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Transit Scheduling Systems Optimize Operations
No. 5: Operation Control Systems
Expertise, developed since the birth of railways, is condensed into Japanese transit scheduling that provide powerful backup for safety and punctuality of railway operation. This article discusses on operation control systems from a slightly different perspective.
Operation plans, which are created in transit scheduling, are input into operation control systems. These systems control the overall operations and support the work of dispatchers in the operation control center. In general, operation control consists of functions such as operation monitoring, passenger information, and operation rescheduling.
Operation monitoring: to understand operation status
Operation monitoring involves in monitoring the location of the trains and ensuring the accurate timing points from departure to arrival. This helps dispatchers understand the operation status in real time. If a delay occurs, operation monitoring will serve a central role in helping dispatchers make a decision what measures to take based on tracing information. The countermeasures will be managed and sent to the related departments. In the past, station attendants sometimes operated the signals and railroad switches by themselves, and train monitoring was mostly performed visually by these employees. However, nowadays, precision has been greatly improved by GPS-equipped and other train equipment, as well as ground facilities with track circuits.
Passenger information: to convey the operation status to passengers
Passenger information which is information from operation monitoring is provided to passengers. The objective of this system is to provide the operation information such as delay and location of the trains from the operation control system to passengers. Information about the next train's departure time, destination, and train reschedules caused by delays is also provided to passengers. This helps them reach their destinations without confusion and arrive as punctually as possible.
Operation rescheduling: to restore regular operations after an abnormal event
Operation rescheduling is a system that doesn't come into play when trains are operated normally; it is only used when a train disruption occurs. This system provides support for operation changes to restore regular operations based on information in the operation control system and from monitoring. Train reschedules must be implemented promptly because a delay can be propagated that result in further delays. However, these operation changes must take vehicles and crew members as well as trains into account, so it is very difficult for humans to accomplish. Recently, systems provide support in the form of operation rescheduling plan proposals and automatic adjustments. They also ensure that nothing is overlooked if a vehicle or conductor must be replaced, resulting in smooth work.
As mentioned above, to manage railway operation with the operation control systems, it is essential for train operation (timetable), crew operation, and vehicle operation to be investigated by the transit scheduling software before actual operation. The results of investigation (needed to be consistent information) will be provided to the operation control system in the next step.
The next article will introduce TrueLineTM, a transit scheduling system that enables the previous described Japanese transit planning at reasonable costs.
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