New ways to make very short notice changes to train services
‘Very Short Term Planning’ (VSTP) for very short notice changes to train services currently has several drawbacks. DfT asked RSSB to launch a competition for innovative improvements from the supplier community.
VSTP enables changes to one or more train services on the day itself or within 48 hours. It is used to add unplanned train paths and respond to disruption. It may be in response to late possessions, traction and train crew issues, significant late running, or infrastructure restrictions.
However, VSTP is a time-consuming manual process, often carried out under intense time pressures. This means that new paths it recommends are not validated, so conflicts may occur with other services, resulting in further disruption.
An improved solution is needed.
£2.9m innovation funding was awarded to three projects tackling the challenge from different perspectives.
PathPlanner, developed by 3Squared, supports the VSTP needs of freight operators. It analyses schedule utilisation to identify likely unused paths on the network, and improve the way that requests are handled.
PathFinder, developed by Worldline, applies machine learning from historical events and the current state of the railway. It uses these to generate and validate new VSTP train schedules for freight and passenger operators, and amend existing ones.
Tracsis Bellvedi developed new product functionality for their software ATTUne4C. The improvements include automatic identification and validation of paths, and automatic initiation of contingency plans.
These projects successfully demonstrated improvements to the efficiency and accuracy of VSTP. They have also laid the foundations for a more flexible and dynamic approach to timetabling and planning responsive to customer demand.
After a successful pilot with freight operators, PathPlanner secured funding from DfT and Innovate UK for a proof-of-concept solution at Southampton Docks. This forecast significant gains.
Worldine is working with stakeholders to take PathFinder into an operational environment where benefits can be realised by operators and their customers.
New ATTUne4C functionality was launched at an event in June 2023. Operators have started to realise benefits from the improvements.