30 New Rail Tunnels Get Cell Phone Coverage

Andrew Corp.'s Wireless and In-Building Products Group has developed a new multi-band wireless infrastructure for giving commuters clear wireless phone reception in tunnels along the newly-opened ICE (Inter-City Express) high-speed rail link between Frankfurt and Cologne, Germany. The ICE's new frequency-optimized slotted communications line supports all three European mobile communication bands: GSM 900, GSM 1800, and UMTS. The communications project began in late 2001, and was completed in late summer 2002. The ICE high-speed rail line between Cologne and Frankfurt ran its first service in August 2002 and became fully operational on 15 December 2002.

Trains on the high-speed rail link travel at speeds of up to 330 kilometers (205 miles) per hour, and in response to requests from mobile operators T-Mobile, Vodafone, and E-Plus, Andrew developed and supplied over 47 km of wireless infrastructure for multi-band communications distribution covering the 30 new tunnels along the ICE line.

At the heart of the tunnel communications systems is Andrew Corporation's RADIAX RCT7-CPUS-2-RN radiating coaxial cable. This cable has specially-designed slots in the outer conductor that effectively radiate and receive the wireless signal along the entire length of the cable, creating uniform RF coverage that supports mobile communications in tunnels. An earthing and installation concept - created specially for the ICE - minimizes signal interference caused by high current fluctuations associated with high-speed train operation.

Development and delivery of the RADIAX cable, earthing and installation materials was completed in May 2002. Installation of the various phases of the new communications system has been ongoing since then, with Andrew coordinating to ensure that scheduled supplies were delivered to multiple construction sites at the same time.

"With the RADIAX cable developed for the ICE line, we now have a sophisticated multi-band Andrew product which is setting new in-tunnel communications standards," commented Manfred Barton, General Manager of Andrew GmbH in Germany. The multi-band wireless infrastructure solution, deployed in the 30 tunnels on the new Cologne-Frankfurt ICE line, has also been used in tunnel projects as diverse as the USA's Lincoln and Holland Road Tunnel, the Washington Metro, and Amtrak's New York-Boston line. In China, a similar system is installed in the Guanghzou Metro and for tunnel communications on the Kowloon-Canton Railway. "In Germany, we are now also working on a new application for Berlin's S-Bahn City Railway," added Barton."

Posted to the site on 21st February 2003