Smart Rail Control System to be developed and launched

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on June 20 that said it will finalize and announce a basic plan for the construction of the second Railway Control Surveillance Center.

The Railway Control Surveillance Center plays a pivotal role in railway safety by managing and controlling train operations of national railways such as KTX and Mugunghwa, controlling train operations and instructing recovery in the event of a railway accident.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport believes that the Railway Control Surveillance Center (referred to as Guro Railway Control Surveillance Center), located near Guro Vehicle Base in Seoul, is now aged more than 16 years so the confusion and suspension in train operations nationwide can happen if the center system fails.

In response, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has been promoting the construction of the second Railway Control Surveillance Center since 2019 to provide uninterrupted railway control services in preparation for the aging, suspension of operation, and continuous expansion of the national railway network.

The ministry plans to establish a multiple management control system of the Guro Railway Control Surveillance Center and the second Railway Control Surveillance Center to secure uninterrupted railway control, and develop a smart railway management control system for digital innovation of railway control.

The second Railway Control Surveillance Center will be located inside the facility equipment office of Osong National Railroad Corporation in Cheongju, Chungcheongbuk-do.

By investing 336.6 billion won in total project costs, the company will build business and lodging buildings with four floors above ground and one basement level by 2026 and upgrade them to a railway management control system with advanced technologies such as AI.

Based on this year's basic plan, it plans to start developing architectural design and systems and operate them from 2027.

When the second Railway Control Surveillance Center is built, Guro and Osong will share the railway control work which is currently performed only in Guro.

Based on the 4th National Railroad Network, the Guro Railway Control Surveillance Center will be in charge of the metropolitan area from the north of Daejeon Station, Gangwon area, Chungcheong area, and the 2nd Railway Traffic Control Surveillance Center will be in charge of Honam area south of Daejeon station and Yeongnam area.

However, routes that extend to the north and south, such as high-speed railways, Gyeongbu lines, and Jungang lines, will be controlled collectively at the second Railway Control Surveillance Center for consistency in management control work.

The two centers will normally perform control tasks according to the assigned area, and if one of them fails, the other management control center will immediately control the operation of all trains, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport explained.

In addition, the second Railway Control Surveillance Center plans to develop and apply smart railway control systems using DNA technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and big data to minimize human errors and increase both efficiency and safety of train operations.

Accordingly, control tasks that rely on controllers' experience and manual work will be converted into control by the system, and artificial intelligence and big data-based control systems will continue to learn train operation-related data and predict all trains in real-time within two hours.

The function, which adjusts the operation plan if a train collision or delay and suggests optimal alternatives such as train cancellation and detour to respond quickly and accurately in the event of an accident, will also be introduced to support controllers' decision-making.

Lim Jong-il, a Director-General for railway safety at the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, said, "The role of railway control is to ensure safe operation in an environment where railroads are accelerated, and various types of trains run on the same route will become more important." And said, "We will build a second Railway Control Surveillance Center without a hitch and implement digital innovation in the railway sector so that people can use the railway more safely and quickly."

Reported by Smart City Today