference design in a safe laboratory environment.

Although ETCS specifications set out how equipment should function, they do not specific exactly how it should be designed and built. In the GB rail market alone, there are many different combinations of equipment suppliers of different technology baselines, so it’s critical that we ensure safe and reliable communication between all potential actors on the system. Non-compliances during testing are flagged, and we act as an independent arbiter to determine the root causes of any clashes between incompatible equipment.

Results for our railway

The NET-Lab has established itself as a vital component of digital signalling testing:

• Consistent: The NET-Lab is the only laboratory in the UK that tests products from different suppliers against the GB reference design. It also tests against ETCS EU standards, providing a full end to end process for testing of EU Generic Application products and UK Generic and Specific Applications, ensuring operational consistency.
• Cost-effective: Designed for automated, repeatable, replicable testing and assurance, NET Lab represents a cost-effective approach to assessing the equipment of diverse suppliers against multiple standards in a single one-stop shop - reducing costs and increasing rollout speed.
• Real-world modelling: Simulating with realistic data, such as odometer input from wheel revolutions, enables us to run tested equipment through each Operational Test Scenario (OTS) on a simulated railway environment based on a real-physics model.
• Integration as standard: As well as testing against relevant standards, we also test for interoperability between products developed by different suppliers, leveraging our independent position to identify the root cause of the issue and enable stakeholders to move forward with confidence.

The future is integrated

From RSIP to the NET-Lab, from NTCL to Tornado, our work on ETCS rollout has already yielded big benefits. Without the integration enabled by these projects, rapid, secure, and cost-effective industry-wide transformation of our railway’s signalling would be impossible.

Yet our railway is constantly evolving. From lowering cost and carbon to increasing capacity, safety and reliability, we’re being challenged to improve almost every aspect of rail. Digital signal is a key enabler for these improvements, and is far from complete. However, regardless of the challenges ahead, the rollout of ETCS shows the vital and ongoing importance of integration: uniting as an industry to deliver a faster, safer, and better railway for all.