Train timetable design under passenger demand using skip-stop plans for a new railway transportation in express train service from Ban Phai to Nakhon Phanom

The transportation system is a key component of Thailand's infrastructure improvements. In this study, let’s concentrate on the new railway line from Ban Phai District, Khon Kaen Province, to the third Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge, Nakhon Phanom Province. This new double-track railway line project will connect the old railway lines from Bangkok that are upgrading single-track railways to double-track systems. After completing a feasibility study and technical suitability for this railway line, the State Railway of Thailand has commenced construction, with an expected completion date of 2027. However, the feasibility study and technical suitability for this railway line have not yet taken into account the number of passengers and the number of train services. The objective of this research is to investigate the optimal balance between passenger demand and the number of express train services to maximize service capacity using skip-stop strategies. The skip-stop plan offers trains the opportunity to bypass certain stations. By concentrating service on stations with high demand, this method aims to cut travel times and prevent overcrowding. The simulation results show that the all-stop pattern causes the number of passengers loaded onto the train to exceed the express train capacity, but the introduction of the stop-skipping strategy using integer linear programming (ILP) can effectively reduce the number of unserved passengers than stopping at every station when there is a passenger capacity constraint per train. This skip-stop strategy can be an alternative solution for planning other future new railways services when capacity constraints of passenger volume and number of trains are limited.