Signal Department
Switches over to TD Pro

When Guilford Rail System’s Signal Department made one of its biggest switches, it didn’t change the direction of a train. To monitor, control, and centralize its traffic control operations more efficiently, the Signal Department replaced its old dispatching system with Train Track Computer System’s operating system & PC based hardware Track Driver Professional.

TD Pro is a state-of-the-art, Windows NT-based Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) system, that implements traffic control functions in a single client/server platform. TD Pro will also will permit migration of related functions with CTC, for a seamless and complete traffic management solution.

TD Pro is a proven system that currently runs over 20,000 route miles of track worldwide. It uses industry-standard microprocessor technology. More to the point, control territory that once sprawled across 20 or more feet of cumbersome dispatching control machine is now neatly grouped on a set of PC screens directly in front of the Train Operations Manager.

This common "point and click" Windows interface, combined with an “open” design, eliminates the need for multiple systems and keyboards. The noticable advantage is that everything is right in front of the dispatcher. Gone are the days of having to constantly monitor an array of switches and lights displayed on the old fashioned distribution units. With a flexible client/server set up, it is capable of evolving with the railroad, and will support organizational and operational changes for years to come. The Windows NT-based system gives the user complete control of CTC in a clear, user-friendly, graphical interfacing platform.

District 2 Train Operations Manager Mike Moretto makes a switch on the soon to be replaced CTC dispatching system.


The “Toolbox” function allows the dispatcher to click entrance and exit points on a track and then open all necessary switches in between. The “Toolbox” also allows the dispatcher to check the accuracy of the information he is receiving from the field without having to leave his control panel.

The system also incorporates an Historical Playback function using controls similar to those on a VCR, with fast forward, rewind, play, single step and pause settings. Any specific sequence of events can be shown, selected by date and time. Every activity on a work station is shown exactly the way it occurred. “With the playback feature we can fast forward through an entire day,” said Signal’s Ron Stewart. “You can follow the train and stop it at a certain point and then check it against the log to ensure accuracy.”

And it wasn’t just the machines that changed. In conjunction with the acquisition of TD Pro, Guilford Rail’s B&B; Department designed and constructed an entirely new Operations Center at the North Billerica headquarters.

Train Track Computer Systems, Inc. is a leading edge provider of microprocessor-based CTC information systems for in the rail and transit industries. For several years Train Track has been a developer and supplier of multi-function event recording and traffic control products that have demonstrated their ability to deliver specialized information processing solutions to the transportation industry.

District 3 Train Operations Manager Russ Marcoux demonstrates how easy it is to make adjustments using the updated CTC dispatching system.