Andy,

Thank you for your comments particularly coming from a 'rail' perspective.

I fully appreciate that sighting distance isn't stopping distance on a mainline railway and that is why what I am suggesting does not replace the signalling system but instead provides a more reliable system of reading it. The fact that the industry has an acronym SPAD suggests that 'wrong side failures' of driver's isn't anywhere near the parts per million zone let alone parts per million million.

Language is important and  'driverless' is a better term than 'autonomous' , which perhaps fits the car situation better as it has to adapt to the environment that it finds itself in. Even then it isn't completely autonomous as it must have some sort of map built in as otherwise it will be like me trying to get through London and knowing that I had to pass through Islington. Unfortunately there were no signs saying 'here is Islington' so I must have passed through its boundaries several time before I swapped to using the setting Sun as a guide!

I think the driverless train would do even better than a human driver at spotting obstructions to other traffic. I can't stress enough that this train will know its route better than any driver, photographically to the metre! It won't be looking the other way, it won't be speaking to train crew, it won't be drowsy.

While I can conceive of having a single driverless train, (it uses existing infrastructure), there is obviously scope to add more features with an expanded fleet. A 'down' train can report precisely to an approaching 'up' train any cautions - cow on line at 10,539 metres from York datum zero etc. and without the distraction that happens with a human driver - 'rubber necking'.


I fully appreciate and applaud the levels of safety that the rail industry in the UK has achieved but I think there is a safety gap that can be closed, 'the last link'? While I titled this topic 'Driverless Trains', knowing full well that for many that would be a leap too far, what stops such a system being trialled/developed as an 'add on'? Initially it needn't have any control input at all - 'mother-in-law' system! I bet there are universities out there that would love to run a 'camera in the cab' system project to see how well it would work and with absolutely no safety consequences.

Andy,

Thank you for your comments particularly coming from a 'rail' perspective.

I fully appreciate that sighting distance isn't stopping distance on a mainline railway and that is why what I am suggesting does not replace the signalling system but instead provides a more reliable system of reading it. The fact that the industry has an acronym SPAD suggests that 'wrong side failures' of driver's isn't anywhere near the parts per million zone let alone parts per million million.

Language is important and  'driverless' is a better term than 'autonomous' , which perhaps fits the car situation better as it has to adapt to the environment that it finds itself in. Even then it isn't completely autonomous as it must have some sort of map built in as otherwise it will be like me trying to get through London and knowing that I had to pass through Islington. Unfortunately there were no signs saying 'here is Islington' so I must have passed through its boundaries several time before I swapped to using the setting Sun as a guide!

I think the driverless train would do even better than a human driver at spotting obstructions to other traffic. I can't stress enough that this train will know its route better than any driver, photographically to the metre! It won't be looking the other way, it won't be speaking to train crew, it won't be drowsy.

While I can conceive of having a single driverless train, (it uses existing infrastructure), there is obviously scope to add more features with an expanded fleet. A 'down' train can report precisely to an approaching 'up' train any cautions - cow on line at 10,539 metres from York datum zero etc. and without the distraction that happens with a human driver - 'rubber necking'.


I fully appreciate and applaud the levels of safety that the rail industry in the UK has achieved but I think there is a safety gap that can be closed, 'the last link'? While I titled this topic 'Driverless Trains', knowing full well that for many that would be a leap too far, what stops such a system being trialled/developed as an 'add on'? Initially it needn't have any control input at all - 'mother-in-law' system! I bet there are universities out there that would love to run a 'camera in the cab' system project to see how well it would work and with absolutely no safety consequences.