Rail Planning
The consultancy undertakes
strategic rail planning projects especially those with a significant
demand-forecasting component. Our clients are drawn from track authorities,
service providers, leasing companies, government and other organisations.
We carry out a wide range of work in respect of railway planning activities
and our staff have a very high level of understanding of rail issues,
and how to improve railway profitability, including specific expertise
in the following areas:
- Strategic and management
planning
- Development opportunity
identification
- Policy analysis
- Demand assessments of
new stations
- Identification of infrastructure
deficiencies
- Detailed service planning
- Scheme appraisal
Other staff within PDC, who
have expertise in related fields such as market research, GIS systems
and stated preference techniques, supports such skills. All in all,
PDC can make a significant contribution to railway improvements, wherever
the thrust for development comes from.
Recent projects include:
- An assessment of the measures
required to upgrade the single-track Ely-King's Lynn line (in West
Norfolk) in order to cope with proposed service improvements
- Validation of Cross-Channel
rail demand forecasts for Eurotunnel
- Identification of options
for improving rail services in the Epsom area of Surrey
- Ridership estimates for
the proposed LRT system in Avon
Rail, Economics and Finance
The Consultancy has developed
a wide-ranging but in-depth capability in many aspects of rail economics,
operations and financial and commercial planning gained through a number
of prestigious projects. Clients have included central and local government,
train operators, infrastructure providers, regulatory authorities, financial
institutions as well as aid agencies for overseas projects. Our staff
have an excellent understanding of the rapidly changing policy context
within which many rail-based organizations now find themselves working.
This is creating new opportunities for service provision but also new
challenges in terms of analytical needs. Our specific expertise covers:
Preparation of business cases
Appraisal of scheme economic
and financial feasibility
Demand forecasting for new
services and stations
Development of network accounting
and cost structures
Support for high-level economic
strategy and policy
Assessment of new commercial
opportunities
A number of recent and on-going
projects reflect the wide-ranging capabilities that can be offered.
These include ridership estimates for LRT systems in Avon and Portsmouth,
demand forecasting for Eurotunnel, development of rail origin-destination
matrices, studies of line capacity upgrades for local authorities,
assessment of new park and ride facilities and a major study for GNER and Sea Containers Ltd. into the traffic and
revenue impacts of a number of new Parkway stations.
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