Thales and Kapsch to provide systems for Bulgarian railway

In a contract worth US$47 million, Thales and Kapsch are to provide Bulgarian railway infrastructure company NRIC with the electronic signalling and telecommunication technology for the Sofia-Plovdiv railway line, part of the International Rail Corridor IV from Dresden to Istanbul. Kapsch CarrierCom will deliver the GSM-R technology for the project, while Thales will deploy electronic interlocking systems for five stations, including outdoor facilities, ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 1 tracksid
February 8, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
In a contract worth US$47 million, 596 Thales and 81 Kapsch are to provide Bulgarian railway infrastructure company NRIC with the electronic signalling and telecommunication technology for the Sofia-Plovdiv railway line, part of the International Rail Corridor IV from Dresden to Istanbul.  

Kapsch CarrierCom will deliver the GSM-R technology for the project, while Thales will deploy electronic interlocking systems for five stations, including outdoor facilities, ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 1 trackside equipment and CheckPoint solutions (trackside train condition monitoring).  GSM-R access will be set up by Kapsch CarrierCom, including dispatcher extensions, CAB radios and handheld devices.

Thomas Schöpf, chief operating officer of Kapsch CarrierCom commented, “These systems will enable the line to support an increase in train speed and higher train frequencies, significantly increasing line capacity”.

“The Thales centre of competence in Austria for interlocking systems and ETCS combined with  Kapsch’ GSM-R expertise enables us to jointly expand the line as part of the International Rail Corridor IV, where we already have been chosen for the 128 km Plovdiv-Svilengrad line.” says Dr. Alfred Veider, CEO of Thales Austria.

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