Autonomous Metro train arrives

A self-driving Metro train which will be used on Shenzhen Metro Line 20 arrives in Shenzhen on April 29. The Metro Line 20 connects Terminal 4 of Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport and Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center in Bao’an District. Photos courtesy of Shenzhen Metro Group

The city’s first fully self-driving Metro train that will be used on Line 20 has arrived at the city and will be tested later in May.

Manufactured by CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles Co. Ltd., the vehicle has an A-type aluminum alloy drum body with eight carriages and a maximum operating speed of 120 kilometers per hour.

The fully automatic driving system gives the train a series of cutting-edge functions such as automatic wake-ups, automatic departure calls, precise parking and automatic detections.

Compared with standard vehicle-ground-vehicle communications technology, it optimizes the vehicle control process and greatly improves train operational efficiency, as well as safety and reliability. The vehicle adopted an ethernet control system and integrates five types of comprehensive detection systems – including bow network detections, tunnel detections, boundary detections, track inspections and running department detections – in order to monitor the real-time status of vehicles and provide a data foundation for intelligent vehicle maintenance.

The train applies high-security level core control components, as well as obstacle detection, vehicle-assisted collision avoidance, end-wall collision avoidance, derailment detection and other safety assurance technologies.

At the same time, the train employs sound-absorption and noise-reduction materials on the floor and side walls and controls the overall air circulation to further reduce noise during its operation.

Metro Line 20, a rapid transit rail line connecting Terminal 4 of Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport to Shenzhen World Exhibition & Convention Center in Bao’an District will begin operation before the end of the year.

The 8.36-km rail has five stations, which include three interchange stations. Passengers will be able to transfer to Line 11 and Guangzhou-Dongguan-Shenzhen Intercity Rail at Airport North Station. Passengers can also transfer to Line 12, which is still under construction, at Guozhan Center South Station and transfer to Line 30, which is in planning stages, at Guozhan Center.

The driverless technologies will be applied on Lines 12, 13 and 14, and then also on Line 16, when they are put into operation between 2022 and 2023, according to Shenzhen Metro Group.