Improving the experience for rail passengers and operators by providing improved crowding information

James Pritchard

Southampton University

James has a keen interest in transport and travel, and enjoys a broad range of related research activities. He has been involved in the rail industry since 2009, when he embarked on an Engineering Doctorate (EngD) focussed on rail travel and sustainability. After completing the EngD, he completed a Knowledge Transfer Project (KTP) with Arup, working mainly on assessing embedded carbon in railway infrastructure. More recently, as a result of the Rail Research UK Association (RRUKA) funding competition in the area of “Use of data to improve the customer experience”, he has been working with industry partners to investigate how improved information about crowding could bring benefits. This has led to an on-going partnership with a train operator with further research into passenger behaviour and on-train passenger counting systems.

Kirsten Revell

Southampton University

Dr. Kirsten Revell, is a Human Factors Engineering research fellow in the Transportation Research Group (TRG) in the Faculty of Engineering and the Environment at the University of Southampton. Kirsten is interested in applying human factors insights to design across domains, at a range of levels and from a variety of perspectives. She engages in both qualitative and quantitative research and has worked in Domestic, Military, Aviation, Automobile and Rail domains. Kirsten is currently focussed primarily on a project for Jaguar Land Rover TASCC: Human Interaction: Designing Autonomy in Vehicles (HI:DAVe) part funded by EPSRC and in collaboration with the University of Cambridge. In collaboration with colleagues in TRG and Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), Kirsten is also looking at how design can help provide better information to rail passengers to encourage more even passenger loading (TOC'15). Previous work includes working with the British Army for the Human Factors Integration Defence Technology Centre (HFI DTC) focused on the usability of digital mission planning and battle-space management systems and metaphorical designs for military systems. Kirsten worked on the Innovate UK Future Flight Deck project, collaborating with BAE systems, General Electric and Coventry University, to evaluate how technology could enable changes to the design of the flight deck and crewing configurations. For this work she was jointly awarded the Annual Aviation Safety Prize by the Honourable Company of Air Pilots and the Air Pilots Trust.

Abstract

Crowded trains can adversely affect the experience of rail passengers – crowding can lead to discomfort and stress, and a reduction in productivity. Existing research suggests that passengers can be willing to change their behaviour to avoid crowded trains, and that such behavioural change could be encouraged by providing sufficient information about crowding levels. Better crowding information could enhance the experience of rail passengers for a number of reasons, including allowing them to make more informed decisions, and potentially mitigating some of the crowding issues currently experienced. The provision of crowding information may also aid rail operators, who, by encouraging a better spread of passengers, could benefit from better rolling stock utilization and a reduction in dwell times at busy stations.

The aim of this research is to investigate the benefits of providing improved train crowding information and to understand how it should best be implemented, considering both information presentation and data collection technologies.

Stated preference surveys were undertaken on Gatwick Express trains in the UK, and it has been possible to investigate the impact of real-time crowding information and estimate the willingness of passengers to wait for a less crowded train. Gatwick Express services carry a variety of different passenger types, including regular commuters, other business travellers, and leisure travellers using the airport, and different passenger groups have been analysed separately. This paper summarises the results of this research, showing the potential benefits for some passenger groups. Providing crowding information to railway staff is also likely to yield benefits.

Despite the potential benefits, providing crowding information to passengers and staff is a challenge. This paper provides an overview of the ongoing work with a Train Operating Company (TOC) to develop a trial system, which can be used to further assess and quantify the possible impacts and benefits. It covers both technical aspects (including the utilisation of a number of data sources to predict the number of passengers on a train now and in the future) and the Human Factors methodologies which will be employed to ensure that the information presented to staff and passengers is reliable and effective.

Authors

James Pritchard (Southampton University)
Kirsten Revell (Southampton University)

Topic Area

Station design, passenger information systems, CCTV and crowd management

Session

PTI&P1 » PTI & Passengers (11:20 - Monday, 6th November, Illuminate)

Paper

RSSB_HF_Full_Paper_-_Final.pdf

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