French telecommunications equipment firm Alcatel-Lucent has secured a contract from the Beijing and Nanning Railway Bureaus in China to upgrade the ‘backbone’ communications networks of rail lines in China.

Under the deal, the French firm will provide advanced fibre-optic technology for China railway authorities to harness speed of light in train operations.

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In order to ensure safe and on-time passenger journeys, Alcatel-Lucent’s optical transport technology will be deployed by to improve communications links and support mission critical rail operations, including operational communications, signalling and video surveillance.

"Alcatel-Lucent is committed to delivering technologies that offer greater network capacity and performance."

Alcatel-Lucent’s 1830 Photonic Service Switch (PSS), the latest generation DWDM optical solution, will be deployed China railways on Beijing railway bureau’s third ring, which connects Beijing to towns and cities via a rail network spanning 623km.

The new solution is expected to increase performance of the communication network with the implementation of 10G-speed technology, and lay the foundation for future 100G services.

For Nanning’s railway bureau, the French firm will upgrade a 200km line between the cities of Guilin and Liuzhou, allowing the network to flexibly support high-bandwidth services and prepare for future interoperation with mobile ultra-broadband networks.

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Alcatel-Lucent Shanghai Bell CEO Luis Martinez-Amago said: "Alcatel-Lucent is committed to delivering technologies that offer greater network capacity and performance, and drive the evolution and convergence of rail communications systems."

The company’s optical networking technology will allow Beijing and Nanning Railway Bureaus gain support for mission-critical communications services and can seamlessly prepare for a smooth network evolution to higher-bandwidth intelligent rail communications.

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