Railways are undergoing significant modernization: from old long-distance lines to their own fiber-optic backbone and hyperconverged infrastructure. At the same time, they are opening data on train movements and preparing a joint 5G project on the Brno–Bratislava route. However, key systems remain in their data centers for security reasons.
From long-distance lines to hyperconvergence
Legacy long-distance networks along the rail lines have gradually given way to fiber. The railways now operate their own backbone fiber-optic network, which also carries IP telephony. The result is faster and more reliable communication between stations and technologies.
A hyperconverged infrastructure combines computing power, storage, and networking into a single whole. This reduces space requirements, simplifies management, and delivers more stable performance. For running critical systems, it is a way to get more capacity in a smaller footprint and with less complexity.
Open data and services for passengers
Data on train movements are already freely available via a publicly available API. The railways offer a map of train locations as well as delay information; third parties can integrate them into their own applications. In cooperation with students, an app was also created that displays station amenities, such as toilets, escalators, and accessibility.
Internet on trains depends on the operator and on mobile network coverage, which is weaker outside cities. Carriages use roof-mounted equipment to receive the signal, but the limits stem mainly from the availability of 5G outside metropolitan areas. A promising development is a Czech–Slovak 5G project on the Brno–Bratislava line, financed by an EU instrument; it is intended to meet the needs of both railway systems and passengers. After the study is completed, contracting and construction are expected, with estimated completion in roughly two years.
Security, cloud, and data centers
Key systems, such as the operational information system, run in internal data centers for legal and security reasons. Even a short outage would mean not knowing where trains are and where they are headed, so the cloud is used only for supporting services. In the future, the current solution is to be replaced with a more modern interoperable system.
The railways continue to operate fixed lines where mobile networks have no coverage, but they also keep an eye on IP and mobile service trends; an example from the Czech Republic shows that this can be a viable path. The infrastructure is roughly 95% virtualized, and the data centers already host projects of the Ministry of Transport and of state railway companies. The advantage over commercial data centers is the obligation to maintain a very high availability standard, which other users also benefit from. After a transparent market survey, the railways chose Dell’s VxRail platform for its price/performance ratio.
