Dynamic passenger assignment during disruptions in railway systems

Passenger-oriented rescheduling problems receive increasing attention. However, the passenger assignment models used for evaluating the rescheduling solutions are usually simplified by many assumptions. To estimate passenger inconvenience more accurately, this paper establishes a dynamic passenger assignment model during disruptions, in which the time-dependent demand, disruption-induced service variations and vehicle capacities are all taken into account. Event-based simulation is adopted to implement the model of the dynamic loading and unloading procedures of passengers. Based on the model, individual travels can be tracked, thus making the estimation of individual passenger delay possible. By aggregating individual inconvenience, the performance of a given rescheduling solution/contingency plan can be evaluated. Furthermore, recommendations such as adding train units can also be proposed, as illustrated in the case study.