5 ms·

Oh yeah? https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/17/611860169/japanese-rail-operator-says-sorry-for-inexcusable-departure-25-seconds-off-sched https://w

Oh yeah? https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/17/611860169/japanese-rail-operator-says-sorry-for-inexcusable-departure-25-seconds-off-sched https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/05/17/611860169...

Aeolun 2y ago
To be fair, it’s hard to see why a properly planned train journey would have any delays at all.
- labster 2y ago
  Maybe a huge snowstorm happens blocking the train overnight, then someone is murdered on board, and a detective has to figure out who the perpetrator is before the next station?
  - nobody9999 2y ago
    >Maybe a huge snowstorm happens blocking the train overnight, then someone is murdered on board, and a detective has to figure out who the perpetrator is before the next station? That sounds like a great idea for a mystery novel. Perhaps one that includes the world's greatest detective. It might even get adapted several times for movies, both on the big screen and made for TV. I'm going to write it all down and make a mint!
    - labster 2y ago
      Now that’s using your little gray cells!
- devnullbrain 2y ago
  The optimal amount of train delay is non-zero. You need high redundancy to avoid many causes - and their knock on effects - and redundancy is antithetical to efficiency.
  - Aeolun 2y ago
    That’s only true if your goal is to optimize for profit instead of passenger satisfaction.
    - devnullbrain 2y ago
      Passengers have to pay.
      - RandomBacon 2y ago
        have to or choose to?
        devnullbrain 2y ago
        Yes, you're not a legitimate passenger if you haven't paid the fare. It's immaterial though. They could instead face increased cost in taxes, decreased investment elsewhere, or good-old eminent domain for infrastructure expansion. The downstream effects of an infinite number of backup lines to guarantee service following an infinite number of track trespassers are not good for passenger satisfaction.
        RandomBacon 2y ago
        Sorry, I misunderstood something earlier.
      - Aeolun 2y ago
        And trains have to reliably get people to their destination on time. Regardless, my point is that the optimal amount of delay for profit and passenger satisfaction is not the same. Ever since I’ve seen Japan’s trains drive perfectly as long as it’s not raining, on segments as short as 2 minutes apart, its become abundantly clear to me that delay is not an inherent property of any rail system.
  - seabass-labrax 2y ago
    You're missing an axiom there - that efficiency is a superior goal to punctuality, or to something else entirely. Considering the amount of rolling stock just sitting around unused in sidings at depots, one can presume that many railway operators don't rank efficient allocation of resources quite as highly as you do!

Aeolun 2y ago

To be fair, it’s hard to see why a properly planned train journey would have any delays at all.

labster 2y ago
Maybe a huge snowstorm happens blocking the train overnight, then someone is murdered on board, and a detective has to figure out who the perpetrator is before the next station?
- nobody9999 2y ago
  >Maybe a huge snowstorm happens blocking the train overnight, then someone is murdered on board, and a detective has to figure out who the perpetrator is before the next station? That sounds like a great idea for a mystery novel. Perhaps one that includes the world's greatest detective. It might even get adapted several times for movies, both on the big screen and made for TV. I'm going to write it all down and make a mint!
  - labster 2y ago
    Now that’s using your little gray cells!
devnullbrain 2y ago
The optimal amount of train delay is non-zero. You need high redundancy to avoid many causes - and their knock on effects - and redundancy is antithetical to efficiency.
- Aeolun 2y ago
  That’s only true if your goal is to optimize for profit instead of passenger satisfaction.
  - devnullbrain 2y ago
    Passengers have to pay.
    - RandomBacon 2y ago
      have to or choose to?
      - devnullbrain 2y ago
        Yes, you're not a legitimate passenger if you haven't paid the fare. It's immaterial though. They could instead face increased cost in taxes, decreased investment elsewhere, or good-old eminent domain for infrastructure expansion. The downstream effects of an infinite number of backup lines to guarantee service following an infinite number of track trespassers are not good for passenger satisfaction.
        RandomBacon 2y ago
        Sorry, I misunderstood something earlier.
    - Aeolun 2y ago
      And trains have to reliably get people to their destination on time. Regardless, my point is that the optimal amount of delay for profit and passenger satisfaction is not the same. Ever since I’ve seen Japan’s trains drive perfectly as long as it’s not raining, on segments as short as 2 minutes apart, its become abundantly clear to me that delay is not an inherent property of any rail system.
- seabass-labrax 2y ago
  You're missing an axiom there - that efficiency is a superior goal to punctuality, or to something else entirely. Considering the amount of rolling stock just sitting around unused in sidings at depots, one can presume that many railway operators don't rank efficient allocation of resources quite as highly as you do!