OPTIMIZATION OF CYCLIC SCHEDULE: CASE STUDY RAILWAYS IN THE NETHERLANDS

Abstract

Cyclic timetable means that the lines on which the train operates use fixed intervals, cyclic times. For example in the Netherlands, a cyclic timetable is used for a period of one hour, the so-called One-Hour Timetable. A one-hour timetable is a timetable for one hour, which is constructed so that a constant number of trains run in one hour. The advantage of the cyclical schedule is mostly reflected from the passenger's point of view, because the appropriate train starts at the same minute from the beginning of the hour, and so every hour during the day. For the operator, the main advantage is that he only needs to schedule the trains in one repeating cycle. The work schedule of the staff is generally not cyclical. The paper defines the goals of creating a cyclic timetable on railways, and then elaborates an example of a cyclic timetable on railways in the Netherlands. In the conclusion, the advantages of the cyclic timetable are highlighted (e.g. easy to remember the departure and arrival times of trains, easy and efficient handling of a large number of passenger transfers from train to train), as well as the disadvantages of this timetable (there is no large number of direct lines between cities, reduced flexibility of this timetable).