Modelling and evaluating travel information during disruptions: An illustrative example from Swedish railways

Accurate and timely travel information is an asset for enhancing passenger travel experience during normal traffic, and for mitigating the discomforts during disruptions. With longer and more frequent disruptions as well as increasing ridership, traffic delays can incur substantial costs for passengers and other transport stakeholders, e.g., operators and infrastructure managers. Such costs can, however, be reduced thanks to effective travel information strategies during traffic disruptions. In this paper, we introduce an evaluation model to assess the value of travel information under different scenarios. Focusing on real-time travel information to train passengers, accessibility benefits are quantified in monetary terms based on historical delay distributions, timing of travel information (pre/on-trip) and ridership. Using a case study from the Swedish railways, the model is showcased and applied to a commuter line in Stockholm. The experimental results indicate individual valuations that are higher than references and savings at the system level of at least 23% of the delay costs. Further testing of the model, e.g., on larger-scale scenarios, and including transfer trips, is a possible direction for future works.