Skip to main content

Siemens to automate New York’s Queens Boulevard subway

Siemens has been awarded a US$156 million contract by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to install communications-based train control (CBTC) on the Queens Boulevard Line, one of the busiest subway lines on the New York City transit system. Siemens is supplying the onboard equipment for a total of 305 trains and installing the wayside signalling technology at seven of eight field locations.
August 28, 2015 Read time: 2 mins

189 Siemens has been awarded a US$156 million contract by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) to install communications-based train control (CBTC) on the Queens Boulevard Line, one of the busiest subway lines on the New York City transit system.

Siemens is supplying the onboard equipment for a total of 305 trains and installing the wayside signalling technology at seven of eight field locations.

The radio-based CBTC technology provides real-time data on vehicle position and speed conditions, allowing system operators to safely increase the number of vehicles on a rail line. This results in greater frequency of train arrivals and allows MTA to accommodate more passengers on its system. The technology reduces the amount of wayside equipment and, as a result, reduces maintenance costs and service disruptions. Additionally, the technology precisely locates each train on the tracks and controls speed, improving on-time performance for riders and employees.

The system will be managed and deployed by Siemens New York City based rail automation team of CBTC experts which has been working with NYCT for over 15 years.

“Through our work on the Canarsie line, we’ve seen first-hand that CBTC technology can have a significant positive impact on ridership for the New York City subway system,” said John Paljug, head of Siemens Rail Automation. “We’re extremely excited to extend our technology partnership with the MTA and bring advanced automation technology to riders on the Queens Boulevard line.”

Development work is expected to begin on the Queens Boulevard line late this summer with the major installation beginning in mid-2017.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Bus lane enforcement reduces costs, journey times
    May 4, 2012
    The Southcote Lane site in the UK town of Reading is a notorious shortcut for motorists travelling into the town centre. The resultant congestion at the end of the bus lane, when motorists tried to re-enter the main traffic flow, caused congestion and disruption to bus timetables. Reading Borough Council wanted a cost-efficient, effective solution to accurately capture bus lane violations and improve bus travel times. Reading became the first local authority in the UK to deploy Siemens's LaneHawk fully auto
  • Reykjavik traffic light priority system provided by Siemens
    October 12, 2016
    Siemens has been selected to supply its Sitraffic satellite-based prioritisation system for emergency and urban public transport vehicles to Iceland’s capital, Reykjavik. This is a real-time tracking application for managing traffic lights and passenger information. The system ensures that traffic lights automatically turn green for emergency and public transport vehicles at road intersections.
  • Here and Mitsubishi unveil road hazard alert system
    May 22, 2019
    Here Technologies has piloted a system with Mitsubishi Electric which it claims can enable vehicles to automatically warn others about upcoming road hazards with lane-level precision Here says the Lane Hazard Warning platform enables an event detected by a vehicle’s sensors – such as a slow car or pothole – to be localised to a specific lane. This information can then be transmitted in real time via the cloud to other vehicles approaching the same area, the company adds. Hiroshi Onishi, executive office
  • Vaisala takes to the road with new mobile road weather sensor
    November 1, 2012
    Finland-headquartered environmental and industrial monitoring specialist Vaisala is to take to the road to demonstrate the functionality of its new mobile sensor technology to its customers in Europe during the winter. Starting in Vienna, Austria, Vaisala’s Tracks Across Europe mobile road weather tour will take vehicles equipped with the new Vaisala Condition Patrol DSP310 road surface monitoring technology through fifteen European countries that are especially prone to snow and ice. The tour will end at V