Bringing reliability to Britain’s island railway
Train DetectionUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

Bringing reliability to Britain’s island railway

Operator
South Western Railway
Country
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Partner
OSL Global
Segment
Main & Regional Line
Application
Track Vacancy Detection
Products
FAdC®, RSR123
Year
2020
Scope of project
Axle counting, project support including configuration writing
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Britian’s unique island railway line received a major upgrade with Frauscher's weather-resistant axle counting technology. Built to withstand harsh coastal conditions and DC third-rail environments, the Frauscher Advanced Counter FAdC® and Frauscher Wheel Sensor RSR123 system now serves 1.5 million passengers annually with enhanced reliability and minimal maintenance needs.

The 8.5-mile (13.7-kilometre) Island Line on the Isle of Wight is England's only railway on the island, serving the country's second-most populous island. A £26 million modernisation in 2020–2021 set out to increase train frequency and improve the experience for up to 1.5 million annual passengers — but upgrading the signalling infrastructure came with a distinct set of technical hurdles.

Low tunnels and a DC third-rail power system ruled out standard approaches to train detection. Frauscher UK drew on its experience with third-rail deployments to support the design of a decentralised axle counting architecture tailored to the Island Line's conditions. Working alongside OSL Global from autumn 2020, the team implemented the Frauscher Advanced Counter FAdC® and Frauscher Wheel Sensor RSR123, fitted with both bull head and flat-bottom rail claws, to deliver reliable track vacancy detection across the line.

The result is a flexible, low-maintenance system built for the island's harsh coastal environment, supporting the long-term future of this unique regional railway.

Economical Cabling

The decentralised architecture eliminates the need for relays, IO boxes, and complex wiring. Clusters of detection points can be connected via Ethernet. This delivers more economical cabling and freely selectable locations for the axle counting logic.

Weather resilience

The RSR123 is optimal for use in a sea-island climate. The wheel sensor is highly resistant to harsh conditions such as floods and rain, as well as to electromagnetic interference. The RSR123 is based on the patented V.Mix Technology.

Flexible architecture

The system provides freely selectable locations for axle counting logic with communication between individual interlocking clusters via existing or new network infrastructures.

Minimal maintenance

The highly available system proved to be resilient to harsh weather conditions and requires minimal maintenance.

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