| Document
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Author Charlotte Kaul, Joanne Smyth & Christopher Patrick |
| Abstract In 2018, the Department for Transport (DfT) challenged the rail industry to remove all diesel-only trains from the network by 2040. Therefore, over the next 20+ years, the railway will need to undertake large scale electrification programmes in order to achieve this. An increase in amount of electrification on the GB rail network will in turn create an increased demand for monitoring and maintaining this infrastructure. For people to access trackside equipment in electrified areas, electrical isolations are required. The electrified rail network is managed by Electrical Control Operators (ECOs). They are responsible for the electrified network under their control, including granting isolations. It is therefore essential to understand the processes undertaken in Electrical Control Rooms (ECR) and predict the impact that increased electrification will have on ECOs. A workload assessment was undertaken to understand the current workload of ECOs in York ECR to create a baseline model that accurately reflects their planned workload relating to granting isolations. This model was then used to predict the impact of future changes following electrification of new areas. The key inputs to the baseline model were number of isolations, task occurrences, task durations, and task complexity. This model was then used to predict the impact of future electrification projects on ECO workload and inform decisions about future requirements for ECRs and ECOs. The predictive model had the key inputs of baseline number of isolations, baseline and additional single-track kilometres (STK) introduced, future increases to the complexity of the infrastructure. |
