Atkins To Provide Technical Consultancy in Norway

Image courtesy of Atkins

Atkins has entered into a framework agreement to deliver technical consultancy expertise for the renewal of Norways rail signalling system.

Norwegian National Rail Administration

The Norwegian National Rail Administration (Jernbaneverket) has committed to applying the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) on the Norwegian railway network with the introduction of ERTMS Level 2 and Baseline 3, expected to be completed by 2030.

The initial framework agreement is for 2 years with options to extend at the end of the contract period.

Olav Aarrestad, Director, Transportation, Atkins Norway, said:

This is a major project for Atkins, where we are in the position of supporting one of our most important customers in Norway with their biggest and most complex signalling project ever. The project will carry out a complete renewal of the railway signalling system in Norway on more than 4000km of tracks.
The driving force for introducing ERTMS in Norway is the need to renew the existing signalling systems. Most of these systems, which are mainly relay-based, will reach the end of their design life during the projects timescale, so this renewal work is vital for ensuring continual reliability for passengers now and in the future.

ERTMS Implementation

The application of ERTMS also warrants the fitting of up to 600 vehicles, of 83 different types, with ERTMS equipment.They will also be fitted with STM (Specific Transmission Module) units to ensure they still run on current lines during the migration period.

The schedule of work includes the purchase of a new Traffic Management System (TMS) which will operate throughout the country and replace the three existing systems.

The framework agreement will allow Atkins to provide technical consultants with the required expertise and capacity within the field of ERTMS , including system integration, traffic management systems and trackside signalling.

The total cost of the Norwegian ERTMS implementation programme will be between 1.7 and 2.2billion. From 2014 to 2023, a total of 750million has been assigned to the implementation of ERTMS in the Norwegian governments National Transportation Plan.