Schedule
The schedule contains all journeys that a vehicle is supposed to make one after the other in order to enable scheduled operation. Vehicle schedules are drawn up by the transport company for all vehicles of a type and are used as the basis for deployment planning and timetable planning . For railways such as Deutsche Bahn AG , a schedule for long-distance passenger and freight traffic includes several days of operation. In regular service of public transport one-day rounds are typical. The carriageway is created after the timetable and the associated train paths have been determined in a first stepare booked. The schedule can then make it necessary to book additional train paths, for example for empty trips .
Circulation plans are drawn up for vehicles of the same type (same series of locomotives , coupled wagons etc.). The multi-day schedule is divided into plantation . The number of plantations is chosen equal to the number of vehicles used in circulation. At the end of a plantation, in the simplest case a vehicle goes over to the next day. However, special traffic day regulations (for example weekend shutdowns) can also lead to jumps between the plantations. If a vehicle breaks down, a replacement vehicle must be reeved at a suitable point.
Trip types
Utility trips
Utility journeys are journeys to transport passengers or payloads. The kilometers driven are multiplied by the number of passengers and are used as passenger kilometers for billing the operating performance. In transport associations , in which the association carries out the sales and thus the fare collection, according to the transport contract, the fare is divided according to the passenger-kilometers covered by the transport company ; in freight transport, ton-kilometers are included in the operating statistics .
Empty runs
A deployment trip is a trip from the parking facility to the first stop of the utility trip. An intermittent trip is a trip from the last stop of the utility trip to the parking facility. Both types of trips are driven without passengers and are therefore empty trips. The entry and exit journeys are not part of the cycle, depending on the operating mode. In public transport, transfer trips are often published in the timetable and are thus included in the performance statistics.
Sweeping types
Short turn
A short turn is a change in the direction of travel of a train at the last stop of a commercial journey. The train drives back on the same track to the first switch and then switches to the other return track. Because of the shorter sweeping drive, short sweeps can be carried out faster than long sweeps over the sweeping track.
Sufficient parking space must be available, especially when the cycle is frequent, which is why the long hairpin is preferable there.
The operating points at which the train units turn, i.e. change their direction of travel, in order to return the same route or switch to a different route or schedule are recorded in the schedule. The turnaround time must be sufficient to compensate for possible delays in the operational process, otherwise the subsequent operational use cannot be carried out as planned.
Long turn
A long hairpin bend is a trip from the last stop of the utility trip over a switch into a sweeping track. There, the drivers change to the rear control station and drive back to the return track via a switch.
Advantage of the long hairpin:
- The train does not return on the same track as with the short turn (and thus towards the next train).
Disadvantage of the long bend:
- The turn requires more turning time and also the resource sweeping track. Since the sweeping tracks are also used as sidings, resources are generally scarce.