CONTROL CROWD SIZE ON THE PLATFORMS
1 Gabriel Sanchez, MIT lecturer and research associate with a specialization in public transportation, systems, data and operation
We’ve all been on rush-hour platforms trying to squeeze onto a newly arrived train as fellow commuters push for entry and block doors from closing. This causes massive delays.
According to Sanchez, platforms should be prevented from getting over-crowded in the first place. “In London, they meter the flow of passengers,” said Sanchez. “Once there is the critical threshold of people on the platform, access to the platform is shut off — by temporarily keeping passengers on the other side of the turnstile. You shut off the turnstile and make an announcement that it is temporarily closed.”
An attendant, either at the platform or at a central location, watches via closed-circuit camera and decides when to reopen the turnstiles, making the announcement to start moving again.
Sanchez said this approach not only makes platforms and subway cars more comfortable, it cuts down on train delays.
By not overcrowding the train, “you can save onefourth of the time that the train usually spends in the station,” Sanchez said. “It creates consistency between when the train leaves the platform and the next one arrives. It prevents trains from getting bunched up.”