Passenger Rail Transport Research Articles

Optimization of Timetables on the Prague – Bratislava / Vienna and Rail Transport Route in the Post-Pandemic Period

Abstract Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for public passenger transport has decreased significantly in many European countries since March 2020. Due to several measures and restrictions adopted, this decrease was particularly pronounced in international long-distance transport due to several restrictions and measures adopted. A significant decrease in demand could also be observed on the international rail transport route Bratislava / Vienna – Prague in the form of the decline in the number of transported passengers on this railway line. Therefore, it is very important and necessary to propose various measures to increase the demand and achieve a significant long-term increase in the number of passengers in long-distance rail transport not only on the mentioned transport route. This paper analyses the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on passenger transport usage frequency and proposes solutions to improve the quality of the timetables. It deals with the long-term and systematic concept of international long-distance passenger rail transport on the Prague – Bratislava / Vienna and back in the post-pandemic period. For this purpose, specific scientific methods are selected, which can be applied in order to rationalize and optimize train timetables.

Multidimensional Comparative Analysis of Passenger Rail Transport in Selected European Countries in Terms of Economic Security

The study comprises a multidimensional comparative analysis of the number of passengers transported by rail in twelve European countries between 2019-2021; the considered data were grouped and analyzed. The dynamics indices with a constant base were used in the study. The aim of the article was a comparative analysis of the number of passengers transported by rail in the European countries under consideration between 2019-2021. The result of the research is the observation of an increase in the number of passengers transported by rail in twelve European countries in 2021 compared to 2020 by 374 965 people. It was visible in nine out of the twelve countries considered. The largest one was observed in France, with around 170 544 passengers. Considering the percentage increase between 2020 and 2021 in respective countries in rail passenger transport, it was observed that the most significant increase was in Italy, which amounted to 25,61%.

Methodology of Comparing the Carbon Footprint in Means of Rail Passenger Transport: Case Study in the Slovak Republic on the Žilina - Rajec Railway Line

Methodology of Comparing the Carbon Footprint in Means of Rail Passenger Transport: Case Study in the Slovak Republic on the Žilina - Rajec Railway Line

Development of transport in Albania and opportunities for a sustainable transport

Transport in the Republic of Albania, with all efforts for its development, has not yet reached the contemporary levels and standards. While the transport of passengers and goods, carried out by road transport, has undergone a great development, the same can’t be said for rail transport.Rail transport is a great untapped potential, low cost, with low levels of pollution and no traffic jams. Through this paper we’ll try to provide an analyse of the total demand for freight and passenger transport as well as the possibilities of developing rail transport by comparing it with road transport.The methodology of the study is based on the classical model of transport. Graphs of traffic flows as well as analysis of official statistical data will be the basis for drawing conclusions.The need for the development of rail freight and passenger transport is urgent, as the capacities of national road axes are reaching maximum traffic values.The connections of Rail transport with the countries of the region would affect the reduction of means of transport and would meet the needs of different passengers. Based on the results, we will give some suggestions regarding the development of rail transport.

Exploring Research Trends in Air-rail Passenger Transport Relationships Through a Content-based Analysis

Background: Air and rail passenger transport was initially considered to be competitive. However, as both modes have been developed, several other forms of relationships have been introduced and become more complicated, leading to the investigation of research trends in the air-rail passenger transport relationship. Gap: There are few studies on the relationships between air and rail passenger transport, lacking research synthesis application. Aims: This paper classifies and analyzes the relationships between air and rail passenger transport based on research publications between January 2006 and December 2020. Objectives: The objective of this study is 1) to investigate the possible forms of relationships the air-rail passenger transport based on existing studies, 2) to reveal research themes and trends, and 3) to propose research potentials in the air-rail passenger transport. Methods: The study uses a content-based analysis by deriving research articles from transportation and databases. A total of 472 articles were initially identified and screened. One hundred and forty-five articles were included in the final synthesis. Results: Air-rail relationships were categorized as a modal comparison, competition, cooperation, integration and influence. Research has been found to rely heavily on the mixture of modal competition, integration and influence. Furthermore, it has been pointed out that the influence between air and rail passenger transport has a one-way effect; air carriers are affected by the entrance of high-speed trains but not in a reverse direction. China has been an emerging context of this topic over the past five years and is likely to dominate the air-rail research due to its extensive high-speed rail networks and vast developments in large airports. Conclusion: In terms of the air-rail infrastructure development, it was suggested that modal cooperation was outdated due to lacking seamless connectivity features. Future research might explore the deficient research disciplines, including transport sustainability, business practices and tourism, as well as the impact of the coronavirus disease pandemic in reshaping the air-rail passenger transport industry.

Getting freight trains back on track–How railway undertakings, infrastructure owners and regulators can navigate the main dilemmas in freight business to drive sustainable growth

Rail freight reportedly makes for an environmentally friendly means of transport. It also has significant potential for making a lucrative business, a stark contrast to rail passenger transport. Yet in Europe rail freight has long been displaced over its road equivalent and grown at rates inferior to overall land goods freight. Sustainable, profitable rail freight operations depend not only on goods volume, travel distance and pricing, but further on other key aspects permeating goods transportation by rail. Our research demonstrates that the choice for railway undertakings, infrastructure owners, and regulators alike, is in practice a complex one as depending on many, often competing factors. In fact, the key questions usually raised v.a.v. rail freight operations may be summed up to the following: (a) Mixed passenger and freight train operation or dedicated train corridors? (b) Conventional or heavy axle loads for freight trains? (c) Unitized wagonload or integrated trainload services? (d) Dangerous goods land shipping by rail or road? (e) Autonomous or manned freight train operation? Despite many individual contributions in the field, there is currently no single framework addressing the problem holistically. This paper breaks down what is seemingly a hard-to-balance decision-making process for rail freight players. It records and analyzes the forces and dynamics behind the dilemmas above and allows to: provide those partaking in the decision-making process with a robust framework identifying the key drivers behind sustainable rail freight growth; help them individually and collectively make more sound decisions regarding rail operations as a whole–including, in particular, strategic decisions regarding policy and/or investment; and, eventually, to enable them to craft and pursue viable, sustainable transport and business strategies. The research is underpinned by literature data review.

System Dynamics Modeling and Fuzzy MCDM Approach as Support for Assessment of Sustainability Management on the Example of Transport Sector Company

Contemporary challenges for development should involve a sustainable approach. One of the important sectors where such challenges are observed is transport. In a wide range of studies addressing environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability, an approach that combines these dimensions as an integrated technique to assess sustainable development of passenger rail transport organizations is still lacking. The first aim of the presented research is to offer a relatively comprehensive collection of railway sustainability indicators as well as a novel causal loop. The second aim is to assess and improve sustainable management using a case study of a passenger rail transport company. To model the relationships inside and around the transport company, the system dynamics (SD) methodology was chosen, being the primary contribution of the study. Additionally, the Fuzzy-TOPSIS logic is required to find the most appropriate scenarios that may change future strategies by making them more socially and environmentally friendly. The proposed research may support experts in assessing sustainability management in transport companies and improve their performance considerably.

Shifting the population mobility of the Ukraine western region on the strength of the COVID-19 pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly affected the economic and social spheres of all countries. Restrictions intro-duced to reduce the risk of transmission have changed the structure of population movements. The impact of these restrictions on the characteristics of intercity travel is still an understudied problem. Based on the analysis of statisti-cal data and the results of questionnaires, the article assesses the impact of pandemic restrictions on population mobil-ity in the Western region of Ukraine and changes in the distribution of passenger flows between different modes (bus, rail, private transport, joint travel). In 2020, the volume of passenger traffic in the region decreased by an average of half compared to the previous year. The decline is sharper for rail passenger transport compared to the bus transport. For more developed railway networks, the impact of the pandemic on passenger traffic is more pronounced. Quarantine restrictions have also increased the share of own car travel. According to research, the distribution of intercity trips between modes is influenced by the age and sex of the traveler. During the pandemic, users of transport services who travel with children under the age of 14 choose private transport to travel more often than those who travel alone. The degree of influence of the above factors on the distribution of modes depends on the length of the trip. The application part of the work presents the results of modeling passenger flows of the studied region in the software environment PTV Visum. It was found that at the beginning of the quarantine restrictions the number of intercity trips decreases sharply. As the duration of restrictions increases, the rate of decline in mobility decreases. These data can be further taken into account when planning the work of transport enterprises and meeting the population`s demand for travel. The practi-cal application of the study results is that the identification of trends in the mobility of residents of the studying region depending on the impact of pandemic restrictions allows you to predict the mode and type of vehicles used. Based on these data, you can determine marketing strategies for the development of certain modes and directions of transporta-tion.

Implementation of COVID-19 measures in railway operation in the Slovak Republic

Rail transport has a crucial role to play not only in the EU’s strategy for a sustainable transport sector, but also in terms of economic and social cohesion. It contributes significantly to the mix of transport modes in the EU, while providing clean mobility and a high degree of efficiency. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the volume of passenger and freight rail transport has fallen sharply due to constraints and lower demand for transport. Several players in the rail market had to close down. Rail operators had to face a sharp decline in transport services. In 2020, the demand for passenger transport was significantly lower than in the previous year. Thus, railway undertakings were not able to pay the charges for access to the railway infrastructure during the emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Infrastructure managers had the opportunity to temporarily reduce, waive or defer these charges. The negative economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic could reduce or significantly endanger their financial viability for market stakeholders. Reducing charges for access to railway infrastructure is just one of the few measures that will help railway undertakings to function better. The paper focuses on the analysis of the impact of the pandemic and the implemented measures on the passenger rail sector in the Slovak Republic and on the development of rail passenger and freight transport during the pandemic. It summarizes the proposed measures against the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in rail transport in Slovakia.

Implementation of COVID-19 measures in railway operation in the Slovak Republic

Rail transport has a crucial role to play not only in the EU’s strategy for a sustainable transport sector, but also in terms of economic and social cohesion. It contributes significantly to the mix of transport modes in the EU, while providing clean mobility and a high degree of efficiency. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the volume of passenger and freight rail transport has fallen sharply due to constraints and lower demand for transport. Several players in the rail market had to close down. Rail operators had to face a sharp decline in transport services. In 2020, the demand for passenger transport was significantly lower than in the previous year. Thus, railway undertakings were not able to pay the charges for access to the railway infrastructure during the emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Infrastructure managers had the opportunity to temporarily reduce, waive or defer these charges. The negative economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic could reduce or significantly endanger their financial viability for market stakeholders. Reducing charges for access to railway infrastructure is just one of the few measures that will help railway undertakings to function better. The paper focuses on the analysis of the impact of the pandemic and the implemented measures on the passenger rail sector in the Slovak Republic and on the development of rail passenger and freight transport during the pandemic. It summarizes the proposed measures against the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in rail transport in Slovakia.

Comparison of Czech and Slovak Railway Infrastructure in the Context of Basic Operational Indicators

Abstract The level of development of railway transport is one of the indicators of the economic development of the state. If the state regularly invests in large volumes in railway infrastructure, it creates conditions for the operation of quality passenger and freight rail transport. Analytical comparison of railway infrastructures is key to understanding the increasingly abysmal differences between the quality of railway infrastructure in the two countries. The comparison will be made mainly from the Network Statement of both countries.

Policy measures and their impact on transport performance, modal split and greenhouse gas emissions in German long-distance passenger transport

In our study, we used a system dynamics model to analyze how frequently discussed transport policy measures affect the total transport performance of long-distance passenger transport in Germany and the transport performance of relevant modes (modal split shares). We then combined the results with established data on mode-specific greenhouse gas emissions to ultimately determine the climate protection effects of the measures.Our analysis shows that an actual modal shift from road to rail will only occur if the price competitiveness and supply conditions of long-distance rail passenger transport are significantly improved. Scenarios for increasing the price of passenger car traffic via a passenger car toll on trunk roads or an additional CO2-based tax on fuels increase the market share of rail, but limit overall transport performance growth compared to our reference scenario with no measures. A doubling of long-distance passenger rail transport cannot be achieved with any of the measures or bundles of measures examined, neither in terms of transport performance nor modal split share. According to our calculations, only the “car repression” scenario makes a noticeable contribution to reducing CO2 emissions. German government's ambitious climate targets for 2030 can only be reached if the climate footprint of vehicles – especially passenger cars – is significantly improved. It is also noteworthy that, according to our analysis, a politically frequently demanded ban on domestic flights would ultimately even lead to an increase in CO2 emissions, since, among other things, general travel costs would fall.

Optimization of Timetables on the Bratislava–Žilina–Košice Route in the Period after the End of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Quality and efficient long-distance transport as a key system of public passenger transport could be the basis for the national and international comprehensive integrated transport system. Especially due to the pandemic caused by the COVID-19 disease, the demand for long-distance transport has significantly decreased since March 2020 in the Slovak Republic on the busiest long-distance line Bratislava–Žilina–Košice. It is, therefore, necessary to propose various measures in order to increase this demand and bring passenger frequencies to at least the level of values before this period. This paper analyzes the impact of the measures on passenger frequencies in 2020, examining the amount of their fall in individual months of the first half of the year 2020 on the long-distance route Bratislava–Žilina–Košice. Furthermore, the paper deals with the long-term concept of national long-distance passenger rail transport on the mentioned line in the period after the end of the pandemic. It uses scientific methods enabling to rationalize and optimize current train timetables. The benefits of these proposals will be to offer passengers better transport services, with their frequencies expected to increase in the coming years.

Directions of transport system development according to the national environmental policy

The article is the second in a series of articles on the negative externalities of passenger road, rail and air transport. It reviews the national documents in the field of environmental policy, identifies their content concerning transport which is used as a basis to determine the expected directions of development of this branch of economy. The authors presented a review of national strategic documents defining the directions of the Polish environmental policy, identified objectives and priorities relating directly or indirectly to transport activities, and compared the theoretical assumptions with the actual changes taking place on the transport markets, which allowed for an analysis of the compatibility of intentions with their implementation. The summary presents conclusions concerning the necessity of mutual coordination of transport development planning and environmental protection. The following articles will present the results of research on the above-mentioned negative effects of transport and recommendations for various stakeholder groups in relation to the analyzed topic.

Traffic Potential Evaluation of the Regions in the Context of Rail Passenger Transport – A Case for Slovak Republic

The contribution includes the necessity to analyse the potential of the regions in terms of rail passenger transport. The main research goal is to propose a new concept of determination and evaluation of the particu-lar factors, which evaluate the region potential. Several research methods are used in research, for example the brainstorming methods, methods of expert estimate, and especially point evaluation method. Firstly, the factors influencing the traffic potential are defined and exam-ined. Secondly, specific ways of monitoring and evaluat-ing particular factors are proposed. The research results form the basis of a new methodology for traffic potential determination in regions. Subsequently the mentioned methodology is applied in practice to the selected region-al railway line in Slovak Republic. The potential of this region is expressed by coefficient values of the chosen factors. For example, coefficient of the number of inhab-itants is 2.69 and the average value of the adjacent co-efficient of the railway stations and stops availability is 1.92. The details are explained in the fourth chapter. The proposals and outputs including practical application represent a new innovative way for region evaluation which has so far not been used anywhere. It can help plan and organise traffic service in the regions.

Life cycle comparison of passenger air and rail transportation

Air transportation has an undisputed speed advantage among all other modes. On the other hand, it is known that the environmental metrics of aviation is quite unsatisfactory compared to other transportation types due to its fuel characteristics and the amount of consumed fuel. However, it would be a wrong choice to rely solely on operational processes to make a true comparison. For this reason, a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) model should be generated by taking into account processes such as production except the operation process and the calculations should be performed with a comprehensive and holistic perspective. In this study, the environmental impacts of air and rail transport types are compared from the life cycle perspective. For this purpose, first, the emissions in the case of one passenger per one km (pkm) transportation by air and rail were calculated. Then, taking into account the production and disposal processes of the aircraft and passenger trains, the LCA cycle was completed and total emissions were calculated. SimaPro version 9.0.0.49 package program and 1.09 version of ReCiPe 2008 method were used for LCA calculations. With the help of the program, emissions generated during both production and one pkm transportation processes of an aircraft, high-speed and normal train were estimated. Accordingly, the greenhouse gas produced one pkm in air transport was 126.8 g in terms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2eq), while CO2eq was 0.3 and 0.31 g for high-speed trains and regular trains, respectively. Considering the production processes, 2072.1, 28.72 and 19.07 t of greenhouse gases are produced, respectively for these three transportation modes.

Changing tracks: identifying and tackling bottlenecks in European rail passenger transport

For Europe's urban agglomerations to be economically competitive, it is vital that international destinations be easily accessible. Although much has been invested in the construction of European rail infrastructure over the past century, passenger transport by rail has not grown as fast as transport by road and air. So why do people not use international trains more, even though they have an extensive international rail network at their disposal? Based on a series of in-depth interviews with relevant public and private stakeholders and two expert meetings, we identify the main bottlenecks and constraints. In order to understand the complexity of international rail transport, we have divided the existing bottlenecks into four groups corresponding to four layers of the rail transport system: mobility services, transport services, traffic services, and the physical and digital infrastructure. We formulate concrete policy recommendations for improvements to be made in the various components of the rail transport system.

Private agendas and the public good: The contested development of high-speed passenger rail transport in the United States

During the 1960s, the United States Department of Commerce (and later the Department of Transportation) cooperated with the Pennsylvania Railroad (later, Penn Central) to develop the Metroliner, an American version of the Japanese Shinkansen. Federal officials possessed overtly political motives, including an effort to build political support for the Democratic Party in the heavily urbanized Northeast. Railroad executives sought federal subsidies for conventional rail passenger service, while building political support for the largest merger in American history. The conflicting agendas precluded the development of high-speed surface transportation in the United States.

THE CLASSIFICATION OF RAILWAY STOPS AND STATIONS IN TERMS OF LAND USE STRUCTURE IN THEIR SURROUNDINGS

Ensuring the high accessibility of railway stops and stations is essential to effective transport systems in urban areas. There are different ways to analyze accessibility at the station level. In this paper, it has been assumed that railway stops and stations should be located in places with significant demand for passenger rail transport characterized by a highly dense and diversity-rich land use structure. Therefore, the presented classification uses data on the built environment in the surroundings of these elements of the railway infrastructure, with particular attention to the type of each building. The analysis was performed for the Metropolis GZM area. Based on the gathered spatial data, railway stops and stations in the aspect of the density and diversity of the built environment in their vicinity were classified. This classification can be applied to the assessment of accessibility.

Impact of various methods for choosing a railway undertaking: Case evidence from the Czech Republic

The liberalisation of passenger rail transport in the EU has brought a procedure (competitive tendering) for choosing a railway undertaking and observing the principles of transparency and non-discrimination. However, the latest experience has shown that this procedure has brought about many problems. Competitive tendering will be the obligatory method for choosing a railway undertaking under the EU regulation from 2023 (with some exceptions).This paper evaluates three methods (direct award, competitive tendering procedure, and direct award with competition) used for choosing a railway undertaking in different circumstances and assesses the EU regulation that specifies a rule for choosing the railway undertaking.Methodologically, the paper is based on four case studies of choosing railway undertaking in the Czech Republic and eight expert interviews with the representatives of railway undertakings and the representatives of public authorities.The results show that competitive tendering is suitable only for long-term simpler services where all necessary requirements are set in the tender documentation, no major changes can be expected during the contract period, and access to rolling stock is non-discriminatory. Direct award with competition is the best method of choosing a railway undertaking for more complex service delivery contracts because it enables PTAs to compare alternative bids, and thanks to cost-plus contracts it enables to respond flexibly to changes in the transport demand during the contract period with the control of costs and price due to the maximum amount of profit. Direct award is the best solution only if public authorities do not expect more bidders.