EADS TELECOM sets up TETRAPOL radio network for Hamburger Hochbahn AG

Mobility and networking are important features of a productive and attractive city such as Hamburg — a cosmopolitan city that builds bridges in every respect. HOCHBAHN — the largest bus and rail operator for regional public transport in Hamburg and surrounding areas — plays a significant role in increasing the Hanseatic city’s appeal. By making intelligent decisions on corporate and transportation policies, and by maintaining high quality standards throughout the company, HOCHBAHN plans to assert itself in the competition posed by private transport and achieve a high level of customer satisfaction. An important decision has already been reached along this road, as the buses’ analog radio technology will be replaced by a digital radio system. This will mean enormous benefits for customers.

EADS TELECOM is the general contractor for the first stage of the "Regiofunk Hamburg Digital" project. Following a Europe-wide tender process and a planning phase that lasted more than one year, the provider of professional mobile-radio systems was awarded the contract to set up a TETRAPOL-based digital trunked radio system at the end of April. The contract has a total value of €8 million. EADS TELECOM is by no means breaking new ground with this project, as the company has gained valuable experience from setting up numerous analog regional public transport networks throughout Germany and therefore knows exactly what customers need. This knowledge is now being channeled into the development of private digital radio systems, thus allowing the very latest systems to be exactly matched to the size and needs of each transport company and to be expanded to satisfy the requirements of today’s public transport providers. German companies already using EADS TELECOM’s TETRAPOL digital radio include the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe BVG (Berlin's public transport authority) and HEAG Verkehrs-GmbH, Darmstadt.

An M2600 medium-sized regional network is currently being deployed in Hamburg. The network ensures full radio coverage for the bus network and high availability, as well as high-quality voice and data communications. It is, moreover, expandable as a uniform system, both in terms of the area covered and the number of subscribers. In order to meet the operational requirements of the users in Hamburg, EADS TELECOM combines common wave and cellular architecture. In the first stage, five base stations cover the Hamburg transport region with a line length of 1,360 kilometres.

The TETRAPOL network is being deployed in close cooperation with Siemens TTS, which is responsible for the passenger information and management system FIMS. The equipment being delivered by EADS TELECOM includes:

The radio network will go into operation in 2004. Once the first stage is completed, more than 1,000 subscribers/vehicles will be able to communicate within the network, which will be operated by HOCHBAHN.

Each year, HOCHBAHN transports around 190 million passengers on buses alone. It is these passengers who will benefit the most from the change, since the new communications system in Hamburg comes with all the advantages of digital technology. These include vehicle location information and ensured connections in the event of delays, dynamic passenger information at heavily frequented bus stops within the transport region, and light signal control systems for the buses. Whereas the services themselves will be provided by the FIMS control system, the TETRAPOL radio network will serve as the transport medium for the data.

Drivers also stand to benefit from the technical advantages of the TETRAPOL network. Not only can they talk directly to one another or with the mobile supervisor (direct mode), they can also communicate by means of group calls. Voice quality is always high, regardless of location, as the system ensures that there are no hissing or clicking noises and always guarantees full coverage. In addition, the system can be relied on in the event of an emergency, as emergency calls always have priority.

EADS TELECOM not only supplies the system technology, but also provides a single, uniform communications platform for the different analog private radio systems currently used by five regional transport companies. In addition to HOCHBAHN, (Bus division) the other four companies are:

HOCHBAHN finds opportunities with locally operating companies to open up new transport potential, with successful results. Communicating with these companies within a uniform system is the logical development of a strategy to develop a uniform service for Hamburg that will benefit passengers, regardless of the company they travel with.

Plans have also been drawn up for cooperation with the transport companies in Pinneberg and Hamburg-Holstein. As a result, the companies will, for example, display each other’s up-to-the-minute bus timetables at the bus stops (dynamic passenger information).

In future, the M2600 network will be used by a broader spectrum of customers — not just by transport companies. In an attempt to improve the efficiency of network operation, the next goal will be to incorporate the power and harbour-engineering departments of the Hamburg economic planning authority into the network. This authority has been involved in the planning phase right from the very start. The Hamburg underground system intends to switch from its current train radio system to TETRAPOL. As a result, ensuring connections between buses and the underground will be easier — an important factor for passengers. The TETRAPOL network is designed in such a way that it can be expanded into the areas surrounding Hamburg that have been granted licences. This feature will allow additional companies to be gradually integrated into the system in the future.

EADS TELECOM is the global Centre of Excellence for telecommunications of the EADS Group, the leading Aeronautics, Space and Defence Company in Europe and second world-wide.

EADS TELECOM is a supplier of turnkey telecommunications networks based on civil technologies for the Defence, Public Safety and civil markets with a complete range of solutions "Connexity", whose common denominator is security.

EADS TELECOM benefits from the expertise in the fixed and wireless digital telecommunication fields in IP environments, using proven civil technologies, as well as security on information systems. Thanks to the Tetrapol technology EADS TELECOM is the world leader in the field of secure digital radio networks, with 70 networks in 31 countries, including 15 networks with national coverage. With Succession/6500 solutions, EADS TELECOM is IP Telephony European leader.

With a local presence in 15 countries, EADS TELECOM has 3400 employees mainly in Europe, the United States and Mexico, with revenues of EUR 752 million worldwide in 2002. www.eads.net

Brigitte Faure
Sandrine Quinton
Tel.: +33 (0)1 34 60 71 70 / 79 01
brigitte.faure@eads-telecom.com
sandrine.quinton@eads-telecom.com

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