A Train-Centric Communication-Based New Movement Authority Proposal for ETCS-2

Railway accidents inevitably happen around the world although the latest automatic train protection (ATP) or similar train control systems have been widely used. To increase the safety of train control systems, we propose a new train protection solution called movement authority plus (MA+). MA+ is designed to be overlaid onto a current train control system, e.g., European Train Control System Level 2 (ETCS-2), to form a parallel control system. Its system structure and working principles are presented. Redundant train-distance measurement strategies are adopted to ensure its availability. Safety performance of the overall system is evaluated and it is compared with ETCS-2. Benefit from the real-time information exchange between on-board MA+ units and that between them and switch announcement units, MA+ works based on the moving block principle. We calculate the minimum train headway distance required by MA+ and compare it with that required by ETCS-2. The results prove the feasibility of the proposed MA+ solution, i.e., MA+ is able to protect train safety when ETCS-2 fails, and would not interrupt its normal work.