Page 99 - Performance Leadership

88 • Part II Operational and Analytical Dimensions

At the political level (since many train companies are regulated by
their respective governments), a train is a physical entity (a set of car-
riages pulled by a locomotive) that takes passengers from departure to
destination station and stops at a number of intermediate stations on
the way. It does this frequently during a single day. So for every
1,000 passenger train journeys, 100 physical trains may be needed.
While 90 of these might be supplied by the national railway company,
the other 10 could be managed by an international operator.
Operations planners have their own unique view of the situation.
Even though they may well define “train” in a similar fashion as out-
lined above, they may require 120 physical trains to provide the
90 trains needed to meet journey requirements. This is because some
train movements are needed to transport an empty train to its next
departure station. Or, in addition, a train will need to go for mainte-
nance at certain times. Planners may not necessarily recognize all
movements—for instance, those within a maintenance facility. In these
cases, an official train driver is not always needed—a certified mainte-
nance technician will do just as well. Then there is the staff planning
process. The 120 trains required by operations planning can be broken
down and combined into driver shifts. A driver needs a number of trains
per shift to meet work requirement. From the point of view of person-
nel, 200 of these driver shifts may be needed—for instance, when two
drivers are required to operate each train. Within these shifts, a driver
may potentially have access to 400 possible trains for operation. Thus
the driver’s definition of a train is similar to, but not exactly the same
as, that of a passenger.
Operators monitor train movements to make sure the overall train
timetable is fulfilled. If there are problems, operators are responsible
for coordinating extra trains and staff. For instance, 130 trains may be
needed to meet the demand for 120 operational trains. Railway oper-
ators must closely collaborate with infrastructure companies. The infra-
structure planning department oversees all railway companies and tries
to optimize the use of the network (as opposed to the efficient running
of the published timetable).
Traffic control monitors all train movements from all railway com-
panies, but may also manage a few maintenance trains for scheduled
maintenance on some tracks. Where the railway company may see