Safety of high speed ground transportation systems. High speed passenger trains in freight railroad corridors: Operations and safety considerations. Final report, September 1993-April 1994

This report presents the results of a study into some operations and technical issues likely to be encountered when planning for high-speed rail passenger service on corridors that presently carry freight or commuter traffic. The study starts with a review of corridors designated under Section 1010 of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) of 1991, a potential future high-speed corridors. After a review of signal, train control and braking systems presently used in the United States and elsewhere, the study provides analyses of the safety and operations impacts of introducing high-speed rail service on the hypothetical corridor. The safety analysis established a safety performance target based on present intercity rail safety performance, and reviewed the need for and benefits from safety improvements for high speed operation. The operations analysis concentrated on the impacts on track capacity and train delays of introducing a high-speed rail service on three hypothetical existing corridors with different track layouts and signal systems.