Rail Operating Centre strategy - here we go again

摘要

Like Hayley's comet, some technical concepts seem to have been coming around for ages. Mag-Lev, gas turbine trains, Zeppelins, flying cars, they come amidst huge excitement and then fade from the consciousness. So when, on 20 July, Network Rail unveiled its new operating strategy, based on controlling the entire network from just 14 Rail Operating Centres (ROC), I succumbed to a bit of 'ho-hum' deja vu. That said, this is the best thought out and most practical of the visions that have been floated in the last few decades.