Regional Railway Research Articles

Региональная железнодорожно-транспортная система Закавказья: пассажирское направление работы

The aim of the article is to characterize the peculiarities of passenger transportation with­in the regional railway transport system of the Transaucasus. The research relies on the sta­tistics of railway passenger transport and published schedules on the railway networks of the countries in the region. It is demonstrated that in the post-Soviet period, passenger rail transport has declined, and its potential is underutilized: the volume of transportation is min­imal, the movement intensity is low, and on a significant portion of the network, passenger transport has been completely discontinued. One notable exception in recent years is the Baku agglomeration. The decline can be attributed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the sub­sequent fragmentation of the region's railway network, competition from air and road transport, as well as the specific transport policies in the countries of the region. The im­provement of the situation is associated with the potential expansion of domestic railway communication as the population's income grows and as a result of changes in transport poli­cy.

Development and operation of a system for diagnosing the condition of regional railways tracks

Monitoring the condition of railway tracks effectively increases the safety of regional railways. A system that uses a compact on-board sensing device was previously developed for monitoring the track condition of regional railways. However, this system does not consider the running speed of the vehicle. In this study, we propose two new methods for diagnosing the condition of tracks considering the travelling speed of the vehicle: one based on the Mahalanobis distance and the other that uses Gaussian process regression. After conducting a test study to verify the effectiveness of the proposed methods, the results showed that both approaches can provide an accurate diagnosis when considering the influence of speed.

Underground structure built with robots cuts time and costs [news - briefing

This article discusses using robots or 'hyberBots' at Network Rail to repair and build new underground tunnels, specifically for the UK's regional railway infrastucture. This approach is claimed to be friendlier to the environment with more sustainable materials being used, along with being safer as no humans are required to enter the underground stuctures. The robots are capable of 3D printing tunnel shells and deploying construction material directly to the ground.

Making Regional Railroads More Attractive—Research Studies in Germany and Patronage Characteristics

This article summarizes current research on regional rail passenger service in Germany. The aim of the research was to help rail operators, municipalities along the rail lines, and transportation planners identify the most effective strategies for improving rail service and patronage. The article outlines study contents and purpose and then summarizes the most important study findings. It also presents action and research recommendations. In addition, current rail developments in Germany and methods for increasing patronage and reducing costs with special focus on the separation of infrastructure and operations are described. Finally, patronage data for different rail segments are compared to help determine whether improvement measures should be applied and what impacts they could have on patronage.

The Influence of Public Transportation Stops on Bike-Sharing Destination Trips: Spatial Analysis of Budapest City

This research looks at how spatial factors of public transportation influence the use of bike-sharing in an urban context. Based on a grid-cell-based method, ordinary least square regression and geographically weighted regression (GWR) are developed to reveal the link between the spatial distribution of bus, tram, rail stops, and bike-sharing trips. The public transportation coverage in Budapest City is rated as excellent, with all parts of the city covered within a 5 km radius. We find that areas with a high proportion of public transportation stops have a significantly higher number of bike-sharing trips. Bike-sharing trips are concentrated near regional railway stations, the central business district, and surrounding zones. The connection between bike-sharing and trams/rails appears to be stronger than the connection between bike-sharing and buses. According to the findings, nearly one-third of public transportation stops have accessible bike docks within 125 m walking distance. In GWR analysis, the coefficients of bus stops are increasing towards the center of the city, while the coefficients of tram/rail stops are decreasing. Finally, by examining the priority zones for establishing more bike-sharing facilities, it is discovered that the eastern side of the city requires more development than the western side because it has a high number of bike-sharing trips but no adequate facilities near public transportation facilities.

Analysis of hydrogen-powered propulsion system alternatives for diesel-electric regional trains

Non-electrified regional railway lines with typically employed diesel-electric multiple units require alternative propulsion systems to meet increasingly strict emissions regulations. With the aim to identify an optimal alternative to conventional diesel traction, this paper presents a model-based assessment of hydrogen-powered propulsion systems with an internal combustion engine or fuel cells as the prime mover, combined with different energy storage system configurations, based on lithium-ion batteries and/or double-layer capacitors. The analysis encompasses technology identification, design, modelling and assessment of alternative powertrains, explicitly considering case-related constraints imposed by the infrastructure, technical and operational requirements. Using a regional railway network in the Netherlands as a case, we investigate the possibilities in converting a conventional benchmark vehicle and provide the railway undertaking and decision-makers with valuable input for planning of future rolling stock investments. The results indicate the highest fuel-saving potential for fuel cell-based hybrid propulsion systems with lithium-ion battery or a hybrid energy storage system that combines both energy storage system technologies. The two configurations also demonstrate the highest reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to the benchmark diesel-driven vehicle, by about 25% for hydrogen produced by steam methane reforming, and about 19% for hydrogen obtained from electrolysis of water with grey electricity.

Study of development of regional railway system in Bukovyna

The article is devoted to the study, generalization and systematization of scientific knowledge about the history of the establishment, development and operation of the regional railway system in Bukovyna in the second half of XIX – early XX centuries. The authors attempted to analyze the process of creation and operation of railways in Bukovyna during the reign of the Austro-Hungarian Empire based on a wide range of previously unpublished archival documents, periodicals, statistical literature and memoirs. The article studies the development of organizational bases for the construction of railways, the activity of the communication network management, lists a whole range of requirements and tasks set for railway transport in Bukovyna, the progress of their implementation, considers successes and difficulties in this work. It is determined that private railways, as important transport arteries of Bukovyna, were of national importance and played a significant role in the transport system of Austria-Hungarian Empire. They served the leading economic districts of Bukovyna, acting as an integral part of production in each of them. In other words, they were used for development of local, intersectoral and interregional relations. Regional railways, first of all, played an important role in the social and economic life of Bukovyna region. In most cases, they did not carry the strategic cargo, but made it possible to connect the most remote corners of separate areas of the region into a single whole. In practice, local railways were a significant addition to the main central line, providing the latter with a greater intensity of cargo and passenger turnover and thus increasing their profitability. At the same time, the trade volume between the outskirts and the center of the Austro-Hungarian Empire was increased. It contributed to the intensification of economic development of certain districts of Bukovyna region.

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.

Fixed-Route vs. Demand-Responsive Transport Feeder Services: An Exploratory Study Using an Agent-Based Model

Feeder transport services are fundamental as first and last-mile connectors of mass rapid transit (MRT). They are especially beneficial in low-demand areas where private transport is usually the main transport mode. Besides, the rapid spread of new technologies such as vehicle automation and the shared mobility paradigm gave rise to new mobility-on-demand modes that can dynamically match demand with service supply. In this context, the new generation of real-time demand-responsive transport services can act as on-demand feeders of MRT, but their performance needs to be compared with conventional fixed-route fixed-schedule feeders. This article aims at presenting an agent-based model able to simulate different feeder services and explore the conditions that make a demand-responsive feeder (DRF) service more or less attractive than a fixed-route fixed-schedule feeder (FRF). The parametric simulation environment creates realistic constraints and parameters that are usually not included in analytical models because of high computational complexity. First, we identified the critical demand density representing a switching point between the two services. Once the demand density is fixed, exploratory scenarios are tested by changing the demand spatial distribution and patterns, service area, and service configurations. Main results suggest that the DRF is to be preferred when the demand is spatially concentrated close to the MRT station (e.g., in a TOD-like land-use area) or when station spacing is quite high (e.g., a regional railway service), whereas the FRF performs better when the demand is mainly originated at the MRT station to any other destinations in the service area (e.g., during peak hours). Besides, automated vehicles could play a role in reducing the operator cost if the service is performed with many small vehicles rather than higher-capacity vehicles, even if this would not imply a major benefit gain for the users.

Delay Management in Regional Railway Transport

This article is focused on the reliability of transfer connections in regional railway transport. The reliability of the transportation chain in public transport is an essential element for functional, attractive, and long-term sustainable public transport. This article discusses the causes and consequences of railway traffic disruption and related impacts on passenger transfer connections. To reduce the negative impacts of common operational disruptions, the authors present an original approach for determining transfer waiting times between delayed trains based on a modified critical path method (CPM). In addition, an example of the implementation of this method in regional railway transport in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic is provided.

Progressive Tendering of Regional Railway Services

Progressive Tendering of Regional Railway Services

Multi-Layer Regional Railway Network and City Economy: Polarization, Integration, and Spillover

Multi-Layer Regional Railway Network and City Economy: Polarization, Integration, and Spillover

The Economics of Regional Railway Regulation

The Economics of Regional Railway Regulation

High-Speed Rail Station Interconnectivity and Ridership

The objective of this study was to quantify multimodal connectivity of HSR stations and its impact on ridership in four countries: France, Spain, Japan and China. In this study, multimodal connectivity is measured by the number of different modes of transportation connected to HSR stations, the number of installed arrival and departure facilities for each mode, the transfer time from connecting modes to boarding platforms at HSR stations, and the arrival time intervals of public transportation modes. Data were collected from HSR systems of these four countries. The relationship between ridership and the characteristics of multimodal connectivity was identified using regression models developed in this study. All the connectivity variables considered in this study influence ridership in these four countries in different ways. On the whole, bus, subway, and regional railroad services influence ridership significantly. For instance, the more bus services connected to the station, the higher the ridership. This trend is apparent in three of the four countries, France being the exception. Also, subway, light rail, and traditional rail are modes of high-capacity transportation. Their connection to HSR stations always implies high ridership for high-speed rail. The number of facilities also shows significant impacts on HSR ridership. For instance, the more bus and subway stops, and the more bicycle parking and taxi stands, the higher the ridership. Transfer time also has a significant influence.

ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF THE CREATING AND FUNCTIONING OF REGIONAL RAILWAYS IN BUKOVYNA IN THE SECOND HALF OF THE 19th – EARLY 20th CENTURIES

The purpose of this paper is to study the objective economic aspects and prerequisites for the creating and functioning of regional railways in Bukovyna in the second half of the 19th – early 20th centuries. The deployment of railway construction on the lands of Bukovyna in the second half of the 19th century was associated with the processes of the capitalist structure formation in the economies of the countries that included these lands – Austria-Hungary and the Russian Empire. The successful activities of the large railway companies in Bukovyna were facilitated by their strong ties with banks and close mutually beneficial cooperation with various parts of the state apparatus of Austria-Hungary and the Russian Empire. There was certain dependence between railway companies and States that, on the one hand, companies could not do without financial assistance from the State. On the other hand, the State did not possess sufficient funds at the end of the 19th century to independently expand the railway network and it was forced to entrust the construction of railway lines to private companies. Banks willingly acted as founders of new private railway companies in Austria-Hungary, which intensively stimulated the development of railway construction in Bukovyna. The high degree of the capital concentration in comparison with the other branches of private capitalist production was one of the characteristic features of the railway companies of Bukovyna.

Characteristics of unpaved roads in the late 18th century – early 19th century, and the design of the first wooden trackway as a forerunner to the Bukovyna railways

In the history of Bukovinian social life in the 1840–1850s, an important role is played by the fierce struggle for the introduction of rail transport. This struggle took place in the deepening crisis of the feudal system and the development of capitalism in the Austrian Empire. Primitive medieval methods of transporting goods and passengers by waterways and unpaved roads, which for centuries met the needs of feudal Bukovyna, became a brake on the economic, social and political progress of the Bukovyna region. The beginning of the transport revolution in England had a huge public response in Austria-Hungary. The rapidly developing relationship between scientists and engineers from Austria, Western Europe and America in this period made a large contribution to the process, as the newest means of transportation were spreading in the early 19th century, first of all, in the industrialized regions of Europe. These regions had enough funds for the construction of roads because they could develop different methods of production. Today we are mostly interested in the projects of construction of typical means of transportation on agricultural lands with practically no industry. In the early 19th century, Bukovyna was one of them. The purpose of this article is to thoroughly analyze unpaved roads of the late 18th – early 19th century, as well as the project of the first wooden trackway as the forerunner of the Bukovyna railways. To achieve this purpose, the authors first reviewed how railways were constructed in the Austrian Empire during 1830s – 1850s. Then, in contrast with the first railway networks that emerged and developed in the Austrian Empire, the authors made an analysis of the condition and characteristics of unpaved roads in Bukovyna. The government's attention to Bukovyna's roads was explained by their military, economic and political significance for the Austrian Empire by the end of the 18th – early 19th century. There was a number of state trackways built on the territory of Bukovyna which crossed the region and ensured the military interconnection of two Austrian provinces named – Galicia and Transylvania, as well as approached the borders of the Russian Empire and the Danube principalities. At the same time, they helped to restore the suspended trade flow in Bukovyna. In addition, the authors considered the first attempt to create a wooden trackway as a prototype and predecessor of the Bukovyna railway. It is evident that such an idea played a significant role in shaping the development strategy of the region in the minds of Austrian and Bukovinian officials, and became a forerunner for main and regional railways in Bukovyna.

A general bi-clustering algorithm for object data with an application to the analysis of a Lombardy railway line

A general and flexible bi-clustering algorithm for the analysis of Hilbert data is presented in the Object Oriented Data Analysis framework. The algorithm, called HC2 (i.e. Hilbert Cheng and Church), is a non-parametric method to bi-cluster Hilbert data indexed in a matrix structure. The Cheng and Church approach is here extended to the general case of data embedded in a Hilbert space and then applied to the analysis of the regional railway service in the Lombardy region with the aim of identifying recurrent patterns in the passengers' daily access to trains and/or stations. The analysed data, modelled as multivariate functional data and time series, allows to measure both overcrowding and travel demand, providing useful insights to best handle the service.

Формування інформаційного забезпечення розвитку вантажних перевезень АТ «Укрзалізниця»

A methodical approach to the formation of indicators of the information base of management decisions on the development of freight JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia”, which consists in calculating the taxonomy of the level of development of freight by substantiating systems and its elements: eighteen static systems, elements of which are six regional railways; seven dynamic systems – regional branches and in general JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia”. A spatial and temporal comparison of the development of freight transportation of selected systems is carried out. The taxonomy index is calculated on the basis of five indicators of freight traffic for the period 2002-2019. The analysis of static systems made it possible to identify the uneven development of freight transportation of regional branches of JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia” for the studied 18 years. The temporal comparison of the levels of development of freight traffic by each railway in particular also showed their instability. Fluctuations are observed in the last three years of the study period. In 2018, JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia” demonstrated the lowest level of freight transportation development for the entire analyzed year 2002-2019. It was established that both external and internal factors caused the negative impact on rail transportation, in particular: the economic crisis of 2014-2015; military action in eastern Ukraine; ineffective management at different levels of government. The introduction of quarantine measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic caused unprofitable and deteriorating financial and economic performance of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia, and its six regional branches in 2020, in particular, revenues from freight transportation decreased by 10.3% compared to 2019, and net loss amounted to UAH 11.9 billion. Implementing the anti-crisis plan by the management of JSC Ukrzaliznytsia and the improvement of operational work in the freight segment has yielded some positive results. However, for the effective planning and management decisions in the field of freight transportation an important component is the proper formation of an information base. The proposed methodological approach will serve as an effective tool not only in the management of the freight segment of individual regional branches or enterprises in particular, but also the economic development of JSC “Ukrzaliznytsia” in general and can be used by other large companies.

ЖЕЛЕЗНОДОРОЖНЫЙ ТРАНСПОРТ ЗАПАДНОЙ СИБИРИ В ДЕЛЕ ОБЕСПЕЧЕНИЯ ПРОДОВОЛЬСТВИЕМ ВООРУЖЕННЫХ СИЛ И НАСЕЛЕНИЯ КРУПНЫХ ГОРОДОВ ЕВРОПЕЙСКОЙ РОССИИ В ГОДЫ ПЕРВОЙ МИРОВОЙ ВОЙНЫ

The article deals with issues of the process of railway transport functioning in Western Siberia during World War I and its role in the transportation of food for the armed forces and the population of large industrial centers of European Russia. The potential of railway transport in the region in the period under review is characterized. The stages of using the regional railway transport for the delivery of goods for military needs are identified. The reasons for the crisis in railway transport and its consequences for the supply of food to the military and civilian population are analyzed.

Analysis of Hybrid and Plug-In Hybrid Alternative Propulsion Systems for Regional Diesel-Electric Multiple Unit Trains

This paper presents a simulation-based analysis of hybrid and plug-in hybrid propulsion system concepts for diesel-electric multiple unit regional railway vehicles. These alternative concepts primarily aim to remove emissions in terminal stops with longer stabling periods, with additional benefits reflected in the reduction of overall fuel consumption, produced emissions, and monetary costs. The alternative systems behavior is modeled using a backward-looking quasi-static simulation approach, with the implemented energy management strategy based on a finite state machine control. A comparative assessment of alternative propulsion systems is carried out in a case study of a selected regional railway line operated by Arriva, the largest regional railway undertaking in the Netherlands. The conversion of a standard diesel-electric multiple unit vehicle, currently operating on the network, demonstrated a potential GHG reduction of 9.43–56.92% and an energy cost reduction of 9.69–55.46%, depending on the type of service (express or stopping), energy storage technology selection (lithium-ion battery or double-layer capacitor), electricity production (green or grey electricity), and charging facilities configuration (charging in terminal stations with or without additional charging possibility during short intermediate stops) used. As part of a bigger project aiming to identify optimal transitional solutions towards emissions-free trains, the outcomes of this study will help in the future fleet planning.