Evaluation of the efficiency of freight cars in modern conditions

Introduction. Freight car fleet is a crucial production and economic asset for railway transport. Its effective utilisation is a major focus in both industry research and practical applications. Therefore, a relevant analysis of freight car utilisation is essential for developing strategies to improve it in modern environment. This, in turn, necessitates refining the methods used to evaluate the effectiveness of the freight car fleet. The purpose of the article is the analysis of existing approaches to assessing the use of freight cars and proposal development for its improvement.

Materials and methods. This paper examines the conventional approach to evaluating freight car utilisation and alternative approaches proposed in academic literature. The article emphasizes the need to enhance the methodological tools used for assessing freight car utilsation.

Results. A novel approach to assessing freight car utilisation is proposed, using the “temporal capacity of freight car mileage” indicator. Component and marginal analysis of this indicator is conducted, considering data from a long-term historical perspective.

Discussion and conclusion. Comparison of the dynamics of the temporal capacity of freight car mileage with other indicators of car fleet utilisation reveals that the new indicator effectively reflects the actual acceleration or deceleration of freight car turnover. Its application enables an accurate evaluation of the freight car fleet utilisation and the potential for improvement. This necessitates improvements in car flows organisation and implementation of innovative technologies for station and train operations. Simultaneously, a decrease in the temporal capacity of freight car mileage may serve as a cost indicator for implementing identified improvements and as a benchmark for evaluating the success of these strategies.

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