The Young Professionals latest technical visit was to Network Rail’s new Traffic Management facility at the Romford Rail Operating Centre to see the UK’s first deployment of Traffic Management.  Through the Digital Railway programme Network Rail, alongside industry partners, are creating a digital future for Britain’s railway. Their aim is to benefit passengers and support economic growth. As part of this programme of works a Traffic Management System is being developed and deployed. This system will help to reduce passenger delay at times when the service is in perturbation. Network Rail’s Traffic Management system interfaces with the signalling system, business systems and telephony systems to automatically schedule and route trains.


We met on the platform at Romford and were guided to the new facility – an impressive modern building about 5 minutes walk from the station.

 

We were given an introduction to Traffic Management, and the solution being deployed by Network Rail, by Project Manager Nick Higgins. The presentation was informative and lively, sparking technical, practical and commercial questions.




 

Moving on from the introduction we were given a demonstration of the training facility. The training system is a replica of what will be deployed, with almost all functionality included. Our guides showed us how the operator will interface with the system and the various controls they will have over the railway.

 

We were given the opportunity to play with the facility, changing scheduling of trains and gaining an appreciation for the effect on the railway. From this it was obvious how traffic management will improve the way the operator interacts with the railway.

 

The visit concluded with a tour of the facility, which contains the new Crossrail control centre and an amazing rooftop view of the London skyline!




 

Thanks again to Nick and his team at Network Rail for hosting us!

By David Lawes, Railway TPN YP Chair.