Mr Barclay raised a number of issues on the capability of the new rolling stock to assess its passenger loading and in discussion with the Department's witnesses the debate also covered information available from ticketing systems.
I will outline first with the capabilities of the rolling stock with regard to passenger load determination. The requirements set out in the specification are:
- All carriages will be fitted with a load-weigh system that calculates the number of passengers present. This will have a minimum average accuracy of 10%, even allowing for the variation in the combined weight of the passenger and any luggage he or she is carrying. The passenger load is measured and stored immediately prior to the departure of the train from each station.
- 25% of the trains will be fitted with a state-of-the-art passenger scanning system at every doorway. This system has a minimum average accuracy of 5% and is spread equally across the eight-carriage and 12-carriage trains. It provides a body count of the number of individual passengers boarding and alighting at each station stop. The trains fitted with this more advanced system will be naturally cycled across all of the routes that the new carriages will operate over. This will ensure that accurate data is obtained for all routes within the Thameslink network.
- The contract also specifies the provision of analysis software that will provide a variety of output reports based on the raw data recorded on the Units. The reports will be available to the train operating company and DfT in support of passenger demand modelling and service development.
- Passenger count data and passenger load-weigh data from the carriages can be accessed and downloaded remotely at any time, thus ensuring that all available data is captured and made available for analysis on a continuous basis.
- In addition to providing data for subsequent analysis, the passenger loading data is used directly on the train to feed a graphic display on the passenger information screens. This will help passengers identify those areas of the train that are more lightly laden, encouraging them to move through the open wide gangways towards these carriages. It will also be possible to relay this loading information to station customer information systems to advise waiting passengers of the best part of the platform at which to stand.
I will now describe in more general terms how passenger count information is collected and used in the rail industry.
Estimates of rail usage come from a variety of sources including LENNON, the rail industry's ticketing database, and rail passenger counts for individual services. Rail forecasts will use a variety of inputs depending on the scheme in question, and the party carrying out the analysis; typically the DfT for bigger projects and Local Authorities for planning relating to rural services.