Presentation to: INFORMS Railway Applications Group CAPACITY PLANNING FOR SHARED-USE CORRIDORS

Transcription

1 Presentation to: INFORMS Railway Applications Group CAPACITY PLANNING FOR SHARED-USE CORRIDORS Presented by:

2 Context for a Capacity Screening Tool Freight Railroads need to be able to respond to preliminary service inquiries in an effective and efficient manner They can reasonably ask for inquiring agencies to fund the costs associated with fulfilling requests for information A more rigorous methodology is also needed for preliminary environmental screening, to assess freight capacity requirements associated with different Level I alternatives. The data requirements of the tool must be minimal because the objective is to help users develop operating and engineering plans: Prospective operating and engineering plans are an output rather than an input of the tool, as detailed simulation based approaches require. 1

3 Example: Twin Cities to Duluth EIS Options A Preliminary Assessment was needed for nearly 20 different route and segment combinations 2

4 The Need for a Capacity Screening Tool Existing Models are Complex and Expensive to Use Example Berkley RTC or SYSTRA RAILSIM Typical cost for a capacity assessment $50-100K and up Data requirements and costs exceed what is normally available at early stages of project development. As a result, it is often the case that no formal capacity assessment is performed at all until projects reach advanced environmental planning stages. This often frustrates the freight railroads, since capacity costs can be seriously underestimated by passenger project advocates. 3

5 The Need for a Capacity Screening Tool A Screening-level Tool is Needed to provide more effective analysis earlier in the project development cycle Perform preliminary feasibility screening of proposed shareduse passenger and freight rail corridor projects. Weed-out infeasible routes and corridors early Accurately identify likely infrastructure needs and project costs with limited data, at low cost and at an early stage of project development Provide a methodology to enable freight railroads to respond effectively with a rigorous analysis, but at reasonable cost to preliminary passenger service inquiries that are coming from State agencies or other interested parties. 4

6 Ideal Day Screening Analysis Focuses directly on infrastructure need rather than train delay An analytical rather than simulation-based approach. Unlike other methods, the approach directly identifies the locations and quantity of infrastructure needed to resolve projected train conflicts. The methodology was developed for and was successfully applied in the Midwest Regional Rail analysis*. The analysis was accepted by participating State DOTs and railroads. * Methodology for Freight Capacity Analysis for the Midwest Regional Rail Initiative, TEMS Inc., August 2001; and Ideal Day Analysis, TEMS Inc., March

7 Ideal Day Screening Analysis Range of application The approach can develop a feasibility-level assessment in light to medium density shared use corridors, where base-line freight train delays are at a minimal level. The methodology may overestimate the infrastructure requirement on higher density lines but may be calibrated to give reasonable results over a wide range of traffic densities. The method develops a low-cost preliminary screening of passenger infrastructure needs, that can be further refined by subsequent simulation analysis. As a result, the approach augments rather than replaces the capabilities of traditional simulation models. 6

8 Capacity Mitigation Methodology Process to allow early-stage planning to benefit from the introduction of a rigorous analytical approach: Ideal Day analysis can be used to suggest the locations and quantities of needed infrastructure Provides preliminary capacity needs infrastructure costs. Follow up with a full simulation study, when time and budgets allow, and once sufficient detail on operating and engineering plans is available to meet the demanding needs of detailed capacity models. 7

9 Ideal Day Analysis starts by compiling a TRACKMAN Track Profile 8

10 Speed(mph) Then a LOCOMOTION Speed Profile Speed Profile - NYP to Washington - RMRA-150 Electric Loco is calculated for each train Milepost Maximum Allowable Speed New York Philadelphia Baltimore Washington Maximum Attainable Speed 9

11 MISS-IT Ideal-Day Analysis Based on Unresolved Time-Distance Diagram: Red Balls show conflict locations where more infrastructure is needed 10

12 Ideal Day Case Study Milwaukee to Green Bay 79-mph evaluation of a Medium Density freight corridor, recommended 45 miles or 33% double track solution Duplainville Route Op tion ProposedSidings 10 Trips 79 mph Green Bay Appleton 105 Oshkosh Duplainville 16.4 Not drawn to scale Not drawn to scale Milwaukee-Green Bay Proposed Sidings 10 Trips 79 mph Green Bay Milwaukee

13 Ideal Day Case Study Milwaukee to Green Bay 90/110-mph evaluation of a Medium Density freight corridor, recommended 90 miles or 66% double track solution Duplainville Route Option P roposed Sidings 14 Trips 110 mph Green Bay 135 Duplainville Route Option Proposed Double Track 14 Trips 110 mph Green Bay Appleton Appleton Oshkosh Oshkosh Duplainville 16.4 Duplainville Not drawn to scale Not drawn to scale Duplainville Route Option Proposed Sidings 10 Trips 79 mph Green Bay Milwaukee Not drawn to scale Milwaukee

14 Ideal Day Screening Conclusion Focuses on infrastructure need rather than train delay An analytical rather than simulation-based methodology. Directly identifies the location and quantity of infrastructure needed to resolve train conflicts. Ideal Day methodology was developed for, and was successfully applied in the Midwest Regional Rail and Ohio Hub studies Range of application The approach can develop a feasibility-level assessment in light to medium density shared use corridors, where base-line freight train delays are at a minimal level. The methodology is conservative in that it may overestimate the infrastructure requirement on higher density lines but maybe calibrated to give reasonable results over a wide range of traffic densities. The method is designed to develop a low-cost preliminary screening of passenger system proposals, that can be further refined by subsequent simulation analysis. Augments rather than replaces the capabilities of traditional simulation models. 13

15 Thank You Transportation Economics & Management Systems, Inc. July 14,