ETCS Level 2 : Hitachi Rail extends Gold Coast Line

RISBANE, Tuesday 14 July 2026, Queensland's Department of Transport and Main Roads (DTMR) has commissioned Hitachi Rail to install ETCS Level 2 digital signalling on a 20km stretch of the Gold Coast Line between Kuraby and Beenleigh.

The corridor links densely populated areas of southern Brisbane to the Gold Coast, a route expected to carry growing passenger numbers ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games. ETCS (European Train Control System) Level 2 is a radio-based signalling system that replaces lineside signals with continuous communication between trains and a control centre, allowing services to run closer together while maintaining safety margins.

The Kuraby–Beenleigh works are part of a wider plan to introduce digital signalling across 200km of the South East Queensland (SEQ) network. Hitachi Rail is simultaneously delivering the neighbouring 50km Beenleigh to Varsity Lakes section under the Sequence Signalling and Systems Alliance, a partnership with DTMR and Queensland Rail. An earlier 11km pilot was carried out on the Shorncliffe line, north of Brisbane.

On Shorncliffe, system testing and staff training for Queensland Rail personnel are under way, the final stage before commercial entry into service, expected before the end of the year. Hitachi Rail is also developing a new Traffic Management System for the entire SEQ network, alongside a Possession Management System designed to secure track access for maintenance crews.