Stakeholders in the Netherlands' rail cargo sector exhibit strategic behavior that causes irregularity and unpredictability in freight trains. This leads to the suboptimal use of scarce rail capacity. The authors present the results of a research project that used gaming to explore and validate alternative organizational methods for the management of rail cargo capacity with decision makers and subject matter experts from ProRail, the Netherlands' railway infrastructure manager. Various scenarios for the organization of rail cargo capacity management were played out, tested, and extensively debriefed in three project phases. The gaming sessions demonstrated that open information sharing among stakeholders does not depend on the introduction of price mechanisms and is, indeed, a more effective way of managing capacity. The authors conclude that it is vital to introduce gaming gradually and build up organizational acceptance for this method. However, once acceptance has been achieved, gaming can generate valuable insight into strategic behavior and the performance of sociotechnical infrastructures.
LINK
A rail-guided robotic system is currently being designed for the inspection of ballast water tanks in ships. This robotic system will manipulate sensors toward the interior walls of the tank. In this paper, the influence of rail compliance on the end-effector position error due to ship movement is investigated. An analytical model of the six degrees-of-freedom (DOF) rail stiffness is presented and implemented in a reduced-order analytical frequency response model. This model describes the transfer function between ship acceleration and end-effector position as a function of rail geometry and material properties. Moreover, the influence of the robot compliance is investigated, resulting in design parameters for the robot. The models and calculations are evaluated and compared with a multibody model and prove to be accurate. The analytic models indicate whether or not a proposed robotic system is feasible and if so, optimize rail dimensions, material and robot design. A use-case scenario has been developed which shows that the proposed design will be unlikely to meet the requirements of this robot system design; therefore an alternative design strategy is recommended.
DOCUMENT
The potential reduction of risk in LPG (Liquified Petroleum Gas) road transport due to the adoption of passive fire protectionswas investigated. Experimental data available for small scale vessels fully engulfed by a fire were extended to real scale road and rail tankers through a finite elements model. The results of mathematical simulations of real scale fire engulfment scenarios that may follow accidents involving LPG tankers proved the effectiveness of the thermal protections in preventing the “fired” BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapour Explosion) scenario. The presence of a thermal coating greatly increases the “time to failure”, providing a time lapse that in the European experience may be considered sufficient to allowthe start of effective mitigation actions by fire brigades. The results obtainedwere used to calculate the expected reduction of individual and societal risk due to LPG transportation in real case scenarios. The analysis confirmed that the introduction of passive fire protections turns out in a significant reduction of risk, up to an order of magnitude in the case of individual risk and of about 50% if the expectation value is considered. Thus, the adoption of passive fire protections, not compulsory in European regulations, may be an effective technical measure for risk reduction, and may contribute to achieve the control of “major accidents hazards” cited by the European legislation
MULTIFILE
The authors discuss and analyze the complex interplay between rail infrastructure development and land use development of railway station areas in the Netherlands. They argue that although this interrelation has been theorized and studied in the academic literature, the underlying complex and dynamic mechanisms, and the appropriate planning and management responses, are still insufficiently understood. This is particularly relevant for local, regional and national policymakers in the various subsystems, because a lack of network understanding and interconnectedness may produce suboptimal, unsustainable spatial and rail infrastructure planning. In order to better understand and manage the dynamic interrelations between rail infrastructure and urban development in the Delta Metropolis, the serious game SprintCity was developed. The game is played with the real stakeholders (administrators, planners, politicians, interest groups, experts and consultants, etc.). In this paper, the authors describe and analyze why and how the complexity of the real world system was modeled into a serious game.
DOCUMENT
The authors analyze the complex interplay between rail infrastructure development and railway station area development in the Netherlands through the method of gaming-simulation, or serious gaming. The serious game SprintCity was developed in order to better understand and manage the dynamic interrelations between rail infrastructure and urban development of the Delta Metropolis in the Netherlands. So far, the game has been played in nine independent game sessions, with a total of around 70 stakeholders as players. The authors describe the design of the game in some detail and present the preliminary insights and results. Data before, during and after the game sessions are gathered through in-game participant questionnaires, data logging, observations and transcripts of end-of-game (debriefing) discussions between participants and the facilitator. The main conclusion is that the current prototype version of the game is supported by the stakeholder-players, significantly enhances the development and use of the underlying infrastructure-space model and generates questions for further scientific and policy research.
DOCUMENT
Abstract: Climate change is related with weather extremes, which may cause damages to infrastructure used by freight transport services. Heavy rainfall may lead to flooding and damage to railway lines, roads and inland waterways. Extreme drought may lead to extremely low water levels, which prevent safe navigation by inland barges. Wet and dry periods may alternate, leaving little time to repair damages. In some Western and Middle-European countries, barges have a large share in freight transport. If a main waterway is out of service, then alternatives are called for. Volume- and price-wise, trucking is not a viable alternative. Could railways be that alternative? The paper was written after the unusually long dry summer period in Europe in 2022. It deals with the question: If the Rhine, a major European waterway becomes locally inaccessible, could railways (temporarily) play a larger role in freight transport? It is a continuation of our earlier research. It contains a case study, the data of which was fed into a simulation model. The model deals with technical details like service specification route length, energy consumption and emissions. The study points to interesting rail services to keep Europe’s freight on the move. Their realization may be complex especially in terms of logistics and infrastructure, but is there an alternative?
MULTIFILE
Greenhouses are in need of new monitoring tools, as they size grow bigger and bigger but still using old labour intensive methods ways of caring for the crop. HiPerGreen is set out to create a new tool, which can drive onto the pre-existing heating pipes to provide a birds eye perspective for image analysis purposes. However, clear images are necessary for consistent usable data. This presentation resumes the steps taken during the reporting: the optimisation of a rail based system towards clear images. This is done through analysis of resulting images, understanding vibrations and oscillations, and finally presents results based on prototyping. Moreover, a re-design of the electronics and hardware was also introduce to facilitate prototyping. The results are promising, laying within the requirements.
DOCUMENT
To reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transport sector, shifting to rail transport is crucial. This transition will increase the demand on existing rail infrastructure, necessitating large-scale monitoring to maintain its resilience. Point cloud data are an ideal candidate for this purpose, as they provide immediate, precise 3D geometric information independent of illumination conditions. This study investigates two object detection models, the PointPillar and the CenterPoint model, to automatically create a digital representation of the rail environment. Using a custom open dataset, these two models are evaluated to detect masts, tension rods, signals, and relay cabinets. A mean Average Precision (mAP@0.5) of 70.6% is achieved. A unique contribution of this study is an in-depth analysis of the locational error in terms of the x and y components of the detected positions. This analysis reveals that location accuracy is not yet sufficient for engineering applications. The analysis indicates that the largest contribution to this error originates from the random error. Additionally, this study demonstrates that transfer learning effectively reduces the labeling burden. For instance, when using 25% of the training data, the average Precision (AP) for the tension rod class improves from 9.5% without transfer learning to 70.8% with transfer learning.
MULTIFILE
The paper examines the potential of three rail corridors: Trans-Sib, Central and TRACECA for freight transport between Central Europe and China. The paper applies a qualitative research method including a review of current literature and interviews. The research examines the technical, operational and bureaucratic conditions of the corridors. The research finds that the unreliable transit time, higher cost and damage and theft of cargo are the most pressing barriers to towards offering an efficient and integrated logistics and supply chain service along the corridors. This is due to, amongst others, problematic, multiple border-crossings and the lack of visible cooperation among the countries. The technical and operational barriers include a change of gauge, differing power supply and signalling systems and non-automated and fragmented information systems. The research also finds that the Trans-Sib is the most attractive corridor currently running and shows promise with the active contribution from the Russian government and relevant direct stakeholders such as Russian Railway (RZD). The TRACECA route is the most problematic option due to, among others, numerous border-crossings, infrastructure and rolling stock constraints and other associated problems.
LINK
MULTIFILE
