Transportation, Logistics, and Finance

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Browsing Transportation, Logistics, and Finance by Subject "Benefit-cost analysis."

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    Budgeting the Adoption of Sensors on Connected Trains
    (2021) Bridgelall, Raj; Tolliver, Denver D.; Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
    Railroads can save millions of dollars by deploying multi-sensor track scanners on connected trains to detect track and roadbed problems that could cause accidents. However, uncertainties about performance and return-on-investment impeded the development and deployment of such sensor systems. This research develops a budget model that both manufacturers and railroads can use to decide on a suitable tradeoff between price affordability and achievable performance. A case study of five Class 1 railroads demonstrates that a payback within two years is achievable at $4,000 per device and an annual maintenance cost of one-quarter the system deployment cost.
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    Closed Form Models to Assess Railroad Technology Investments
    (2020) Bridgelall, Raj; Tolliver, Denver D.; Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute
    Class I railroads in North America collectively invested $11.2 billion to comply with a federal mandate to deploy positive train control. This amount dwarfs the potential savings from accidents the technology could prevent. Therefore, railroads must seek additional benefits. This research contributes simple closed-form models to inform strategies that can leverage the technology deployment by estimating the annual additional net benefits, internal rate of return, and benefit-cost ratio needed for a desired payback period.