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This paper discusses a proposal for a simplistic reference system for railways, which is intended to promote a common basic operational understanding and contribute to operational interoperability. Railways are obtained in quite constrained and discrete space leading to an incomparity with that of a road or pedestrian system as a person cannot participate in its operation as an individual. Beginning with a simplified railway system, which includes simplified vehicles and elements of infrastructure, individual vehicle movements are analyzed in a fictive environment. In this case, it is determined that an extensive infrastructure need is required for an individual driving behavior. To run a railway system under good economical conditions, control and signaling technology is in use. Taking this into consideration a simplistic reference system can be defined, in that substantial system characteristics and functional aims are considered. This allows a delimitation of railway against other transport systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The requirements of availability of SBB infrastructure elements are among the highest of mixed traffic railways. It is shown, that there is no alternative to low, non-restrictive intervention limits in case of traditional asset management, without intelligent procedures which supports the calculation of trends, especially the prog¬ nosis of track behavior. The approach of low, non-restrictive intervention limits has the great disadvantage, that the focus of the systematic track maintenance is replaced by focus and managing only of local track irregularities. In case of low limits it is obvious, there are the limits exceeded in many parts of the network. Conversely, railways with lower availability require¬ ments can provide higher, more restrictive limit values, which, if exceeded, can provide an repair intervention but also use speed restrictions immediately. The approach of higher but restrictive limit provides space systematic track maintenance and these is reducing the density of track irregularities. SBBs department of track asset management has calculated, ana¬ lyzed and compared the expected quantity of the approaches of old and new intervention limits. The results are the amount of cumulative length distribution of track repair (tamping) based on the local prognosis over the next 1.5 years The paper shows the additional costs due to the statistical reli¬ ability of the prognosis. These are the costs which are opposed to availability requirements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The German Railway Industry is committed to the objectives of digitization of rail transport and the necessary digital innovations. The main objectives are more climate protection, more comfort and more efficiency. These objectives and the ways to achieve the goals like innovation promotion, digitization of infrastructure and intelligent maintenance are described in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper illustrates the challenges in multiple engineering fields of general planning services for a complex infrastructure project, using the example of VDE 8.1 - railtrack extension/ upgrade Nuremberg-Ebensfeld. Part one gives a brief overview about the overall project VDE 8, which is followed by a showcase describing engineering challenges and solutions in the fields of railway facilities and civil engineering structures. Apart from the history of planning procedures, the 3rd part displays the idea of a synchronous, consensus-oriented design/engineering solution in order to promptly achieve construction permit and to finish planning works. In the final part an overview of “lessons learned" is listed that could be helpful in the future to simplify and to economise planning processes of prospective infrastructure projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient and pragmatic management of the amount of maintenance requires suitable performance indicators. The aim is to reduce the available information as much as possible, but only as much as needed. These performance indicators must depict all damage types and their rectification methods. To constitute a complete causal indicator system their interaction has to be modelled. Costs, availability as well as safety risks can be contained as long as maintenance intervention takes place early in the damage cycle. A residual risk remains in case a comprehensive monitoring over time of all state variables on assets cannot be ensured. In addition, a potentially non-reliable damage prediction would limit early intervention. This will lead to a self-reinforcing trend of damage progression and applicable maintenance levels: From a deviation to a failure, from preventive maintenance to troubleshooting. This paper introduces an approach to verify and control the amount of maintenance by target based performance indicators. The model takes into account the interaction between damage progression and rectification method. The Asset Management of Swiss Federal Railways aspires to implement such an approach to support its data based monitoring of track systems. In addition, a description of a self-adjusting control loop is given. The loop controls the amount of maintenance according to defined target values. In general according target values can be chosen freely. However, they should be determined by optimal cost effectiveness of the system as a whole under consideration of the acceptable risk in the individual case. This approach ensures the achievement of management objectives particularly in view of increasing demands or new regulations on assets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As part of the 7th EU Framework Programme, the research project SPIDER PLUS (Sustainable Plan for Integrated Development through the European Rail Network - Projecting Logistics and Mobility for Urban Spatial Design Evolution] was carried out between 2012 and 2015. The goal was to develop a passenger and freight mobility vision for 2050 encompassing seamless transportation, where electrified rail has the central role, and to identify ways in which the objectives defined by the European Commission in the “White Paper“ in March 2011 can be achieved. Starting from the project concept mainly the impact on the railway sector will be presented. This includes the integration of national rail systems into a European grid, elimination of infrastructure gaps and simplified homologation processes for vehicles and other railway equipment in order to achieve seamless, international rail traffic at a high quality level. Moreover respective framework conditions have to be set up by the politics and a broad market uptake has to be ensured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]