Modeling passenger positioning on platforms

Abstract

Passenger flow management is a major issue for Transilien SNCF Voyageurs, which has to synchronise millions of passengers with thousands of trains daily. However, on the platforms, passengers often tend to congregate in specific areas, creating congestion. These imbalances not only disrupt passenger comfort but also affect their safety and train punctuality. Passenger positioning strategies depend mainly on the configuration of the platforms at the departure and arrival stations. In this study, we rely on these elements to propose a model that can be generalized to other stations. Our approach is based on discrete choice models, which are particularly well-suited to model this type of decision-making problem. This also allows us to quantify the impact of each factor on positioning choices.