RET extends life of Metro Access Gates
- RET has granted Thales the 'mid-life upgrade' of the more than 580 metro access gates in Rotterdam
- RET and Thales have jointly researched the work needed to be done that would have the greatest impact on lifetime and maintenance of the gates
- This 'mid-life upgrade' will extend the lifetime until approximately 2030: a sustainable and cost-efficient solution
- The modifications and improvements will start the second half of 2023 and will take several months.
In 2003, with the introduction of the public transport card, the first access gates were installed by Thales at the metro in Rotterdam.
After 20 years, spare parts that are no longer available or cannot be maintained will be modified and upgraded. As a reliable partner, Thales has maintained more than 580 gates for the past 20 years. To ensure a fast reponse to any demand, Thales has deployed a team of 50 field service engineers with a 24/7 service organisation and a software support team for its public transport customers in the Netherlands.
Mid-life upgrade
The 'mid-life upgrade' consists of several elements.
The oldest motors and doors in the gates are all being extensively overhauled. In the oldest gates, the obsolete sensors are also replaced with a newer version. There is a battery unit in all gates to cope with any power surges and to ensure that the gates keep working during power failures. These batteries normally need to be replaced every few years. Innovations in hardware and software ensure that this is no longer necessary, and the batteries are removed and recycled.
For each gate, the PLC hardware is also replaced and the need to replace cabling is assessed. Cable thresholds between gates will also be replaced where necessary.
This 'mid-life upgrade' will extend the lifetime of the gates until approximately 2030: a sustainable and cost-efficient solution.