Marl gets LED lighting contract for Bakerloo line underground trains

Marl International has started delivering LED lighting for Bakerloo line rolling stock, operated by Transport for London (TfL). A 50% energy saving is expected compared with existing fluorescent lighting.

The fleet has 4,906 lighting units, including 512 power supply units, according to Marl, which is based in Cumbria. That adds up to a million LEDs and more than three million components – all designed and manufactured at the company’s Ulverston site.

“TfL tasked Marl International with designing, manufacturing and installing a complete retrofit LED lighting system for its 72TS Bakerloo line fleet of 36 trains and 252 carriages,” said Marl. “Crucial to success was fitting the LED lighting systems into the limited space available, mechanical compatibility with existing lighting mounting points, maintaining the appearance of the carriages, and supplying appropriate illumination levels for passengers when the train is above and below ground.”

According to the company, rail performance and safety requirements meant meeting some 4,000 pages of standards.

‘Traction gaps’ in the Bakerloo line infrastructure, and TfL’s own requirements, led to the creation of an energy storage system that allows all of the train’s interior lighting to run without a power feed for over three seconds, leaving “only very minor intermittent interruptions due to some of the larger traction gaps”, said Marl.

The line’s lighting upgrade is scheduled to complete by 2024.