The human factor in the context of digitalised railways

Abstract

The article addresses the issue of operational railway traffic management in the context of modern digitalised railways. It characterises the differences between local traffic control and remote traffic control, which represents the contemporary trend. The text outlines the role of the human factor in operational railway traffic management, highlighting the gradual shift away from the traditional role of the station dispatcher, limited to a single station. The role of traffic dispatchers is increasingly being taken over by line dispatchers, who manage traffic over entire sections of lines across multiple stations simultaneously. The information available to traffic management employees online, which enables them to make operational and high-quality decisions, is characterised. The authors also address potential shortcomings in access to information and propose possible solutions for further improving information availability in the decision-making process.