Wabtec Corporation announced that its Wabtec Railway Electronics unit has been awarded a contract by Union Pacific Railroad to conduct a positive train control pilot program based on its Electronic Train Management System(TM) (ETMS(R)).

Work will begin immediately to install and test the Communications Based Train Control (CBTC) system between North Platte and South Morrill, Neb., as well as Spokane, Wash., and Eastport, Idaho.

"The pilot program will give us an opportunity to evaluate CBTC and determine if it meets our expectations in safety enhancements and operational efficiencies," said Jeff Young, Union Pacific Railroad's assistant vice president - transportation systems.

With CBTC, movement-related information, such as authority limits, speed limits, signal aspects and work zones are passed through a digital communications network and displayed on a computer screen inside the locomotive cab. The onboard computer, with location information provided via the global positioning system, will automatically initiate enforcement braking if the engineer fails to respond appropriately to movement and speed limit information. In addition, the onboard display includes a moving map detailing grade, curvature and track topology.

"We're pleased that Union Pacific has selected Wabtec's train control solution," said Albert J. Neupaver, Wabtec's president and chief executive officer. "ETMS has demonstrated both operational and safety benefits during extensive testing on the BNSF Railway, and we're confident that Union Pacific will achieve similar results with CBTC."

As part of its pilot, Union Pacific will test the interoperability of ETMS with the BNSF system, which began operating in 2004.