CDR Gary Lazzaro LT Dustin Schultz LT Forest Mclaughlin OA 4202 Network Flows & Graphs, Fall 2013.

AMTRAK NETWORK DESIGN

CDR Gary Lazzaro

LT Dustin Schultz

LT Forest Mclaughlin

OA 4202 Network Flows & Graphs, Fall 2013

Have you started vacation travel here?

• Why don’t people choose Amtrak for vacations?

The “Backstory” Young people don’t “think” Amtrak for vacations

Slow travel vs. planeHigh cost vs. carInefficient routing

Improve Amtrak for vacationsTop destinations are Disney World / LandWill new customers pick Amtrak if network is better?

Big Questions in this project Can Amtrak compete vs. cars or vs. planes?

Where to design improvements in network?

Do improvement costs need to be paid back?

What are benefits to a passenger?How much time can be saved?What must a ticket price be?

The Amtrak “Math Model” Objective 1: Minimize travel distance

Objective 2: Minimize amortized ticket cost

Both objectives subject to:

Netflow(yij)

𝑥𝑖𝑗 ∈ሼ0,1ሽ ∀ (𝑖,𝑗) ∈𝐴 𝑥𝑖𝑗 ≤ 4𝑥

min𝑥 min𝑦 (𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑗 + 𝑛𝑒𝑤𝑐𝑜𝑠𝑡𝑖𝑗)𝑦𝑖𝑗𝑖,𝑗∈𝐸∪𝐴

Starting CitiesSEA – Seattle, WAOAK – Oakland, CALAX – Los Angeles, CAORD – Chicago, IL

DFW – Dallas, TXMCI –Kansas City, MOMSY – New Orleans, LAMCO – Orlando, FLJFK – New York, NY

Destination CitiesLAX – Los Angeles, CAMCO – Orlando, FL

LAX

MCO

OAK

SEA

ORD

MCI

DFW

MSY

JFK

New Tracks ModeledSt Louis, MO to Jacksonville, FL (Atlanta Line)Oklahoma City, OK to Kansas City, MO (OKKC Line)Albuquerque, NM to Dallas, TX (ABQ Line)New Orleans, LA to Jacksonville, FL (Sunset Limited)

OK

KC

STLATL

NO

JAXDFW

ABQ

Measures of Effectiveness

MOE 1: Travel TimeTrain Time Chicago to Orlando: 22 hrs 37 min (model)Car Time Chicago to Orlando: 17 hrs +hotel stay (web)

MOE 2: Ticket Price (Per Person)Train Cost Chicago to Orlando: $176.64 (model)Plane Cost Chicago to Orlando: $203.00 (web)

Operator’s Problem

Operator is the Amtrak board of directors Should Operator improve network?

If yes: Which improvement is chosen?If no: Why not?

Which objective to choose?Minimize DistanceMinimize Cost

What is break-even ticket price?

Travel Time v. Design Option

Original OKKC ATL Sunset ABQ0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Time To Disney World

SEA

OAK

LAX

ORD

JFK

DFW

MCI

MSY

Track Options

Tim

e o

f T

rip

(H

ou

rs)


SEA OAK LAX ORD JFK DFW MCI MSY0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Time To Disney World

Original

OKKC

ATL

Sunset

ABQ

Track Options

Tim

e o

f T

rip

(H

ou

rs)



10

20

30

40

50

60

Time To Disney Land

SEA

OAK

ORD

JFK

DFW

MCI

MSY

MCO

Track Options

Tim

e o

f T

rip

(H

ou

rs)


SEA OAK ORD JFK DFW MCI MSY MCO0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Time To Disney Land

Original

OKKC

ATL

Sunset

ABQ

Track Options

Tim

e o

f T

rip

(H

ou

rs)

Travel Cost v. Design Option


50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

Ticket Price To Disney World

SEA

OAK

LAX

ORD

JFK

DFW

MCI

MSY

Track Options

Sin

gle

Pa

ss

en

ge

r T

ick

et

Pri

ce

(D

oll

ars

)



50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

Ticket Price To Disney World

Original

OKKC

ATL

Sunset

ABQ

Track Options

Tic

ke

t P

ric

e (

Do

lla

rs)



50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Ticket Price To Disney Land

SEA

OAK

ORD

JFK

DFW

MCI

MSY

MCO

Track Options

Sin

gle

Pa

ss

en

ge

r T

ick

et

Pri

ce

(D

oll

ars

)



50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

Ticket Price To Disney Land

Original

OKKC

ATL

Sunset

ABQ

Track Options

Tic

ke

t P

ric

e (

Do

lla

rs)

Family Travel: Objective-Cost


200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

Family Trip Cost To Disney World

Plane

Car

Sunset

Origination City

2 A

du

lt,

2 C

hil

d T

rip

Co

st

(Do

lla

rs)



200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

Family Trip Cost To Disney World

Plane

Car

Train (Optimal)

Origination City

2 A

du

lt,

2 C

hil

d T

rip

Co

st

(Do

lla

rs)



200

400

600

800

1000

1200

Family Trip Cost To Disney Land

Plane

Car

Sunset

Origination City

2 A

du

lt,

2 C

hil

d T

rip

Co

st

(Do

lla

rs)



200

400

600

800

1000

1200

Family Trip Cost To Disney Land

Plane

Car

Train (Optimal)

Origination City

2 A

du

lt,

2 C

hil

d T

rip

Co

st

(Do

lla

rs)

Family Travel: Objective-Time


0.5

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

4.5

5

Family Trip Time To Disney World

Sunset

Car

Original

Origination City

Tri

p T

ime

(D

ay

s)

Model Analysis / Discussion

Two potentially competing objectives New track cost only assessed when used

No fee for trains not using new tracks Train can be competitive with planes and cars One network design option is clearly the best

Limitations of Analysis More accurate trains speeds throughout US

Did not model high speed rail Exact rail distances / cost per train-mile Model every rail station to include delay times Accurate modeling of passenger loads

Population / Demand model according to regionLong vs. short distance passengers on same train

Increased number of start / destination cities

Questions?

CDR Gary Lazzaro LT Dustin Schultz LT Forest Mclaughlin OA 4202 Network Flows & Graphs, Fall 2013.

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Transcript of CDR Gary Lazzaro LT Dustin Schultz LT Forest Mclaughlin OA 4202 Network Flows & Graphs, Fall 2013.