A simulation framework for supporting design and real-time decisional phases in railway systems

Actors of railway systems are more and more required to achieve certain levels of system performances and acceptable standards of service quality offered to passengers. To reach this aim, effects on both supply and demand-side induced by different solutions, need to be assessed within design and real-time operation phases, especially when failures occur during service. To this purpose, in this paper an integrated framework is introduced to simulate railway operation considering also interactions with passengers demand. A practical application to a MRT line has been realized, analyzing impacts of two recovery strategies for different failure scenarios. Results underline the necessity of assessing both service availability and quality of service to identify the most effective intervention solution, and highlight the relevance of the proposed framework to support decisional processes.