Operating Statistics:

Railway Statistics: Essential for planning prioritizing and exceeding activities connected with an operation. The railway statistics are based on four factors

  1. Quantity
  2. Distance
  3. Duration
  4. service

In Railway environment these relate to Primary Units:

  • Quantity – Expressed as tonnes and number of passenger carried and earnings derived.
  • Distance – Expressed in kilometers.
  • Duration- Expressed in minutes, hours & days
  • Service performed – Expressed in terms of trains, vehicles, wagons Engines.
Fundamental Units:

The relationship between primary units, expressed in composite terms is called ‘Fundamental units’. The fundamental units express two primary ideas in their relationship to one another viz.

  • Tonne-km
  • Passenger-kilometres
  • Train-kilometres
  • Wagon-kilometres
  • Engine hours
  • Wagon days etc.
  • Derived Units:

Expresses the relationship that exists between two sets of primary or fundamental units and the results thus arrived is termed ‘Derived Units’. The process by which this relationship is ascertained is as illustrated in the following examples.

  • Passenger earning (Primary): Passenger carried (Primary = Earning per passenger
  • Passenger earning (Primary): Passenger kilometers (fundamental) = Earning per passenger kilometer.
  • Passenger kilometer (fundamental): Number of passengers (Primary) = Average distance traveled by a passenger also called lead of passenger traffic.
  • Wagon kilometers (fundamental): Wagon days (fundamental) = Wagon kilometers per wagon day.

These ‘Derived Units’ highlight special features of transportation output and are useful in evolving suitable management strategies

Classification of Railway Statistics:

The principal heads under which the railway statistics are generally grouped are indicated below:

Economic and financial statistics: Under this head are to be included detailed statistics relating to the advance statement of gross earnings and traffic handled i.e.the number of passenger booked and tonnage lifted and wagons loaded for current information and the statistics of revenue and expenditure as booked in monthly and yearly accounts.

Operating statistics:

Operating statistics are broadly be divided into

  1. Traffic
  2. Power
  3. Rolling Stock

The traffic statistics include statistics of wagons loaded, wagon mobility, wagon usage, train loads, train mobility, productive and unproductive services, wagon detention, marshaling yard, terminal goods station and punctuality

  1. The power statistics include engine usage, fuel, and energy consumption, and engine failure statistics etc.
  2. Rolling stock holding & availability, repairs& maintenance % age
Commercial Statistics:

Coaching and freight revenue and volumes and earnings by class of passengers, for different commodities, claims paid for compensation of goods and parcels lost or damaged Rolling stock and workshop repair.

statistics:

Under this head are grouped statistics dealing with POH of coaches, wagons, locomotives and other information relating to workshop activity.

Administrative statistics:

These statistics relating the staff matters, numbers, by categories and classes of staff.Other statistics number of stations by Class, halt stations Medical statistics relate to the sickness of staff etc Standard of interlocking, Engineering statistics give details of track and bridges requiring attention – ultrasonic tests were done or overdue, track renewals, distress bridges etc.

Compilation of Railway Statistics:

Compilation of statistics of Indian Railways falls broadly under two categories, namely the statistics required to be compiled by the railways for submission to the Railway Board in order to keep the Board generally informed about the different activities of the Indian Railways and further detailed Railway statistics which individual railway may undertake for their own respective domestic requirements.

The statistical compilation work on the Zonal Railways is in the charge of a Statistical Officer working in Finance dept. The format and the methods of compilation of the monthly Statistical statements and the Annual Statistics required to be submitted to the Board are detailed in the Manual Statistical Instructions, Volumes I and II respectively.

Operating Statistics:

Operating Statistics for the various Indian Railways are issued in the form of various pamphlets published periodically by the Railway Board. Detailed Statistics relating to each division and gauge are contained in various parts of the ‘Domestic’ statistics issued quarterly (Parts, I, II and IIB & C).

Some of the important statistics include.

Operating ratio:

The ratio of workings expense (excluding suspense but including appropriation to Depreciation Reserve Fund and Pension Fund) to Gross Earnings.(Expenditure incurred in connection with Administration, Operation, Maintenance, and repairs of line open for traffic)

  1. A – Passenger Train Performance.
Punctuality:

Punctuality is the main criterion for judging passenger train performance, some of the statistics compiled separately for ‘Mail and Express trains’, ‘Other Passenger Trains’, and ‘Mixed’ trains are:

                                    RT + NLT

Punctuality = ————————————–——– x 100

                         Total no. of Mail/Express trains

 

  • RT = Trains arriving Right Time
  • NLT = Trains not losing time
Vehicle Kilometres per Vehicles Day:

This figure indicates the vehicle days which are the product of an average number of coaching vehicles online /in use and the number of days in the period under reference. This figure indicates the extent to which coaching vehicles are kept ‘on the move’. The main factors affecting its value are:

  • The average speed of trains
  • The average length of train run (average load)
  • The idle periods provided for in rake links.

Since in the short run, train composition is not susceptible to change, it is only by increasing the speeds of trains and tightening up rake links that an improved performance can be achieved.This result is calculated by dividing the coaching vehicles kilometers by the vehicles days which is the product of an average number of coaching vehicles online and the number of days in the period under reference.

                                                       Coaching Vehicle Km

Vehicle km. Per Vehicle day = ———————————–

                                                         Vehicle day

Average Speeds:

This figure represents the average timetabled speeds of passenger trains. The higher this figure, the better the service to the passengers Shunting Kilometres per 100 Train Kilometres (Passenger including the proportion of Mixed) :

This figure indicates the amount of unproductive service that has to be performed per 100 train kilometers (Passenger including the proportion of mixed). Since the amount of shunting to be done on a passenger train depends upon various local factors, the figure will vary from Division to Division and from Railway to Railway, traffic conditions remaining constant, is indicative of wasteful shunting.

The figure is arrived at by multiplying by 100 the quotient of shunting kilometers divided by train kilometers (passenger including the proportion of mixed). It can be depicted by formula given below:-
                                Shunting Kms x 100

                          —————————-

                                      Train kms.

B – Wagon Usage

Average Starting Wagon Load :

This figure is compiled separately for coal and coke, heavy merchandise and light merchandise, thus affording an indication of the extent to which wagon space is utilized by stations from which traffic originates. It is extremely important that wagons be given as full a load as possible because this means economy, in wagon usage and hence engine power and less strain online and yard capacity. Even a slight improvement in the starting wagon load can mean a tremendous saving to the Railway.

The result is calculated by dividing the number of tonnes loaded by the number of wagons loaded (in terms of four wheelers), CR and TR vans as also wagons used for livestock and departmental purposes, however, are excluded.

Average Starting Wagon Load = Tonnes Loaded / No. of Wagons Loaded

Wagon Kilometres per Wagon Day:

This figure is a measure of wagon mobility and indicates the average number of kilometers moved by a wagon, on the average, per day, both loaded and empty journeys being included. Delays in marshaling yards, delays at stations when loading or unloading, delays in clearance from roadside stations, decrease in the average speed of goods trains, increase in the number of wagons awaiting repairs, and shorter loads of trains are some of the factors normally responsible for poor mobility.

This result is obtained by dividing wagon kilometers by wagon days which is the product of the daily average number of wagons online and a number of days in the period.

Wagon Km. Per Wagon day =Wagon Kms / Wagon Days

Net Tonne Kilometres per Wagon Day :

This unit is a measure of the revenue earning work done by the wagons and reflects both mobility and loading. A decrease in this figure may be due interalia to any of the causes which affect the figure of wagon kilometers per wagon day. The proportion of loaded to total wagon kilometer age, the average loaded wagon and the relative amount of heavy and light merchandise carried, are some of the other factors which may affect this figure.The numerator, in this case, is the net tonne kilometers (excluding departmental) and the denominator wagon days.

Net Tonne km. Per wagon day = Net Tonne km / Wagon Days

Wagon Turn Round:

This future expresses the ratio between the total number of serviceable wagons on a Railway and the number of wagons required daily for effective use on the railway for its outward, inward and transshipment traffic. Stated in a different way, wagon turn round represents the average period of time in which a particular wagon completes its average loaded trip and after which it again becomes available for loading.

Wagon Turn Round =No. of effective wagon holding /  Loaded Wagons + Loaded received wagons

Average Wagon Load during the Run :

This unit is a good index of wagon utilization as it refers to the average load of all loaded wagons carried. It suffers from the drawback that it does not directly reflect the performance of the division, gauge or railway to which it applies, as only a proportion of the loaded wagons carried is loaded locally and the balance consists of both received traffic and cross traffic.For obtaining this figure net tonne kilometers are divided by loaded wagon kilometers, (the figure relating to departmental trains are excluded).

Average Wagon Load during the run = Net Tonnes Kms / Loaded Wagon km.

Average Speed of Goods Trains :

This result is calculated separately for ‘through goods trains’ and all goods trains and is arrived at by dividing the total train kilometers by total train engine hours of the concerned service. Detentions of goods trains at roadside stations enter into the calculations and have therefore the effect of bringing down average speeds.

Average Speed of Goods Trains = Train km / Train Engine hours.

Some of the factors on which the average speed of goods trains depends are:
  • The proportion of the density of trains to the sectional capacity. The nearer a section is worked to its sectional capacity, the proper the speeds obtained.
  • Hauling power of the engines used, quality of coal and quality and adequacy of water supply, the standard of maintenance of engines and time taken by loco pilots for loco requirements.
  • Loads of trains.
  • CoThe condition rolling stock, particularly the brake power available.
  • Standards and maintenance of signaling and interlocking.
  • Facilities at watering stations, facilities at roadside stations to complete shunting in the minimum time and shorter block sections which will increase the sectional capacity.
  • Engineering restrictions – permanent and temporary gradients and curves.
Average Net Train Loads (in tonnes) :

This figure refers to the average freight load carried in tonnes, i.e., to that portion of the load which earns revenue for the railway.

Average Net Train Loads =Net Tonne km / Train km.

Average Gross Train Loads (in tonnes) :

This figure represents the average overall load of goods trains i.e. the freight load plus the weight of the rolling stock.

Average Gross Train Loads =Gross Tonne km / Train km.

The principal factors affecting this figure are:
  • The tractive capacity of engines on goods train services.
  • The gradients on various sections of the line.
  • The nature of goods carried.
Shunting Engine Kilometres per 100 Train Kilometres :

This figure indicates the amount of non-revenue earning work done per 100 train kilometers (Goods and proportion of mixed). Its value is affected mainly by a load of goods trains, and the amount of terminal work involved.

Shunting Engine km. per 100 Train km. = Shunting km. x 100 / Train km

However, for the same division or/railway, the pattern of traffic remaining the same, the rise in this figure is indicative of wasteful shunting.

Net Tonne Kilometres per Engine Hour :

The figure of net tonne kilometers per Engine hour is a very useful index of the efficiency of freight working on a division. Net tonne kilometers indicate the amount of revenue earning work done while engine hour measures the cost of if doing it.

Net Tonne Kilometers per Engine Hours =Net Tonne kms / Engine hours

A decrease in net tonne Kilometres per engine hour may be due to factors such as:
  • Shunting engine hours not using cut down in proportion to the decrease in traffic offering.
  • Increase in departmental, assistance required, assisting hot required and light engine running.
  • Decreasing in the average train and or the average speed of goods train.
  • The decrease in the average starting wagon load or in the wagon loads of wagons received from other divisions.
  • Increase in the proportion of unbalanced traffic.
  • The type of traffic carried heavy or light.
Average Detention per Wagon :

All wagons through loaded wagons.Detention suffered by stock in a yard depends, interalia, on the layout of the yard and on the number of trains per day that can be despatched in various directions. Target figures have been laid down for each yard for detentions to all wagons and through loaded wagons. Such targets take into consideration the condition of work and facilities available in the yard concerned. Detentions in excess of this figure indicate inefficient yard work. Lesser detentions mean lesser cost of handling wagons in yards.

Average Detention per Wagon =Total Detention Hours / No. of Wagons dispatched

Number of Wagons Dealt with per Shunting Engine Hour:

The number of wagons that a given yard can deal with per shunting hour depends, interalia, on its layout.Accordingly, a target figure has been prescribed for each yard to enable the efficiency of yard work to be gauged. As shunting involves cost, the higher this result, greater the efficiency of the yard.

No. of wagons dealt with per shunting engine hour =No. of Wagons dealt with / Shunting Engine hours

Locomotive Performance

Engine Kilometres per Day per Engine in Use :

This figure is compiled separately for passenger, mixed and goods train services as well as for all services refers to ‘engines in use’. This is affected by such factors as:

  • The average run of trains.
  • The average speed of trains.
  • The engine links
  • The location of the engine shed with respects to the stations which they serve.

Engine km. per day per engine in use = Engine km / Engine days in use

Engine Kilometres per Day per Engine on Line:

This figure is also compiled by services and for all services put together. The proportion that this figure bears to the corresponding figure of ‘engine kilometers per engine day per engine in use’ indicates the proportion of available engines ‘online’ that was put to effective use during the period in question.

Engine km. per day per engine online = Engine km / Engine days online

The quantity of Fuel Consumed per Engine Kilometre by Service:

This figure indicates the fuel consumption in relation to engine kilometers only and does not reflect then tonnes hauled.

The quantity of fuel consumed per engine km by service =Quantity of Fuel Consumed / Engine km.

The quantity of Fuel Consumed per 1000 Gross Tonne Kilometres by Services:

This figure indicates the fuel consumption in relation to the work done and is, therefore, a better index of fuel consumption than the quantity of fuel consumed per engine kilometer figure. The main factor that influences this result is the gross load of the train. It is derived from the formula given below:

The quantity of Fuel Consumed x 1000 Gross Tonne km.

Traction Energy consumption per engine km and per 1000 gross tonne kms is worked out exactly, in the same way, replacing 1000 liters of diesel by kwhs.