Danish S-Bahn runs with record punctuality with help of new signalling
New signalling system CBTC on the S-bahn in Denmark has increased this year’s punctuality so far by 2,1 percent compared to the same period last year. “We can see that even more passengers arrive on time on the S-bahn, which already had a very high punctuality”, says Peter Svendsen, Banedanmark’s traffic director.
The Danish S-Bahn now completely runs on Communication Based Train Control (CBTC), the latest generation of signaling systems for urban railways. In autumn 2022, the last three sections were equipped with the new signaling system, while the installation on the first section began in 2016. The S-bahn is part of the Greater Copenhagen railway operated by DSB with lines A, B, Bx, C, E, F and H.
In the first two months of 2023, customer punctuality reached 97 percent, which is a “historically high level”, according to rail infrastructure manager Banedanmark. Customer punctuality is the proportion of passengers who arrive on time within 3 minutes. The share of those delays which can be attributed to Banedanmark is also historically low and amounts to 0.6 and 0.3 percentage points.
On the S-Bahn, the target is a minimum of 92.3 per cent. The average of the first four months of this year is a customer punctuality of 96,5 per cent, where 1,2 per cent was Banedanmark’s responsibility. Last year, this was 94,4 per cent on average in the same period, with 1,7 Banedanmark’s responsibility.
With CBTC, the traditional signals along the track disappear. The train driver receives the signal directly on a screen in the cab of the train via radio signals. Furthermore, the new technology means that there is far less equipment in and around the tracks than there was in the old analogue signal technology. With the digital signal system it is possible to run trains closer together, manage traffic more efficiently and restore traffic more quickly in the event of delays, says Banedanmark, which improves the punctuality.
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