NCTD testing PTC on passenger-carrying trains

Oceanside, Calif.’s North County Transit District (NCTD) recently received Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) authorization for the initiation of Revenue Service Demonstration (RSD) operations of Positive Train Control (PTC) on its COASTER trains, which includes passenger-carrying trains. 

RSD is an important step in implementation of PTC as it allows NCTD to collect and validate data on the performance of the PTC system. This testing supports the PTC Safety Plan that NCTD anticipates submitting to the FRA in September 2017.

NCTD's PTC system has been tested for months on a non-revenue train in the Stuart Mesa Rail facility and along the coastal corridor. This testing was aimed at developing and enhancing the PTC infrastructure while troubleshooting any potential challenges prior to moving to RSD.

“Safety is NCTD’s top priority. Implementing a system as complex as this does not happen overnight. But with that complexity comes a great leap forward in greater rail safety,” said Deputy Chief Operations Officer, Rail Systems, Eric Roe.