Railway communications
A railway has some of the hardest radio environments there are: tunnels, concrete cuttings, and a line that cannot stop working while you fix it. This page covers the three jobs that recur on every line — tunnel and viaduct coverage, the radio alongside signalling, and coverage in stations, platforms and depots.
How big is this market
Figures come from published third-party market research, with the source named under each one — we do not publish numbers we cannot trace.
The three jobs on any line
First, tunnel and cutting coverage: the radio has to reach the platform, the cross-passage and the emergency walkway, and it has to keep working between the maintenance windows. Second, the radio that sits alongside the signalling — operational voice, dispatch, and the systems that monitor the track, which is a different discipline from general coverage because interference with signalling is not acceptable. Third, the surface buildings: stations, platforms, depots and the back-of-house areas where the radio still has to work.
- Environment
- Tunnels and cuttings need a fibre-coupled system, not an off-air unit
- Standard
- TETRA / DMR for operational voice; private LTE for data and telemetry
- Reliability
- Redundant paths and coverage between maintenance windows
- Interference discipline
- Equipment chosen so it cannot interfere with signalling
What we supply for railways
Tunnel and viaduct coverage is done with fibre-coupled repeaters and passive distribution, because an off-air unit cannot be trusted in a concrete tube. Operational voice uses the TETRA and DMR lines; the private LTE and 5G NR lines cover data, telemetry and non-safety operations. Station and depot coverage uses the same off-air cellular repeaters as any other building.
Search the model list by number, standard or band, tick what you need and send it to us — documents on file can be claimed immediately, the rest come with the quote after we confirm them.
Open the model listWhere rail programmes are active
Bangladesh
Dhaka Metro Line 5 northern route; signalling, telecom and coverage packages tendered, award proposal suspended pending revision.
China
Metro and high-speed rail build-out; operator-grade tunnel coverage.
Middle East & Southeast Asia
New metro lines where coverage must be built into the civil works.
Common questions
Can the coverage equipment interfere with signalling?
It must not, and that is a selection criterion rather than a promise. Signalling-adjacent radio needs units with documented out-of-band emission behaviour and coordination with the signalling supplier. Tell us the signalling system and we will confirm what we can offer.
Who owns the spectrum for railway private networks?
Usually the operator or the railway authority holds it, and the coverage system is deployed under their licence. This is why the agreement work starts before the equipment order.
Do you cover stations and depots as well as tunnels?
Yes, and they are different jobs. Tunnels need a distributed system; stations and depots usually come down to indoor coverage, which is a much simpler installation.