Work underway on Latina-Formia upgrade

Safer and more efficient line thanks to the new ACCM

A modern railway line for more efficient traffic, safer trainsets and greater comfort for travelers. The upgrading of the Latina-Formia - to be carried out by GCF in association with Alstom - is underway. It will equip the line with an evolved Central Computerized Multistation Machinery (ACCM) capable of improving transit along the 67 kilometers of the middle section of the Rome-Naples.

Planned by Italferr as part of the "Upgrading and boosting of the traffic regime on the Campoleone - Villa Literno section," the work is detailed in an articulated and complex executive project that envisages the realization - in addition to the IS facilities - of a series of wide-ranging interventions concerning the trackage, electric traction, LFM systems, buildings and civil works. In practice, the renewal and/or replacement of almost all current facilities, both in stations and on line.

As for the IS facilities deputed to the safe management of train circulation, the new ACCM will consist of a PCM (Central Multistation Post) to be installed in the premises of Roma Termini, 6 Peripheral Multistation Posts (PPM or PP/ACC) in the stations of Latina, Sezze Romano, Priverno-Fossanova, Monte S. Biagio-Terracina mare, Fondi-Sperlonga and Formia-Gaeta, as well as 40 Peripheral Track Posts located along the line, every 1,359 mt, in special stainless steel cabinets and 4 shelters positioned at the entrance and exit of the two major tunnels, the Mont'Orso (7,531 mt) and the Vivola (7,321 mt).

Works underway in the stations

“The first phase of works is now proceeding at full speed," explains Paolo Lopez, GCF's project engineer, "and is focused on the works planned for the first section, in the three stations of Latina, Sezze and Priverno and along the two intermediate line segments, for an extension of about 24 kilometers of track. It also includes activities planned at Roma Termini for the installation of the ACCM”.

Important and substantial, in Latina but, above all, in Sezze and Priverno, the civil works for the contaiment of the new ACC technological installations, and the works on the railway and on the ET line and on the adaptation of the stations to the new IS, TLC, mechanical and motive power installations: decommissioning of tracks and switches and consequent works for the construction of the new railway tracks and sections of line with concomitant redefinition of the new station master plans; modifications to the Electric Traction piling; renovation of existing buildings (in Latina) or construction ex novo (in Sezze and Priverno) of technological buildings suitable to house new rooms for generator set, LV cabin, SIAP switchboard, TLC room, and ACC…

In Priverno, works will be carried out at the same time to extend the underpass and, in order to improve service to travelers, to upgrade existing sidewalks and build the new sidewalks with canopies covering.

The new emulated Automatic Block "distributed"

For the railway line, it is planned to replace the current electromechanical automatic block and equip it with 3-aspect (red, yellow, green) RSC Emulated Automatic Block on the left track and two-aspect on the right track; powered by single 1000 V backbone, it will be of "distributed" type, i.e., with implementation located near the joints/signals.

This is an important upgrade because it will make it possible to constantly monitor the passage of trains-both in the "legal" direction on the left track and in the "illegal" direction on the right track-through PPTs that, placed at a distance of about 1,350 meters, will be able to govern traffic automatically being intended to maneuver the signals of the line by stopping, if necessary, the movement of trains with wide margins of safety thanks to the help of the Train Running Control System (SCMT), now standard equipment of the trainsets.