Alcatel-Lucent and the RATP group improve the safety of Paris Metro passengers

Alcatel-Lucent has collaborated with the RATP group, the French public transport operator, to offer a wide range of broadband communications services that improve the safety of passengers of the Line 1 of the Paris Metro.

Alcatel-Lucent and the French RATP group have installed on the Line 1 of the Paris Metro a broadband system that offers video-surveillance and video-control in real time, maintenance services and improvements in passenger safety. The Line 1 It is the busiest suburban area in Paris and runs from Château de Vincennes in the southeast of Paris to La Défense, a major business district, headquarters of some of the most important French companies. The line also passes through some of the most important tourist destinations such as the Louvre Museum, and carries an average of 725.000 passengers per day.

As a result of collaboration with Alcatel-Lucent, the line 1 of the Metro will benefit from video surveillance of the train in real time, video-control and transfer of operational data between trains and the control center. This will improve passenger safety and optimize operations and maintenance efficiency., as part of the RATP Group project to transform the Line 1 in a fully automated driverless system.

A new ground-train data transfer system (Ground Train Data Transmission of TDST) will allow real-time control of the data flow between driverless trains and central control. Twin cameras at the front and rear of each train provide real-time video monitoring for the control center, while video surveillance broadcast in real time from the cameras inside each Metro car increases passenger safety.

The system includes passenger information services (in-flight television programs, advertising and updates for travelers and visitors to Paris). Besides, TDST provides rapid notification of maintenance requirements, reducing response and repair time and improving service efficiency.

Alcatel-Lucent's successful implementation of the TDST system has enabled a smooth transition from a driver-driven to a driverless system without any disruption to line service - a very new and very different approach to upgrading passenger rail networks.. Previous implementations of this type required rail services to be interrupted for some time to implement the changes.

Pascal Homsy, president of Alcatel-Lucent France, has stated: “Alcatel-Lucent has a long history of developing innovative security communications solutions for the Metro.. Our experience in this sector has allowed us to achieve a very efficient solution to transform the RATP network and implement it without interrupting daily operations”.

Under this agreement, Alcatel-Lucent has installed a complete end-to-end integrated system with Wi-Fi coverage in 18 km of the Line 1 of the Paris Metro system, including comprehensive services such as design and integration. Besides, Alcatel-Lucent has provided the Metro with an onboard interface to connect all subsystems, including video surveillance cameras and multimedia screens located in the train cars.