An optimization model to determine the absolute capacity of Railway networks

Railway’s limited infrastructure and continuous growth in passenger and freight demand worldwide creates a need for efficient utilization of railroad capacity. So, for this, it is important to know the actual traffic that can run over the railway lines. In this paper, an optimization model for estimating absolute capacity over defined infrastructural and operational conditions is developed. The inputs of the model are line attributes, proportional and directional distributions of train types and average velocity. A case study illustrates the fitness of the model. The model is suitable for the planning of new railway lines.