Timetables and operational concepts for public transport

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29.07.08 - The aim of this project is to maximise the use of existing infrastructure and plan effectively future network expansion.

The strong increase in goods transport and intensification of tenders in rail passenger transport are putting ever-increasing strain on the line and intersection capacities of the more heavily-used parts of the rail network. The high investment needed for expanding the rail infrastructure requires the efficient use of the existing rail infrastructure and means that effective planning is more important than ever.

Within the triangle of infrastructure, operations and rolling stock, Ernst Basler + Partner finds optimum solutions for timetabling plans and produces stability and feasibility studies of timetables and capacity assessments for lines and intersections.

We investigate thoroughly issues such as the calculation of journey times, the vehicle dynamics of various traction units, evidence of infrastructure requirements and the use of appropriate railway safety technology (including ETCS), using the very latest software (e.g. OpenTrack).

Map giving an overview of our reference projects (to zoom in click on the image)

Drawing up an operational and timetabling plan for the "Upper Rhine-Hochrhein-Lake Constance link” to show the possibilities of a systematic local public transport system in the Singen – Waldshut – Basel – Freiburg im Breisgau area. The work includes drawing up a diagrammatic line plan with schedule harmonisation, different timetable variants and use patterns by the resident population.

Concretisation and checking of the feasibility of an Obersee urban railway between Rapperswil and Kaltbrunn for the Lake Zurich Linth region. The investigation includes the development of a plan of stops and lines, a journey time calculation, the derivation of infrastructure measures and a cost estimate for infrastructure, rolling stock, operations and maintenance.

Determining the journey time options for local and long-distance transport, developing a St. Margrethen-Bregenz public transport plan including international connections on the German and Swiss side, concretisation at timetable level, tying in with regional and local bus lines, economic efficiency calculations. The focus is on the analysis of delay scenarios.

On the basis of updated demand forecasts, examination of whether the capacities of the feed lines to the NEAT are sufficient for the forecast train numbers for goods and passenger transport. In connection with the planned introduction of the 1/4-hour intervals of the Regio Basel suburban railway, operational and timetabling simulations of the Basel intersection in the Liestal – Pratteln – Basel SBB – Basel Bad Station were undertaken using the OpenTrack simulation tool, to identify bottlenecks.

Further development of timetabling plans for a cross-border FL.A.CH suburban railway and recommendation of a variant for implementation. Specialist advice to various official departments in Liechtenstein and Austria.