ABB has played an integral role in helping the Public Transport Authority (PTA) prepare for the future, through the provision of a high-tech feeder station solution for the Butler Extension Project in Western Australia.Delivered for $221 million, the Butler Extension Project extends Perth’s Joondalup train line to the suburb of Butler.
Crucial to the rail extension is a new feeder station –constructed at the Nowergup Depot – which will allow the 132kV Western Power supply to be stepped down to the 25kV power used by the railcars.
A massive undertaking, the project started in June 2012. One of the final stages, the feeder station, was commissioned in March this year; in May, power to the rail extension was turned on and 25,000 volts of electricity began travelling through the overhead wires. The first passenger trains left the Butler Station on September 21, 2014.
ABB's feeder station solution
The team at ABB worked with engineering and infrastructure management services company Downer EDI Limited (Downer) to supply a turnkey 132/25kV rail feeder station to cater for the electrical needs of the rail expansion.ABB was responsible for providing: the feeder station design; feeder station equipment including primary plant equipment, switch-room building, auxiliary equipment, system control, and booster transformers; along with site testing and commissioning.
The ABB’s turnkey package is a good solution for the customer as ABB handles the complex project management, coordinating the various departments supplying differing equipment and ensuring they come together to meet the overall project objective,” said Johnson Luu, ABB's project manager.
According to Downer project manager, Caleb McCully, Downer and ABB worked together closely throughout all stages of the project. In short, ABB fulfilled a major task in providing a reliable and low maintenance design which ensures years of reliable supply to the Butler extension line with the ability to back up PTA’s existing Edgewater substation.
PTA’s Butler Extension Project
In 2010, the WA State Government announced plans to better-service the people of Perth’s rapidly-growing north-west suburbs by extending the Joondalup line to Butler.
The mammoth project includes a park ’n’ ride station with approximately 900 car bays, 11 new buses to provide feeder services into Butler and Clarkson stations, four additional railcars to accommodate the extra passengers, and three road-over-rail bridges.
The 7.5 km rail extension north of the existing Clarkson Station will be operational from September.
More than 2,000 passengers are expected to board at Butler Station every day, with the project also expected to help ease pressure on the Mitchell Freeway and major road corridors.
