14.11.19
Maximising efficiency requires investment in data, but it’s rewards for rail could be extensive
Rail Technology Magazine’s Matt Roberts explains the significant role data can play within the future development of the rail industry.
Standing as a cornerstone of the UK transport network, the rail industry is forever striving to innovate and maximise efficiency in all aspects of its work.
Data is just one such way of achieving those visions. With a much greater, interconnected network of data available to the engineers and service providers responsible for the rail industry, there can be a widespread, concerted effort to put the needs of passengers first.
Services are able to be dynamically shifted to address the needs and priorities of the end user with a much greater ease than before. Patterns, preferences and potential problems can all be identified at ease and allows the rail industry to move closer towards being a proactive industry, rather than a reactionary one.
Collectively, a clearer image of the goings on around the UK’s railways will ensure that key decisions around investment and strategies around service improvements have the most thorough, widespread view of the social environment when planning out their projects.
However, best utilising this data doesn’t come easy. It requires a commitment from the organisations involved, and a shift in perspective in order to view data as a specific asset rather than simply a by-product.
Specific data strategies should be outlined and implemented in order to maximise the returns organisations see from their data use – particularly for larger organisations whose data sets can be wide-ranging and encompass huge amounts of information.
READ MORE: The data-driven railway
Best utilising data available to the rail industry requires investment, but it is also the gateway to future development and the next step for the UK rail network.
Rail Technology Magazine’s sister publication Public Sector Executive is hosting an exclusive roundtable discussion around the use of big data in London on December 5, 2019.
The findings of the closed roundtable discussion will be published as part of a thought leadership special included in the February/March 2020 issue of the Public Sector Executive print edition.
If you would be interested in participating in the roundtable discussion, fill out the contact form included below: