COMMENT
legendary drivers. Passengers may not notice the additional punctuality given the already high performance, but the prize is an extra train path every hour on an intensively used corridor, made possible by the reduction in allowance necessary for minor perturbations at key junctions.
In Auckland, New Zealand, the solution was to take advantage of urban redevelopment to extend the railway from its historic terminus, by cut and cover, into the edge of the central area with a new combined public transport facility at Britomart, using a former post office as the passenger concourse. At the same time, a suburban station was moved from a redundant location to underneath a main highway. This created an easy and cost-effective interchange with the bus network, enabled the remapping of bus and rail, and promoted rail for the heavy radial flows, fed by the bus network.
Best railway in the world?
A simpler form of this technology can be seen in the development of driver advisory systems (DAS) – non-safety critical supplements to conventional control that guide the speed of trains approaching key junctions so that they arrive when signals are clear to proceed. Reducing ‘stop-start’ driving not only improves punctuality and potential capacity at vital pinch-points, it can pay for itself by reducing traction energy and brake wear, which is why the idea is being pursued so enthusiastically on the heavy freight networks across North America.
The German ‘tram-train’ takes the combined public transport facility further. This not only brings the tram network out to the station, but connects the systems to allow through- running, by using lightweight rolling stock and the appropriate technical systems to make the tram-trains capable of mixing with heavy rail traffic. First developed in Karlsruhe, it is seen in a more advanced form in Kassel, where passengers are conveyed to within a short walk of their destination, and capacity is freed-up in the main station either for growth in longer distance travel or even property development.
Mandurah Line. Apart from the tunnelled ‘last mile’, it has been carved out of the generous central reservation of a dual carriageway highway. Integrated bus and car interchanges have been set out at regular intervals to provide easy access from the sprawling suburbs.
When it comes to choosing the ‘best railway in the world’, the heavy haul railways of the Pilbara region of Western Australia lay claim to this title. They are operated to achieve a single business purpose of conveying huge quantities of iron ore from inland mines to coastal ports. The railway is considered as an integrated engineering system and every aspect of it is continuously improved within a total model that values infrastructure, rolling stock and control system together. The result is a totally reliable, profitable, just-in-time operation carrying 200Mt each year in some of the most inhospitable territory imaginable.
Fundamental change
Many people today think of railways as a fascinating Victorian invention that’s vaguely useful, potentially more environmentally friendly than cars, but quite expensive and not really a preferred mode of transport. But the fact is the railway must change fundamentally.
In many smaller cities, the attractiveness of the rail network is compromised by the remoteness of the main station from the city centre.
A variety of different solutions around the world are showing how this can be overcome.
26 | rail technology magazine Aug/Sep 14
A further innovation around this type of system can be found in Zwickau (also in Germany). Here, connectivity has been enhanced by simply extending the tracks for the lightweight suburban trains from a remote terminus into the central city square along a public transport road corridor. Interestingly, while there has been much spoken of converting old railways to roads, it is now possible we will see the reverse.
In Perth, Western Australia, a whole new north- south suburban railway has been built – the
More importantly, it can change fundamentally. The technology exists today and there are examples from around the world that demonstrate that if you blend best practice with next-generation technology, much can be achieved. I want my IET lecture to inspire Britain’s engineers to help develop a control system that ingrates all of the necessary elements and provides the engineering backbone of a future railway system that delivers the best possible passenger and freight experience.
With Britain’s engineering heritage there is no reason why Britain should not once again have the best rail network in the world.
Professor Andrew McNaughton FREng
opinion@railtechnologymagazine.com TELL US WHAT YOU THINK
© Eiichi Kimura
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