Analysis of delays and delay mitigation on a metropolitan rail network using event based simulation

For a number of years, the quality of metro service provided by the Tyne and Wear Metro has been impacted by delayed services and non-punctual running. This study aims to look to combat these issues by first developing an event based simulation using Simu8 software, in order to analyse the current system's performance and its response to delays. A number of potential delay mitigation tactics are introduced and evaluated to assess their potential worth in mitigating delays that may arise within the system. They are then analysed using the simulation model that has been developed, and compared to a system with no delay mitigation tactics input. The potential benefits and the feasibility of such tactics are then evaluated, alongside an appraisal of the scale of delay that can reasonably be mitigated through the proposed tactics alone. It is hoped that the results presented show high enough potential to be considered as a future development to the metro, which could improve both delay response and overall punctuality, in turn increasing customer satisfaction with the network.