Research on the System Safety Management in Urban Railway

Nowadays, rail transport has become one of the most widely utilised forms of transport thanks to its high safety level, large capacity, and cost-effectiveness. With the railway network's continuous development, including urban rail transit, one of the major areas of increasing attention and demand is ensuring safety or risk management in operation long-term remains for the whole life cycle by scientific tools, management of railway operation (Martani 2017), specifically in developed and developing countries like Vietnam. The situation in Vietnam demonstrates that the national mainline railway network has been built and operated entirely in a single narrow gauge (1000mm) since the previous century, with very few updates of manual operating technology. This significantly highlights that up to now, the conventional technique for managing the safety operation in general, and collision in particular, of the current Vietnamese railway system, including its subsystems, is only accident statistics which is not a scientific-based tool as the others like risk identify and analyse methods, risk mitigation…, that are already available in many countries. Accident management of Vietnam Railways is limited and responsible for accident statistics analysis to avoid and minimise the harm caused by phenomena that occur only after an accident. Statistical analysis of train accident case studies in Vietnam railway demonstrates that, because hazards and failures that could result in serious system occurrences (accidents and incidents) have not been identified, recorded, and evaluated to conduct safety-driven risk analysis using a well-suited assessment methodology, risk prevention and control cannot be achieved. Not only is it hard to forecast and avoid events, but it may also raise the chance and amount of danger, as well as the severity of the later effects. As a result, Vietnam's railway system has a high number of accidents and failure rates. For example, Vietnam Rail-ways' mainline network accounted for approximately 200 railway accidents in 2018, a 3% increase over the previous year, including 163 collisions between trains and road vehicles/persons, resulting in more than 100 fatalities and more than 150 casualties; 16 accidents, including almost derailments, the signal passed at danger… without fatality or casual-ty, but significant damage to rolling stock and track infrastructure (VR 2021). Focusing and developing a new standardised framework for safety management and availability of railway operation in Vietnam is required in view of the rapid development of rail urban transport in the country in recent years (VmoT 2016; VmoT 2018). UMRT Line HN2A in southwest Hanoi is the country's first elevated light rail transit line, which was completed and officially put into revenue service in November 2021. This greatly highlights that up to the current date, the UMRT Line HN2A is the first and only railway line in Vietnam with operational safety assessment launched for the first time and long-term remains for the whole life cycle. The fact that the UMRT Hanoi has a large capacity, more complicated rolling stock and infrastructure equipment, as well as a modern communica-tion-based train control (CBTC) signalling system and automatic train driving without the need for operator intervention (Lindqvist 2006), are all advantages. Developing a compatible and integrated safety management system (SMS) for adaption to the safety operating requirements of this UMRT is an important major point of concern, and this should be proven. In actuality, the system acceptance and safety certification phase for Metro Line HN2A prolonged up to 2.5 years owing to the identification of difficulties with noncompliance to safety requirements resulting from inadequate SMS documents and risk assessment. These faults and hazards have developed during the manufacturing and execution of the project; it is impossible to go back in time to correct them, and it is also impossible to ignore the project without assuming responsibility for its management. At the time of completion, the HN2A metro line will have required an expenditure of up to $868 million, thus it is vital to create measures to prevent system failure and assure passenger safety. This dissertation has reviewed the methods to solve the aforementioned challenges and presented a solution blueprint to attain the European standard level of system safety in three-phase as in the following: • Phase 1: applicable for lines that are currently in operation, such as Metro Line HN2A. Focused on operational and maintenance procedures, as well as a training plan for railway personnel, in order to enhance human performance. Complete and update the risk assessment framework for Metro Line HN2A. The dissertation's findings are described in these applications. • Phase 2: applicable for lines that are currently in construction and manufacturing, such as Metro Line HN3, Line HN2, HCMC Line 1 and Line 2. Continue refining and enhancing engineering management methods introduced during Phase 1. On the basis of the risk assessment by manufacturers (Line HN3, HCMC Line 2 with European manufacturers) and the risk assessment framework described in Chapter 4, a risk management plan for each line will be developed. Building Accident database for risk assessment research and development. • Phase 3: applicable for lines that are currently in planning. Enhance safety requirements and life-cycle management. Building a proactive Safety Culture step by step for the railway industry. This material is implemented gradually throughout all three phases, beginning with the creation of the concept and concluding with an improvement in the attitude of railway personnel on the HN2A line. In addition to this overview, Chapters 4 through Chapter 9 of the dissertation include particular solutions for Risk assessment, Vehicle and Infrastructure Maintenance methods, Inci-dent Management procedures, and Safety Culture installation. This document focuses on constructing a system safety concept for railway personnel, providing stringent and scientific management practises to assure proper engineering conditions, to manage effectively the metro line system, and ensuring passenger safety in Hanoi's metro operatio

Evaluating the Impacts of Accelerated Incident Clearance Tools and Strategies by Harnessing the Power of Microscopic Traffic Simulation

Traffic incidents cause Americans delay, waste fuel, cause injuries, and create toxic emissions. Transportation professionals have implemented a variety of tools to manage these impacts and researchers have studied their effectiveness, illustrating a wide range between different tools and locations. To improve this state of knowledge, this dissertation sought to 1) identify prominent and effective incident management strategies, 2) model six selected incident management strategies within five highway corridors in South Carolina, and 3) apply benefit-cost analysis to evaluate the impact of various combinations of these strategies. To meet these objectives, the author evaluated published literature of the selected strategies, administered a nationwide survey of these strategies, conducted traffic simulation, and performed benefit-cost analysis. The literature review guided the author to fill gaps in knowledge regarding the effectiveness and expense of identified strategies. The nationwide survey identified effective incident management tools, the extent of their adoption, and their common problems. The author then applied PARAMICS traffic simulation software to evaluate the impact of six tools at five sites on metropolitan interstates throughout South Carolina. Finally, benefit-cost analysis was used to evaluate the benefits against costs at each study site. The survey provided many insights into both the effectiveness and collaboration within and among traffic incident management agencies and guided the author in selecting tools for evaluation. While the simulation study found that as the severity and duration of incident increases, so does the potential benefit of incident management tools, the frequency of incidents also produces significant impact on annual benefits. The benefit-cost analysis indicated that while all the incident management tools evaluated provided more benefits than costs, freeway service patrols and traffic cameras produced the highest return for incidents of varying severity. It was also found more advantageous to select one expensive but efficient incident management technology, rather than engage in the incremental deployment of various systems that might provide redundant benefits. Departments of transportation across the United States see the need to manage incidents more efficiently, consequently this dissertation developed data and analysis to compare benefits with costs to aid decision makers in selecting tools and strategies for future incident management endeavors

Ordering Networks: Motorways and the Work of Managing Disruption

This thesis contributes to a new understanding of the motorway network and its traffic movements as a problem of practical accomplishment. It is based on a detailed ethnomethodological study of incident management in the Highways Agency’s motorway control room, which observes the methods operators use to detect, diagnose and clear incidents to accomplish safe and reliable traffic. Its main concern is how millions of vehicles can depend on the motorway network to fulfil obligations for travel when it is constantly compromised by disruption from congestion, road accidents and vehicle breakdowns. It argues that transport geography and new mobilities research have overlooked questions of practical accomplishment; they tend to treat movement as an inevitable demand, producing fixed technical solutions to optimise it, or a self-evident phenomenon, made meaningful only through the intensely human experience of mobility. In response, the frame of practical accomplishment is developed to analyse the ways in which traffic is ongoingly organised through the situated and contingent practices that take place in the control room. The point is that traffic does not move by magic; it has to be planned for, produced and persistently worked at. This is coupled with an understanding of network topology that reconsiders the motorway network as always in process by virtue of the materially heterogeneous relations it keeps, drawing attention to the intensely collaborative nature of work between operators and technology that permits the management of disruption at-a-distance and in real time. This work is by no means straightforward – the actions of monitoring, detecting, diagnosing and classifying incidents and managing traffic are revealed to be complexly situated and prone to uncertainty, requiring constant ordering work to accomplish them. In conclusion, this thesis argues for the frame of practical accomplishment to be taken seriously, rendering the work of transport networks available for sustained analysis

Traffic incident management: A common operational picture to support situational awareness of sustainable mobility

Successful traffic incident management presupposes a multi-disciplinary approach. To meet appropriately the safety and mobility needs of all affected parties, traffic incidents call for a high level of collaboration and coordination of involved agencies. Effective traffic incident management activities rely in particular on flexible communications and information systems. Based on experiences from the military domain it is possible to develop strategic concepts that are related to the improvement of information sharing and collaboration. Such concepts can also be applied to enhanced traffic incident management information systems. The present paper aims to offer a review of the state of the art in this field and to illustrate the empirical usefulness and benefits of traffic incident management

Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) Opportunities for Oklahoma (FHWA-OK-01(02) 2154)

The U.S. Department of Transportation, through the Transportation Equity Act for the 21 st Century (TEA-21), and its predecessor, the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (!STEA), have encouraged research, deployment, and integration ofITS technologies that have led to the implementation offaster, smoother, and cost-effective strategies . Some states have taken advantage of these acts and successfully developed and implemented statewide strategic plans. This study looked at the potential for applying the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) in Oklahoma using advanced sensor, computer, electronics, and communications technologies and management strategies. The study aimed at identifying and summarizing ITS programs, activities, and opportunities at national, regional, state, and local levels of government; identifying existing resources and ITS related goals in Oklahoma; and providing a strategy, identifying resources, constraints, potential barriers, and recommendations for addressing potential barriers in Oklahoma. A survey was conducted in Oklahoma among potential stakeholders for the implementation ofITS. These stakeholders represented Federal/State transportation, public safety/emergency, cities/ municipalities, private/academia, and public nonemergency/ non-transportation entities. ITS technologies exist in Oklahoma that have been individually deployed, especially in the two biggest metropolitan areas: Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Oklahoma is one of the leaders in electronic toll payments through the PikePass. Most ITS technologies are used in emergency and traffic systems. Knowledge on the potential benefits of ITS is limited. A need exists to educate senior level managers , policymakers, decision makers, and the general public about the benefits ofITS. A statewide strategic plan is needed consisting of key stakeholders who could assist in developing the Oklahoma ITS Architecture and help in deploying and integrating ITS technologies . A Transportation Center to do research, analyze, and disseminate ITS information, as well as a management center are urgently needed. Regional cooperation among the bordering states would enhance commercial vehicle operations.Final Report August 1999-December 2000N

Transportation Operations Master Plan

This document outlines a long-range vision of transportation operations for the DVRPC region. It presents transportation operations goals, objectives, and operational strategies to achieve them. An operations vision establishes a plan of where ITS infrastructure, emergency service patrols, and incident management task forces, should be deployed in the region. A series of plans and programs are identified to accomplish the regional goals and vision. Lastly, a financial analysis was conducted to estimate the costs to construct, operate, and maintain these projects

DISPATCHING AND RELOCATION OF EMERGENCY VEHICLES ON FREEWAYS: THEORIES AND APPLICATIONS

Resource allocation decisions are made to serve the current emergency without knowing which future emergency will be occurring. Different ordered combinations of emergencies result in different performance outcomes. Even though future decisions can be anticipated with scenarios, previous models follow an assumption that events over a time interval are independent. This dissertation follows an assumption that events are interdependent, because speed reduction and rubbernecking due to an initial incident provoke secondary incidents. The misconception that secondary incidents are not common has resulted in overlooking a look-ahead concept. This dissertation is a pioneer in relaxing the structural assumptions of independency during the assignment of emergency vehicles. When an emergency is detected and a request arrives, an appropriate emergency vehicle is immediately dispatched. We provide tools for quantifying impacts based on fundamentals of incident occurrences through identification, prediction, and interpretation of secondary incidents. A proposed online dispatching model minimizes the cost of moving the next emergency unit, while making the response as close to optimal as possible. Using the look-ahead concept, the online model flexibly re-computes the solution, basing future decisions on present requests. We introduce various online dispatching strategies with visualization of the algorithms, and provide insights on their differences in behavior and solution quality. The experimental evidence indicates that the algorithm works well in practice. After having served a designated request, the available and/or remaining vehicles are relocated to a new base for the next emergency. System costs will be excessive if delay regarding dispatching decisions is ignored when relocating response units. This dissertation presents an integrated method with a principle of beginning with a location phase to manage initial incidents and progressing through a dispatching phase to manage the stochastic occurrence of next incidents. Previous studies used the frequency of independent incidents and ignored scenarios in which two incidents occurred within proximal regions and intervals. The proposed analytical model relaxes the structural assumptions of Poisson process (independent increments) and incorporates evolution of primary and secondary incident probabilities over time. The mathematical model overcomes several limiting assumptions of the previous models, such as no waiting-time, returning rule to original depot, and fixed depot. The temporal locations flexible with look-ahead are compared with current practice that locates units in depots based on Poisson theory. A linearization of the formulation is presented and an efficient heuristic algorithm is implemented to deal with a large-scale problem in real-time

RITThe Contributions of Traffic Management Centers in life Enhancement

This study focuses on investigating the contributions of traffic management centers to enhancing people’s driving experiences and impacting their level of satisfaction and happiness. Data was collected in the United Arab Emirates through two distinct surveys; the first aimed at drivers (number of respondents: 155), and the second aimed at traffic management center operators (number of respondents: 15). The drivers survey aimed to collect data about drivers’ pain points experienced while driving in the United Arab Emirates and showed that slow drivers on fast lanes and sudden lane changing are the biggest challenges reported. On the operators’ side, the data collected showed that operators reported observing these challenges from their side as well. Operators also notably reported the need for advanced technology to help better manage and respond to real time traffic situations remotely from traffic management centers. Both surveys conducted showed a need and potential for the contributions of traffic management centers in enhancing and upgrading the quality of life for citizens through the application of technological solutions and the development of supporting legislation. Supplementary data from similar surveys was also used to validate, expand the knowledge and provide a holistic view of the topic. The study indicated that traffic management centers can impact the happiness and satisfaction of citizens by enhancing their driving experience, given that they are designed and equipped in a way that suits the city and society trends and cultures. Recommendations for implementation of such design choices were given along five pillars considering administration (based on best practice and Benchmarking), technology (results of local and international TMC surveys), media and communication (international survey and the expansion of technology and social media), operations and legislation (Based on results of the driver’s survey, that shows some gaps in the legislations which can be enhanced)

Consolidation of the Lake County Fire & EMS Departments Feasibility Study

This is the report of the Consolidation of the Lake County Fire Departments Feasibility Study grant project, which was funded by the State of Ohio Local Government Innovations Fund (LGIF) Program. The project tests the feasibility of consolidation of the fourteen (14) municipal Fire Departments and the two (2) Fire Districts into a single (or up to three (3)) consolidated Fire Districts to improve service at a reduced cost