How to get on a train without it stopping?

Followers of this blog will know that we're always interested in human issues in design related to transport systems.  Clearly one of the issues with high speed rail is how you avoid stopping which wastes time and energy - but stopping is useful to the passengers to actually get on and off.

So we were amused and interested to see this solution from an engineer in China.  The idea being the train doesn't stop - you get on a sort of transit vehicle which hooks up to the train as it passes the station, you then move down into the train itself.  The transit vehicle stays attached and the people getting off at the next station move into as they approach the station; it disconnects and slowly comes to a halt at the station.

Whether the hassle of having to get down to one end of the train to get off will be worth the potential improvements in journey time is perhaps debatable.  An interesting solution though!

Managing overcrowding on trains

With the release today of the MP's report declaring that overcrowding on trains will only get worse attention will surely turn to how design and human behaviour can help.

On the BBC website today one expert declares that it is all about creating and maintaining flow.  This may well be true but it seems to us to deny many of the basic motivations that govern human behaviour in this situation - in an overcrowded train, with potentially a long journey ahead, you want a seat or at least a good place to stand. Mass transit is a de-personalised experience - as evidenced everyday by the impersonal behaviour that everyone exhibits on the Tube. So selfish acts become easier and everyone wants to be first never mind keeping the "flow".

So the real need seems to be to look at how design can address the challenge but accepting the way that people will behave.  Obviously the easy solution is to avoid the overcrowding in the first place but there seems to be limited appetite to spend enough to increase capacity as the MPs highlighted.  So can you change the design of the doors or the vestibule area? Can you change the way the passengers are managed at the station and on the platform? 

At CCD we have certainly worked on station and rolling stock projects that have attempted to address some of these issues.  Projects that have sought to understand the human behavior better, or where we have worked with the designers and engineers to improve the interior of the carriage.  All of these projects have been successful but it seems that the challenges are only increasing and perhaps now is the time for more innovative thinking.

How human factors can improve train interiors

As the railway industry becomes more focused on the passenger, the role of human factors in producing good design that delivers what the passenger wants is becoming more important.

In this article in the International Railway Journal this month, our very own Mike Stearn highlights the areas in which improvements can be made. 

This starts with understanding the different kinds of passengers travelling on the service, what they need and how they behave.  How do you develop better seat design taking into account that a significant behaviour on trains is sleeping? How do you improve the personal space and facilites to account for increasing use of laptops and other mobile devices? How do you make access to luggage storage easier? How do you better provide information to passengers on the performance of the service?

Read on and find out!