London Undergrounds Customer Role for Equipment - Essay Example

London Underground comprises a large network of the world’s underground railway opened in 1863. The tube services a record 270 stations which is the largest underground network in the world and also cover around 402 kilometers. Acting as a pioneer in its design, the design of LU has been adopted by several underground networks across the world. Almost 86% of the passenger fares are covered by the tube which makes it stand out as the main traffic tool in the nation (Urbaneye, 2002, p.7).

London underground’s customer role for equipment
London underground having a relatively old infrastructure should consider prospects of up-gradation of its equipment mainly required for comfort, safety, and security of their passengers. This raises the role of London underground as a customer for its equipment and subsequent consideration of its equipment reports. The major equipment of London underground are the CCTV camera, ticket machines, support systems for ventilation, emergency alarms, availability of reservations or wheelchairs for senior citizens, handicapped, etc (Kelly, 1999, p.4). As a customer to its equipment report, London underground needs to at its suppliers, competition for the contract of supply of equipment, whether the equipment is customized for the tube and the payment amount for equipment installed. Major suppliers of CCTV for installation in London Underground include market leaders like Panasonic, Sony, Eneo, British Security Industry Association, etc. The suppliers need to bid for the contract on London Underground’s decision of installation of new CCTV cameras or up-gradation of the existing system (Source Security, 2013, p.1). The supplier offering the best competitive price and quality of information is awarded the contract.

For example, Sony has installed around 5000 CCTV cameras by 1996. In 2002, a 500 camera system has been installed with a three-room capacity for controlling activity in order to enable LU with monitoring capacity of health and safety of passengers, detection and prevention of crime, and closed-circuit surveillance. The CCTV surveillance system used in London underground as installed and supplied by Sony are the one’s used for general business surveillance (Glanz and Nacerodien, 1996, P.1). Thus the CCTV system has not been much effective in large underground stations in tracking activities like pick-pocketing, bag-snapping, etc. However, CCTV has been able to detect crime in small underground stations.

The effect of the CCTV old system wears out with time as offenders learn about their position of tracking. Looking at upgrading the infrastructure, London underground announced a one-billion pound sterling program for station regeneration of which 40 billion pound sterling was spent on CCTV installation in 1997-98. Apart from CCTV, the London underground also installs ticket machines which passengers can use through top-up Oyster cards. The major supplier of all ticketing machines in London Underground is Cubic Transportations System Inc. The emergency alarms are supplied by manufacturers like Vesda and Wagner. In order to upgrade its old transportation system in the face of increasing passengers, London Underground has upgraded its WaterLoo and City line in 2006 with five trains instead of existing four, Victoria line now includes a fleet of 47 higher capacity with better ventilation capacity than before (Fire Systems Ltd, 2013, p.1). The Green Park station has included three new lifts and a vital gateway to the west end. Thus, by improving the main traffic tool or the train and equipment, London Underground would be able to provide its passengers with better safety, more transportation capacity, and comfort (Tfl, 2013, p.1).

Comparison between Hong Kong MTR and LU
In terms of the train and its underground equipment, London Underground is the oldest underground network in the world with varied designs in infrastructure. Overall, the system is the largest best in the world. However, Hong Kong MTR equipment is much newer and more reliable. Hong Kong MTR network is spread over a smaller area and carries 2.4 million passengers per day. It is a much better-utilized network as compared to the London Underground. The tube on the other hand carries 3 million passengers per day and is spread over 402 km. Technologically, Hong Kong MTR is much more advanced as London Underground does not have mobile signals, has the old infrastructure, and less reliable in comparison.

Conclusion
Although London Underground is the oldest network in the world, yet it is still the world’s largest and overall the best underground tube. As compared to other networks, it covers the largest number of stations and is spread over a huge geographical area of 402 km encompassing greater London and its surroundings. The tube is very fast and can take a large number of people. The London underground has looked at updating its old infrastructure by increasing the number of trains during peak hours, increased capacity of transportation, upgrading the ventilation systems, and plans for a centrally controlled air-conditioned mode of operation. The installation of additional CCTV cameras has enabled the authority to increase its surveillance on crime prevention, monitoring health, and other activities of passengers. These will benefit the large passenger base of London Underground. The facility to step-free from the street to the platform is another advantage in favor of the London Underground.