Western Railway to integrate AI into train management system

Western Railwayrsquos WR train management system TMS will soon be integrated with artificial intelligence to ensure train operations are smoother and faster The new system which is in the tendering stage will involve colourcoding trains and alarms for delaysWR operates locals from Churchgate to Virar at peak headways of about three minutes Instead of relying only on a printed timetable those sitting behind screens at theWRrsquos control room monitors the movement of each train through the TMS which is linked to signalling and traction power supplySuburban services run safely and within minutes of schedule because of the decisions taken inside this room which most passengers will never see In it large display panels show which section is occupied which platform is free and which train is late mdash ona realtime basisWestern Railwayrsquos control room where the movement of trains is monitored in real time PicRajendra B AklekarldquoWe work all the time as trains need to run perpetually We make decisions and convey them to those on the ground Disruptions untoward incidents and other such things matter Our job is to keep the system running At any point 95 local trains are running on the suburban sectionrdquo said a senior official manning the control roomThe good old daysBefore the existing system key stations had to be called up in sequence to keep track of the movement of trains and once one cycle of calls to all stations was done another cycle would begin from the opposite directionWhat the control room does whenIncident A train is held up near stationAction Platform congestion is regulatedIncident A train skips a haltAction Pacing is restored between servicesIncident A fast local is delayedAction Overtaking rearrangedIncident A train is shortterminated at Andheri or Borivli railway stationAction The timetable is protected for the rest of the lineIncident Sudden delays occurAction Train operations are staggered to prevent bunching of servicesWhat the new system entailsgtgt It will be IPbased Hence link failure will be reducedgtgt It will be capable for showing different colours for various trainsgtgt Advanced video wall display for improved visibilitygtgt Alarm for delayed trains and failure of indicator board at controllerrsquos workstationgtgt An increased storage capacity of TMS servers Historic data can be stored for long periodsHow railway disruptions are handledWhen problems occur actions are taken in sequencegtgt Heavy rain Trains slowed before waterlogged stretchgtgt Trespassfatality Train controlled till body is clearedgtgt Overhead wire trip Power isolated only in affected sectiongtgt Stalled train in peak hour Following trains held and diverted to avoid networkwide delaysTeen Sawaal with Western Railway Divisional Railway Manager Pankaj SinghThere is talk of a threemonth shutdown of harbour line trains to GoregaonThe 5th6th line from Bandra to Borivali is done Now the idea is to move south There is a missing 5th6th line link between Mahim and Bandra To build this we need to demolish the ramp of the harbour line trains for which we will need to shut down harbour line trains beyond Bandra to AndheriGoregaon Planning is being done nothing is finalised Letrsquos wait for the final planWhat are new advances are being taken upWe are appealing to passengers to form queues and in a first have drawn up patterns at Nallasopara station We are also working on developing the first Carriage amp Wagon Control Centre at Nandurbar which will help train operations It will assess the condition of trains on the moveWhat other activities are taking placeMonsoon preparations have started and this year we have beefed up arrangements We have identified locations and will minimise disruptions