Do you think that trains should have a conductor or no?
Exactly. I don't care if the train is completely automated, I still want a professional and dignified conductor on every train.
People used to say this about elevator operators too. Some jobs are better left to the dustbin of history as society marches on.
I disagree and think that elevator operators should make a comeback.
US freight rail operators have been trying to run with reduced staff for years and it just fucks things up. You need enough people to fix stuff in a timely manner if it breaks.
Maybe I'm being a luddite about it but I'd still prefer there to at least be a human who is able to step in if there's an emergency
The Vancouver skytrain system has had automated trains running for decades and is one of the longest fully automated and driverless systems in the world.
Now, this is a metro and not proper rail/train, but similar enough.
When you have that many people, eliminating one/a few jobs doesn't seem like it'd save much money/effort compared to the benefits of having staff present.
Now I'm no expert, but I have played Train Simulator and can therefore confidently state that they're impossible on any long route. You can maybe have an automated line within a local transit system, but for an automated train running at 250 km/h to properly interpret signalling would require digital infrastructure that just doesn't exist, I don't think.
but for an automated train running at 250 km/h to properly interpret signalling would require digital infrastructure that just doesn’t exist
You mean visually interpret signalling? If signaling is standardized a well programmed computer shouldn't have that hard of a time. And the "digital infrastructure" required otherwise could be as simple as slapping QR codes everywhere. Or you know, rail is already a well defined network, so it shouldn't be too hard to make a digital network on top of it. Whatever computer is controlling that signal could also just send it directly to the train's computer, which is what I've assumed they've been doing for a while now.
None of that is to say there shouldn't be a person there, but most of the time they shouldn't need to intervene.
I don't really believe visual processing at extreme speeds will be able to compare to human vision to the degree required anytime soon. Your other idea sounds good (I think that's basically what CBTC is), but the New York City subway, for example, has been upgrading to such a system for nearly three decades now, so I'm not optimistic about the possibility of a widespread application of that technology.
Plausible in metro systems in highly integrated areas, but the infrastructure cost would be monumental on long haul routes. Some automated safety systems integrated into the train itself (likely too resource prohibitive to network all the sensors and systems along the rails) can augment human drivers and make their job safer and easier though.
Trains should (and afaik already do) mostly drive themselves, but always with a conductor ready to make corrections or take over.
