Author(s)

F. Makkinga

Abstract

F. Makkinga Infrastructure Division, Holland Railconsult, The Netherlands Abstract The number of trains is increasing rapidly to accommodate the transport capacity required. The Netherlands Railways manages an average of 6000 trains per day, which results in highly intensive usage of the infrastructure. The routing process has changed over the last decade, shifting from manual route setting on huge switchboards to automatic routing using computer systems. If all trains are running according to the published timetable, there is little or no intervention by the train traffic controller. When there are no disrupting factors, almost all routes can be set automatically by the computer systems. However, even relatively small disturbances can lead to large disruptions if not handled appropriately. The train traffic controller must therefore be able to handle all potential conflicts early enough to keep the route schedule up to date and free of conflicts. To perform this task effectively, the train traf

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