Westinghouse Rail Systems Limited (WRSL) has further reinforced its status as world leader in rail signalling and control systems, with new state of the art signals for London's Jubilee line.

Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate (HMRI) gave its approval for the Chippenham company's Westled 125mm LED signals last week and 47 are now in place on the newest part of track on the capital's underground system.

Commissioned by Tube Lines Ltd, the company responsible for upgrading and maintaining the infrastructure on the Jubilee, Northern and Piccadilly lines, the new LED signals have replaced the filament lamp signals that are currently being used on the Jubilee line extension.

WRSL's equipment team leader for the project, Ken Davies, explained that the use of Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology dramatically increases the lifespan of the signals, which are able to operate for considerably longer than the traditional filament signals.

"LED signals do not require replacement for several years, whereas filament bulbs need replacing at least annually," said Mr Davies.

"The main benefits of the LED signals are a significant reduction in maintenance costs, and a more efficient and effective service for customers and operators due to the increased reliability of the signals.

"The LED signals are also brighter and clearer than their predecessors.

"We have a longstanding, good working relationship with the London Underground and Tube Lines, and the HMRI approval is great news for us."

TubeLines staff visited Westinghouse in Chippenham on several occasions to assess the development of the LED signals.

And two signals have been on trial on the Jubilee line extension for inspection and assessment by HMRI and train drivers themselves.

The latest success story for Westinghouse Rail Systems, which employs 850 people at its Langley Park site, the company has also been involved in installing new railway safety signalling systems in Portugal in readiness for the huge influx of Euro 2004 soccer fans, which began last month.

Mr Davies said the company hopes this will be the first of many orders for the high-technology signal heads.

"There are several hundred signals on the London Underground and we are hopeful that many of these will be replaced with LED signals over the coming years," he said.

"WRSL are also in the final stages of developing a larger, 200mm version of the Westled signal, specifically for use in mainline applications."