KiwiRail has signed a supply contract with French multinational Alstom for what railroad officials called a “once-in-a-generation upgrade” to its Train Control System (TCS).
The deal is supported by a fifteen-year maintenance contract.
KiwiRail’s Train Control team manages the movement of freight, commuter and scenic trains across New Zealand. Railroad officials said the new computer control system will provide greater automation, resiliency, and safety across the national rail network.
Alstom’s Iconis TCS will improve timekeeping oversight and, once construction of duplicated control centers is completed in 2024, will allow KiwiRail to control the rail network simultaneously from Auckland and Wellington, KiwiRail said.
KiwiRail Chief Operating Officer – Capital Projects & Asset Development David Gordon says that this investment will future-proof operations and is part of the Government’s $8.6 billion NZD investment in New Zealand’s national railway.
