Ensuring a Reasonable Passenger Capacity Utilization Rate of a Train for Its Sustainably Efficient Transport

Abstract

Based on simulations of the transports of a typically formed Chinese intercity passenger train hauled respectively bymajor types of the locomotives on a certain railway line in China, this research analyzes the changes of the tractionenergy cost intensity and passenger transport efficiency of the train with varying its passenger capacity utilization rateand target speed. It is found that if the passenger capacity utilization rate of such a train is higher than 60.00%, theeffect of its passenger capacity utilization rate and target speed on its traction energy cost intensity and passengertransport efficiency is relatively very small. In contrast, if the passenger capacity utilization rate of the train is reducedfrom 40.00%, the efficiencies of its traction energy cost and passenger transport both decrease obviously and suchdecreases are evidently affected by its target speed. Therefore, strictly preventing the passenger capacity utilizationrate of a conventional intercity passenger train from decreasing from 40.00% in particular and meanwhile striving tomake its passenger capacity utilization rate higher than 60.00% as new evaluation benchmarking are able toeffectively improve the railway passenger transport operation management in China.