In San Francisco, in the heart of Silicon Valley, the public has been really alarmed by an automated train control system that runs on floppy disks (yes, those floppy disks). The head of the local transportation company added fuel to the fire with his fears of a «catastrophic error» risk, as the system had already served its purpose and was not scheduled to be replaced for at least another ten years.
I paid attention to the story ABC7 News in a recent story — it was about the San Francisco Municipal Railway (SFMTA). A large part of critical infrastructure around the world continues to use technologies of the last century — remember, the US nuclear shield (the US Automated Strategic Nuclear Command System SACCS) until 2019 used IBM Series/1 computers manufactured in the 1970s, as well as 8-inch floppy disks, were used to transmit commands. So, in general, given the specifics of modernizing such systems, the situation with the SFMTA is not surprising, but it is another exemplary example of using technologies of the past.
The head of the SFMTA, Jeffrey Tamlin, said that the system, which has been in use since 1998, was implemented «in an era when computers did not have hard drives». However, hard disks were quite common in home computers in the early 1990s. Yes, we can remember the initial release of Windows 95 on 24 floppy disks, but the late 90s and early 2000s — this was the heyday of the CD era. Another difference is the type of floppy disk used by the SFMTA system. The reporter showed me a 3.5-inch floppy disk, saying that it takes three 5-inch floppy disks every day to update the system. She must have washed her hands and mixed up the 3.5-inch and 5.25-inch floppy disks that were the standard media in the ’80s.
Regardless, the SFMTA director explained that the system had exceeded its useful life of —20-25 years. And while it still works well, «every year the risk of data degradation on floppy disks increases, and at some point a catastrophic failure may occur». Implementation of a modern management system requires considerable time and money — approximately several hundred million dollars and at least ten years. Currently, local authorities are aiming to create a comprehensive system for trains and subways in San Francisco and surrounding areas, but there are no contracts or timelines for the project.