Cardiff Valley Lines: train monitoring via satellite

This paper describes a British Rail, Regional Railways, concept called “Project Inform” which was planned for introduction on the 1st April 1994. Project Inform would provide current information to rail passengers via TV-type monitors and also via speakers located at railway stations. The area chosen for this project was the Cardiff Valley Lines (which prior to 1st April 1994 were part of the Regional Railways network). The operative words were current information; to do this a complicated system of train reporting had been devised which involved fitting all diesel multiple units operating on the Cardiff Valley Lines with radio equipment and antennas-this was in order to locate and position each unit in operation via satellite (using the Global Positioning System) and send a location report back to base