Electric Railways, 1880-1990

Duffy, Michael C.

doi:10.1049/pbht031e

Cited by 22 publications

(20 citation statements)

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“…The opening of the London Underground Victoria Line in 1968 marked the first complete passenger-carrying line with automatically driven trains, although a driver was present to supervise operations and operate the train doors. This followed a number of in-service trials of automatic train operation during the early 1960s, on metro systems in cities such as London [2,3], New York [4,5], Paris [6], Moscow [7], Stockholm [8] and Barcelona [9]. Automatic train operation also appeared on single purpose main lines during this decade, for example, the trials of automatic train operation (albeit drivers were retained) on the high-speed Tōkaidō Shinkansen in Japan [10], and the construction of the completely driverless Carol Lake iron ore railway in northeast Canada [4].…”

Section: Driverless Train Operation In Metro Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential Benefits and Obstacles of Implementing Driverless Train Operation on the Tyne and Wear Metro: A Simulation Exercise

et al. 2016

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Metro systems around the world have many differences in their design and operation, one aspect of which is the level of automation. The most advanced technology available allows for unattended train operation with no staff on-board, which can bring a number of benefits. As a result, this is becoming increasingly common for new-build metro systems (such as the Dubai Metro), as well as for upgrades of traditional driver-led systems (such as Paris Métro Line 1). This paper uses the Tyne and Wear Metro as a case study to highlight the potential benefits and obstacles of implementing driverless trains on an existing metro system. This investigation has two parts: a review of the challenges of implementing increasing levels of automation for the existing Metro infrastructure and a simulation exercise to compare automatic train operation with manual driving on the core section of the Metro network. The results of the simulation exercise show that significant increases in the capacity of the Tyne and Wear Metro system are possible when automatic train operation is implemented in conjunction with resignalling. However, low adhesion conditions represent a significant risk to achieving this capacity increase reliably, and additional measures to mitigate low adhesion conditions would be required. The study also discusses the infrastructure upgrades required to convert an existing system to unattended train operation. The most significant obstacle for the Metro is that it mostly runs at ground level, with some sections shared with main line services. The costs associated with securing the tracks and ensuring compatibility with main line trains mean that the Metro is not a particularly promising application for driverless train operation at this time. Nonetheless, the issues discussed in the paper are very much relevant for other metro systems, and the methodology of this study is easily transferrable.

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Section: Driverless Train Operation In Metro Systemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential Benefits and Obstacles of Implementing Driverless Train Operation on the Tyne and Wear Metro: A Simulation Exercise

et al. 2016

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“…This gave rise to a surge of activity with numerous researchers producing every more useful machines. As Michael Duffy notes [3] "By the 1840s, powered locomotion had been widely demonstrated with models, boats and wheeled vehicles. "…”

Section: A Brief Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Between 1963 and 1964 Brush Traction, based in Loughborough, started trials using three-phase asynchronous traction motors [3]. But these proved to be unsatisfactory, largely due to complexity of the control electronics and the project was abandoned.…”

Section: A Brief Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

DC & AC traction motors

Nicholson

2010

IET Professional Development Course on Electric Traction Systems

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“…Railway historian Michael Duffy (2003), in contrasting British rail development to that of North America, points out that electric power in rural areas became commonplace in the United States and Canada earlier than in Britain. Even though interurbans had their own electric supply independent of the public grid, this development of electrical service in rural areas created a foundation of engineering expertise in long-distance electrical transmission, which in turn set the stage for the development of interurbans.…”

Section: The Brief Life Of the Interurban Railways Industrymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By the time Britain caught up to the United States and Canada in electrical engineering, motor vehicles had become common in all three countries. In the United States and Canada, interurbans were economically viable only during a brief window of technological development until motor vehicles became practical, whereas that window did not exist at all in Britain (Duffy 2003).…”

Section: The Brief Life Of the Interurban Railways Industrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Irrational optimism in a declining industry: Sir Adam Beck’s interurban railway proposal

Mentzer

2006

Management & Organizational History

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Sir Adam Beck, best known for his advocacy of publicly owned electric utilities, in 1920 sought to build a network of electric interurban railways in southern Ontario. Such ‘interurbans,’ often referred to as ‘radials’ in Ontario, were essentially long-distance trolleys and would have been entirely separate from conventional railways. Beck failed to recognize that the interurban industry was already in a state of decline by 1920, and the resulting controversy pit Beck against Ernest Drury, Premier of Ontario, who successfully blocked the plan. Beck's proposal illustrates the phenomenon of irrationally optimistic responses to the decline of an industry.

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Electric Railways, 1880-1990

Cited by 22 publications

References 0 publications

Potential Benefits and Obstacles of Implementing Driverless Train Operation on the Tyne and Wear Metro: A Simulation Exercise

Potential Benefits and Obstacles of Implementing Driverless Train Operation on the Tyne and Wear Metro: A Simulation Exercise

DC & AC traction motors

Irrational optimism in a declining industry: Sir Adam Beck’s interurban railway proposal

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