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Tuesday 15 Jul 2025

Freight digital signalling fitment takes a step forward

Region & Route:

Eastern

| Eastern: East Coast

A step forward is being taken today towards the challenge of fitting ETCS (European Train Control System) digital in-cab signalling equipment to hundreds of Britain’s freight locomotives.

GB Railfreight’s 66 784 is starting fitment work at EMD Longport. The loco will be the first freight fitment outside the ‘first in class’ process, and marks the commencement of early fleet fitment for the National Freight ETCS Programme (NFP), which has been a number of years in the making.

Fitting ETCS to freight locomotives – some of which are 30 to 40 years old – is the most challenging aspect of the £1.4billion East Coast Digital Programme (ECDP). ECDP will transform rail operations by replacing traditional, lineside signals with continuous information displayed inside drivers’ cabs, delivering a more flexible, reliable, greener and even safer, railway.

Siemens Mobility is the ECDP’s freight fitment partner, responsible for designing, integrating and installing its Trainguard 200 onboard unit, helping deliver a digitally signalled East Coast Main Line.

Network Rail, Siemens Mobility and the freight operating companies have been working closely to overcome design and assurance challenges involved with fitment. This sector collaboration has worked to deliver a baseline design for the Class 66, the principal freight fleet on the network. This baseline is enabling ECDP to progress an initial fitment schedule of eight locos (of which 66 784 is the first), while work continues to solve and finalise some aspects of design, ahead of APIS (Approval to Place into Service) for fitted Class 66 locos.

Ed Akers, Network Rail’s industry partnership director, ECDP, said: “Today marks a step forward. We’ve collaborated with the rail freight sector to address the challenges involved with fitting 21^st century technology to 20^th century locomotives.

“Fitting locos provides more certainty for the sector and the business change required for digital transformation. ECDP involves ‘learning by doing’ and much hard work has already taken place to get us to this point. We continue to build our capability in freight fitment as we begin this exciting new phase.”

Emma Smith, GB Railfreight’s ERTMS senior project manager, said: “This milestone reflects the outstanding dedication and expertise of the entire ERTMS Team at GB Railfreight. It has taken a collaborative and pragmatic approach, working closely with our partners, to reach this point.

“While this is just the beginning of our fitment journey, the team’s focus and commitment give me every confidence in our ability to deliver the programme successfully.“

Adrian Stubbs, director of rail infrastructure portfolio - onboard, Siemens Mobility UK&I, said: “The start of fleet fitment for the National Freight ETCS Programme is an important step in the journey to digital signalling and a key part of our mission to transform rail travel and transport on the East Coast Main Line.

"Integrating ETCS into legacy freight locomotives is a complex task, and our engineering teams have worked closely with Network Rail and the freight sector to overcome significant design and assurance challenges. This next phase reflects the steady, collaborative progress being made toward wider rollout, eventually unlocking benefits such as increased capacity, reduced infrastructure maintenance, and improved reliability for freight operations.”  

Read more about the ETCS benefits for freight by clicking here.