Most of the signalling at the southern end of the East Coast Main Line is coming to the end of its life and is due for replacement. Signalling failures, and the engineering works they cause, increasingly contribute to disruption. The East Coast Main Line is strategically important with one-third of the UK population living within 20 minutes of a station on it. Most of the passenger trains that run on the route are already equipped for digital signalling.
The upgrade to European Train Control System (ETCS) will move signalling from lineside to in-cab, feeding the signalling information directly to a computer screen in the train driver’s cab. This allows trains to run closer together and to travel at optimum speeds while maintaining safe braking distances. ETCS is being introduced to the East Coast Main Line in three stages.
