The Medway Tunnel is benefiting from a multi-faceted security overhaul, including a new video surveillance and detection system, to protect the travelling public.
The tunnel under the River Medway between Strood and Chatham in Kent on England’s south-coast was the first immersed tube tunnel built in England and opened in 1996.
A multi-discipline supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system replacement project was provided by Vital Technology, through its subsidiary Ematics, to control and monitor tunnel operations.
Sub-systems including video surveillance, access control, fire systems, intruder alarms, radio rebroadcast and a video incident detection system all interact with a Graphical User Interface custom-developed for the Medway Tunnel.
Surveillance improvements in the tunnel saw 24 CCTV cameras installed to stream images to two video walls, which utilise DigiWall software developed by another Vital Technology company, Sicura Systems.
Analogue and IP-addressable CCV cameras are used for both standard surveillance and automatic incident-detection systems, with some 32 dedicated fixed-focus cameras at strategic locations throughout Medway Tunnel forming a video incident detection system.
The tunnel also saw a radio broadcast system replaced as part of a project, to allow tunnel operators to broadcast safety messages to car radios in event of a critical incident.
Phil Moore, Head of Highways and Parking Services at Medway Council, hailed the success of the Medway Tunnel SCADA system as a shining example of road tunnel security management.
“A project of this size has not been without its problems as anyone in the industry would appreciate, but working in partnership with service-specific professionals from a number of supply chain organisations has resulted in a system that provides a high level of safety for the travelling public,” he said.
“We would encourage road tunnel operators to visit Medway and see the completed project for themselves.”
