Since its August launch, Sydney’s new metro under Sydney Harbour has recorded an impressive 5 million passenger journeys. Every day, passengers rely on a communications network delivered by UGL for MTR Australia (Mass Transit Railway Corporation), supporting seamless operations and maintenance, emergency services, and mobile coverage.
As part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project, UGL’s dedicated radio team successfully completed the essential radio system works throughout the city section, ensuring reliable connectivity for passengers from day one. The scope of work encompassed the installation and commissioning of the critical communications radio systems across all station and tunnel areas, integrating seamlessly with other critical systems, such as train, signalling and communications.
The radio team executed their tasks with diligence and a focus on safety, culminating in the achievement of key project milestones, including:
- completion of installation
- system acceptance and integration tests
- practical completion in the city section.
The radio communications package consists of various radio systems designed to provide coverage for different users:
- Mobile phone coverage in underground tunnels and stations is provided by the Distributed Communication System (DCS)
- Operation and maintenance employees use the operations and maintenance radio system.
- Emergency services rely on the Police and Government Radio Network (PRN/GRN), all of which are connected through the Radio Distribution Network (RDN).
"This accomplishment reflects the dedication and expertise of every member of the radio team," stated Stuart Hosie, Operations Manager - Communications and Technology Systems at UGL.
"We navigated through challenges to deliver a rewarding phase of the project."
With a nationwide presence, and a robust in-house engineering capability, UGL continues to lead in providing end-to-end outcomes that meet the diverse needs of our clients.
About the Sydney Metro project
Sydney Metro is Australia’s biggest public transport project, revolutionising the way the city moves with a world-class, automated train service. The M1 Metro Northwest & Bankstown Line is now running between Tallawong and Sydenham. With these new stations and platforms, the Sydney Metro now stops at 21 stations from Tallawong to Sydenham. At ultimate capacity, it can move more people across Sydney Harbour in the busiest hour of the peak time than the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Harbour Tunnel combined.
UGL and CPB Contractors, both members of the CIMIC Group, have delivered the Line-wide works for the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project. As a key technical and operational partner with Metro Trains Sydney (MTS) joint venture, UGL operates and monitors metro train services with CIMIC Group member Pacific Partnerships, as part of the Northwest Rapid Transit Consortium (NRT). The NRT public private partnership (PPP) contract was extended to Sydney Metro City & Southwest to deliver a seamless customer experience on the new metro system. UGL’s contract also includes maintenance of rail infrastructure, control room, operating systems and rolling stock.