Network Rail has initiated a new pilot project to combine its traffic management system with Great Western Railway’s crew and stock resource management system.
This $5.33m (£4m) pilot, which is said to be the first such project in the UK rail industry, has been financially backed by Network Rail and the Department for Transport’s (DfT) National Productivity Investment Fund.
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Under the project, Worldline’s crew and stock software Integrale will be integrated with the Resonate-developed railway traffic management system Luminate.
The trial will take place on Network Rail’s Western line, which runs between Paddington and Bristol, Reading and Oxford.
GWR’s train services, operating on the Western route from Paddington to Penzance, are expected to benefit from this project.
In 2018, the Luminate traffic management system was initially installed on Network Rail’s Western route.
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By GlobalDataBy combining the Integrale crew and stock software with Luminate, the real-time information will be placed in one system.
This will allow Network Rail and GWR colleagues to access the same train plan, along with the allocation of rolling stock and crew at a single place.
This project is expected to streamline the identification of resource conflicts and service gaps.
Network Rail said in a statement: “Through visual indications and data sharing, this project will empower Network Rail and GWR colleagues to manage and deliver train stock and services across the Western Route more collaboratively than before.”
The findings of the project will be evaluated and shared with the rail industry after the completion of the project in February next year.
In April 2022, the second phase of the project will be initiated.
Under this stage, a Connected Driver Advisory System (CDAS) will be introduced for offering live information to drivers in the cabs of Class 387 and 802 GWR trains.
The technology will allow them to receive messages, notifying them about the schedule changes or the route, and stations to call at.
Transport for the North and Network Rail recently started working on proposals related to the delivery of rail infrastructure and services in Britain.
