The Whole System: Rail - Key points on Systems Engineering and Rail
Rail transport is already a complex system, pivotal to integrating our transport network into a larger system engineering whole What is rail transport? Urban and inter-urban rail is a high-speed solution for the transport of people and goods. While roads are mainly focused on individual transport solutions, rail is mass transit with similarities to air and sea transportation; it is organised as a network, centred on major hubs. The rail network connects interchange points (for example, passenger stations or freight terminals) and other transport modes. Rail Systems Engineering (SE) is inherently a “system of systems.” Why does rail matter? Railways connect goods and people through mass transit operational models. In the year to March 2022, UK railways accommodated 990 million passenger…