THE PRESENT

On the cusp of the Railway’s Digital Decade

The Government’s management and oversight of railways is undergoing a very public transition, as the principles outlined in the Williams review11 are being developed and turned into structure. The review mentions data multiple times and includes a very explicit data objective:

An ‘open by default’ approach to data will be introduced, with common frameworks and standards across the sector created and led by a new Rail Data Service within Great British Railways. The Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail, 2021 11

The Rail Sector Deal, the Government and Industry partnership instigated in 2018, is to deliver improvements in 3 areas:

The passenger experience.

The economy.

The railway industry supply chain.

The Rail Sector Deal12 is strong in its focus in Digital Technology, with digital signalling and traffic management systems stated as being the core components for resolving the capacity problems on the current network.

The Rail Sector Deal also led to the creation, and supplied match funding, for the Rail Data

Easy to use for all

Rail will deliver an excellent travel experience to regular and occasional passengers thanks to dependable real-time information, innovative payment methods, and improved solutions for accessibility.

Low emissions

Carbon and air emissions will be minimised by cheaper and less disruptive electrification, zero-carbon diesel replacement, greater efficiency and removing emissions at source.

Optimised train operations

Train services will be highly reliable and the capacity of the network improved by realtime management, better train planning and simulation, and shorter headways together with new solutions at nodes.

Reliable and easy to maintain

Reliability and availability will be maximised by design, remote and automatic inspection, and targeted interventions, while whole-life cost is reduced.

Data Driven

Data, recognised as a highly valuable asset, will have fit for purpose governance, access arrangements, systems and technical skills.

Data and Digital Technologies in Rail: Industry needs, opportunities, and priorities

March 2023

World-renowned expertise of the UKRRIN CEDS

The Centre focuses on all aspects of digital railway innovation, providing a system-wide approach to transforming research, development, and innovation. Technical transformations have a part to play in the delivery of a more cost-effective, customer and carbon-friendly railway that delivers more capacity safely. The development of the CEDS in these areas allows the railway industry to ‘get there sooner’, thus improving the industry’s bottom line and reputation, as well as supporting the UK’s export agenda.

Future Railway Operations and Control

• Simulator development

• Traffic management

• System optimisation

Simulation and testing for integration

Hardware and humans in-the-loop

Next generation(s) of control systems and railway digitisation

Data integration and cyber security

• Controlled access to national and international data

• Data modelling and architecture

Marketplace13 . The Rail Data Marketplace is envisaged as a platform for industry data to be shared within the railways and across transport modes, enabling innovation and new customer focussed products. The Williams review reinforces the focus on open data being available and the benefits that it will bring.

In parallel to the Rail Sector Deal, the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), working for the industry, and the Government agreed the Joint Rail Data Action Plan14 in 2018, which outlines the steps needed to improve the quality and openness of rail data.

The Rail Technical Strategy (RTS)15 , most recently updated in 2020 by a group comprising Network Rail, Industry and the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) can be considered the closest our industry has to a technology roadmap around data and digital priorities. It is maintained as a live website and identifies five Functional Priorities for the Railway to deliver for its customers both present and future. One of these priorities explicitly covers the topic: Data Driven and is described as core to the RTS. However, digital techniques heavily influence the

• Integration of operations and customer-facing systems

Data-driven railway

Security and analysis of cyber threats

Smart Monitoring and Autonomous Systems

Next generations of smart condition monitoring

Interconnected sensing systems

Innovations in sensors and sensing

Intelligent, robotic and autonomous systems

Innovative self-learning systems

Real-time scheduling systems

Machine learning

Introducing Innovation

Road-mapping of benefit realisation

Alignment of stakeholders for rapid technology adoption

• Identification of benefits and structuring stakeholder incentives

• System integration testing to speed up approval other 4 priorities, and can therefore be seen as core underpinning technologies.

Underpinning the development of the rail technical strategy is academic study – with expertise in a large part provided by UKRRIN, the UK Rail Research and Innovation Network16 . UKRRIN is formed of several centres of excellence, each of which comprises a number of universities and industrial partners with strengths in the relevant areas. The Centre of Excellence in Digital Systems (CEDS) in particular is heavily involved in rail’s digital transition, worldwide17

The RDG have established the Rail Data Council18 as a mechanism to avoid overlap and increase the pace of the above plans and objectives. The council has representation from a wide group of stakeholders across the Industry, and has 4 working groups under the headings: Marketplace, Governance, Value, and Innovation & Culture. The Rail Data Market Place falls under the oversight of the council.

Also supporting the above plans and objectives, the RSSB Data and Information System Interface Committee (DISIC)19 is the focus for governance,

20 management and exploitation of data, information and knowledge.

The Great British Railways Transition Team, who are the delivery function responsible for the implementation of the Williams Review, are developing a long-term strategy for Rail, previously known as the Whole Industry Strategic Plan (WISP).

In the Whole Industry Strategic Plan – Call for Evidence Summary Report, published in June 2022, data featured strongly as an answer to four of the six questions:

• strategic Objectives for the whole rail industry,

• Meeting customers’ needs,

• delivering financial sustainability, and

• contributing to long-term

Economic Growth

RIA responded to this call on behalf of our members, strongly citing digital technologies.

Government policy regarding railway infrastructure for England and Wales, published in the High Level Output Specification 2022 (HLOS)21 has specific requirements for the implementation of digital signalling: A transition to an ETCS enabled railway through the replacement at renewal of conventional signalling and, where possible, cab fitment work to be progressed in advance of future control period fundings for signalling. The strategy in Scotland is not so clear, following the publication of the Scottish HLOS in February 202322 , however digital signalling will still play a part in the future of Scottish Railways. Whilst significantly important to the digitalisation of

RIA’s Submission to the Transport Select Committee, Our Future Transport campaign, February 2023

In the beginning of 2023, Transport Select Committee ran an enquiry looking at which innovations deserve attention, and what the impact of new and disruptive trends and technologies might be across all modes of transport in the future. RIA’s submissions to the transport select committee in February 2023 included significant content related to Rail’s digital transition. The Transport Committee received a total of 227 proposals and RIA’s submission has been selected for an in-person interview in May 2023.

Realising the benefits of data and digital transformation for rail

It is hard to understate the opportunities for technology to transform the performance, cost and customer experience of the railway. These transformative technologies already exist – they are not speculative:

Digital signalling is already being installed on parts of the network and is already showing potential to unlock a safer railway with higher density passenger and freight usage and lower installation and maintenance costs.

New trains come equipped with sensors that can measure every aspect of performance, allowing technical problems to be anticipated and targeted, before they stop services running.

• Remote asset monitoring technology can detect small changes in infrastructure condition allowing much more targeted maintenance, reducing costs and improving performance.

• Real time train and passenger data, combined with journey apps make personalised information, and user feedback, a reality. A fully digitalised railway creates the possibility for customers – both freight and passengers – to plan and complete end to end journeys linking with other forms of public transport.

Combined with rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, these technologies present an even greater opportunity for whole network management to optimise performance. For example, by knowing the instantaneous state of the network as disruption occurs, a future AI assisted network could immediately derive the optimum next steps, modifying routes and stopping patterns with the changes then passed to the passenger, or freight customer, through smartphones or passenger information screens.

Realising the benefits requires vision, longterm planning and investment in skills and infrastructure. This has to start now. New skills are needed to install, operate and exploit the technologies to their full extent. The ability to work with data and AI will be fundamental to the future of rail.

New practices in data management, ensuring compatibility but protecting cyber security will be critical. Open access to data across functional boundaries will have to be negotiated, to allow innovation to breed further innovation.

When we get data wrong: the May 2018 Timetabling Fiasco

In May 2018, a new timetable was implemented across the UK Network. The timetable aimed to take full advantage of the completion of Thameslink, its digital signalling, and the resultant capacity and reliability increases.

Unfortunately, despite the best intentions, the outcome was not a good one: with mass delays, cancellations and – deservedly – some very bad press for our industry.

A three-month ORR inquiry followed23 which found that Network Rail, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR), Northern, the Department for Transport (DfT), and the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) all made mistakes, which contributed to the collapse of services, particularly on the GTR and Northern routes. These were largely the result of the focus upon data, rather than the human element: There were sufficient train drivers, but not enough trained on the right rolling stock and the right route. A targeted data analysis, perhaps underpinned by robust simulation with results interpreted by empowered leadership, may have been able to avert the disaster.

A key issue found by the inquiry was that there is an apparent gap in industry responsibility and accountability for managing systemic risks, and this would need to change as a matter of urgency.

By contrast, in Scotland, with an integrated leadership and direct accountability lines, the late delivery of a new train fleet prompted ScotRail to delay the introduction of its own new timetable, meaning when the fleet and timetable was eventually launched, it was correspondingly successful from day one. The fragmented English system prevented such pragmatic decisions.

ORR, September 201823

The ORR concluded that a body with full oversight, and with direct responsibility for such matters, may have acted sooner to prevent the fiasco. There are many RIA members close to the topic who feel that this situation has not significantly improved.

This event was one of several triggers for WilliamsShapps review11 .

Digital Signalling

Digital signalling is a fundamental and wholesale change to one of the core components of the railway. The East Coast Digital Programme (ECDP) will be a first-of-type UK retrofit on a busy, mixed-traffic mainline route24 . RIA welcomes the continued financial and political support for this vital upgrade to our infrastructure and rolling stock.

Whilst Digital signalling is one of the many technologies which we will see make radical transformations to railway operations and maintenance in the near term, we have purposefully excluded it from this paper, as:

• A cross-industry, supported and funded strategy is already developed for its rollout through the LTDP (Long Term Deployment Plan)25 the railway, signalling is not being directly referenced in this paper. For the purposes of this paper, a rolling programme of digital signalling upgrades to replace the two-thirds of mainline signalling which will lifeexpire in the next 15 years is assumed.

Whilst signalling systems have been offered a lifeline to upgrade and improve, there are many systems upon which the day-to-day operation of the railway will soon life expire, with no solid plan for replacement. Our first key ask touches upon the immediate leadership and strategy required to overcome this.

Similarly there are large areas of operations which rely on paper forms, signatures and post. One operations leader told us it is mandated practice to book annual leave via fax, with a return confirmation fax promised from the rostering team within 6 weeks. Clearly, there is room for some improvement. However, other areas – for example electrification project sign-offs – have embraced digital solutions from our membership with significant corresponding time and cost savings.

• In January 2022 RIA published a report on the ECDP, titled ‘Signalling Change’, looking at the new model of delivery using industry and commercial partnerships, with a greater role for train operators and the supply chain26

• It will be covered in our ‘Digital Decade’ campaign throughout the next few years.

ECDP is a great example of collaboration to deliver innovation in the digital space. We believe this can and should be replicated – and we have highlighted this in Key Ask 6.

Introduction to 5G and Mobile Telecommunications

Underpinning most digital techniques are communications. As this paper looks at the evolution of digital technologies, we should not forget the reliance upon communication, a technology area which is also seeing rapid change through ubiquitous connectivity and the rollout of 4G and 5G networks.

RIA recently produced a handy technical guide27 to mobile communications to support members and the wider industry with the basics – providing a nontechnical introduction to those scoping, planning, or executing projects. It is available for free to both members and nonmembers by following the QR code.