Par
Amandine Vachez
Published on
Dec 18 2024 at 4:56 p.m.
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This is always problematic for users. It has even become a source of stress for many. For several months, the disappointments follow one another for travelers who take the metro lines of the Lille metropolis (North), managed by Ilévia. After a reduced metro service, particularly line 2, linked to the closure of maintenance workshops, it is the implementation of autopilot in November on line 1 which poses a problem. For what reason, and why so long before traffic resumes? Shedding light on the example of Tuesday December 17, 2024.
An autopilot server causing the outage
On the morning of December 17, line 1 was blocked from 8:30 a.m. until 10:10 a.m., then between République Beaux-arts and Villeneuve d’Ascq – Hôtel de Ville stations until 12 p.m. Users of the Mairie d’Hellemmes station were generally fed up at the announcement of the traffic interruption.
Ilévia evokes a “ computer problem at the server level of the new autopilot”, which “caused disruptions, in particular with the blocking of trains on platforms with closed doors. »
On November 21, an incident due to an autopilot fault occurred on the same line. At that time, the designer and developer of this technology Alstom spoke of a “completely normal situation”, at the beginning of commissioning. Especially since it was resolved within an hour.
Despite everything, the company conceded that this was difficult to hear from users, who suffered many disappointments for several months.
Why is it taking so long to get back into service?
This Wednesday, the affected part was stopped for several hours. Ilévia explains: “As soon as an anomaly or malfunction is identified of any nature, the new autopilot systematically moves to safety and the circulation of trains is stopped. »
However, “its restart is conditional on a human verification going until the inspection of the tracks by the agents. » What Ilévia presents as “a necessary approach to guarantee the safety of travelers and teams. »
“In addition to this security protocol, this disruption required the repatriation of certain trains manually for resetting of the system by the Ilévia teams, partly explaining the duration of the interruption,” specifies the transport network manager.
“Nine trains were inter-station. It was necessary evacuate people from the trains and remove them one by one by hand, and then run them empty”, recalls Franck Garçon, the Managing Director of Ilévia, to Lille news. Traffic was then able to resume.
The MEL extends the probationary period
The MEL, European Metropolis of Lille, which emphasizes that “the first weeks of operation made it possible to identify several problems and make first-level fixes”, deplores this “major” incident.
In a statement published online the evening of the incident, she announced the extension of the probationary period, at least until January 6. This “in view of the great difficulties encountered [le matin-même]and while an in-depth analysis is underway to determine all the causes of the failure. »
The objective of this decision: “to continue working on improving the performance of the new automatic pilot system both by Alstom, which designed it, and by Ilévia, which operates it. »
A new software version expected for February
The MEL joins Ilévia to apologize to users who suffered this new episode. On this occasion, she reminds Ilévia of “the importance of ensuring strong communication in real time with its users”, to allow them to find alternative solutions before they are engaged in the metro, for example.
Ilévia and the MEL remind us that a new software version is expected for February 2025. “This will make it possible to permanently correct the dysfunctions identified so far,” announces the MEL. “At the same time, the operator is continuing to get to grips with the new autopilot. »
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