Incremental Train Control System

In 1995, GE started development of the incremental train control system (ITCS) for Amtrak to use on its Michigan corridor between Detroit and Chicago. The primary objective for ITCS was to allow Amtrak passenger trains to operate at 110 mi/h intermixed with freight traffic. To achieve this objective, the traditional wayside signal system would be enhanced with a positive train control (PTC) system to enforce the wayside signal indications (train movement authorities) and operating speed limits. Additionally, the highway-rail grade crossings had to provide the required warning time for trains operating at higher speeds than for what the crossings had originally been designed (79 mi/h). ITCS in Michigan is a fail-safe (vital) positive train control system that overlays the existing signal system for improved safety and provides a cost-effective solution for high-speed train operation. ITCS meets the requirements for PTC, a train control system recently mandated by the U.S. federal government to prevent trainto-train collisions, over-speed derailments, incursions into roadway worker zones, and movement over a misaligned track switch.