PR Newswire·Nov 10, 2026, 6:30 AM ET

VIAVI Joins ORBIT Consortium to Bring Digital Twin Technology to Private 5G on Blackpool's Trams and Buses

VIAVI Solutions joined the ORBIT consortium to validate multi-vendor Open RAN deployment in Blackpool's public transport system.
The UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport & Innovate UK are funding the project with a budget of approximately $4.15 million.
ORBIT aims to integrate & assure a standalone non-public 5G network across Blackpool's tramway & bus network.
VIAVI will utilize its Network Digital Twin based on the TeraVM AI RAN Scenario Generator to model routes & test control routines against realistic traffic scenarios.
Key use cases include live CCTV streaming, multimedia delivery to onboard screens, & a network slice for operational technology communications.
The digital twin approach is designed to reduce technical risk & integration overhead by validating performance, resilience, & energy efficiency before field trials.
Project partners include Blackpool Council, the University of York, & Hitachi Rail to deliver live demonstrators & interoperability reports.
The initiative seeks to create a replicable reference architecture for early market evaluation of assured 5G solutions.
Ian Langley of VIAVI stated this validation approach can be applied to other critical infrastructure such as utilities, airports, & ports.