Brussels, 16/07/2010 (Agence Europe) - European research in new technologies is coming to the service of rail companies, helping them manage disruption more easily. Thanks to an EU-funded research project, Europeans will benefit from a more reliable rail service where more of the trains run on time. The ARRIVAL project is based on complex algorithms, designed to plan timetables more efficiently and to be able to respond more effectively to disruption in real time, while not compromising safety. “This first class European research allows more passengers, more freight and goods on more trains to safely use the same infrastructure while increasing punctuality, passenger satisfaction, and operator profit,” said Digital Agenda Commissioner Neelie Kroes.
Rail companies have traditionally dealt with disruptions using very little computer assistance. With the new methods, it will be possible to optimise timetabling and to avoid any domino effects resulting from trains running late. ARRIVAL is based on the development of new algorithms that can be used to organise railway infrastructure management more efficiently: from train scheduling, platform allocation, staff distribution and freight loads to dealing with disruptions such as train rerouting or rescheduling as they happen in real time. The project has already been successfully implemented in the Netherlands, Germany and Switzerland, and successful trials have been held in Italy. Other railway operators across Europe are interested, too, in implementing this technology. From 2006 to 2009, researchers from 12 universities (in Greece, Spain, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands) and French railway company SNCF (Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français) worked on the ARRIVAL project. €2.6 million of the total cost of €3.2 million was financed under the Commission's overall research programme (Sixth Framework Programme 2001-2006). The scheme supports high-risk research in information technologies. (I.L./transl.rt)