Training of personnel, infrastructure and systems are part of the axes that the Government of Mexico must guarantee for the operation of passenger and freight trains, if they use the same track, according to specialists from the French company Egis.
Bastien Dubrocq, Security Manager and Director of Certification Operations for the firm in Latin America, specified that in terms of infrastructure, work must be done on the adaptation of the track, stations, civil works, tunnels, viaducts, among others.
While in systems, he explained, these refer to the control of trains and their location, to avoid any type of incidents. “For passenger transportation we must know in real time where the train is, for safety,” he said.
Likewise, he mentioned that the last axis is about the operation and training of personnel, to guarantee, among other things, the ability to react to any situation.
However, he noted that despite these challenges, single-track operation for passenger and freight trains is possible.
“In several countries in Europe, more than 50% of the lines are mixed, they already exist,” he stated at a press conference.
Eduardo Montenegro, Safety Project Manager and ISA Certification Technical Manager of the company, mentioned that when there is coexistence between passenger and freight trains there is a challenge for safety and for the track itself regarding the weight it can support, so A material compatibility study is required.
“When there is coexistence, the challenge increases because there are more eventualities that can occur or small incidents. What we do is evaluate the space needed to avoid a coalition,” he said.
Bastien Dubrocq added that infrastructure and systems are fundamental, the latter being one of the main ones for the operation and location of trains.
He commented that in view of the upcoming railway projects in the country, the Railway Transport Regulatory Agency (ARTF) is working on a bill for their operation.
“To have a standard that addresses these terms and others to be more prepared for the commitment to train operations and have confidence that they will operate safely,” he explained.
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