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''Connecting Communities: Expanding Access to the Rail Network'' is a 2009 report by the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC) identifying potential expansion of the National Rail passenger railway network in England, primarily through the construction or re-opening of railway lines for passenger services, and the construction or re-opening of up to 40 new passenger railway stations. The report was published on 15 June 2009, and identified 14 commercially viable schemes involving new passenger lines, requiring the definite re-opening or construction of at least 30 new stations. These schemes would be using a mixture of historically closed lines, recently closed or currently operating freight only lines, or sharing heritage railway tracks with permission from their owners. The report also identified seven commercially viable sites for new Park and Ride stations (a.k.a. Parkway stations) to be built on existing lines. The report also identified seven potential new passenger 'link lines' on the existing rail network, opening up new passenger routes but without new stations. The report covered relatively low cost short term localised schemes, with lead times from initiation to completion ranging from 2 years 9 months to 6 years, complementing larger schemes already in place for completion past 2014. For the schemes to reach completion, the proposals would need to be taken forward by the respective local and regional governments, Network Rail (the infrastructure owner) and the Department for Transport. The schemes would complement development to the national rail network already undertaken since 1995, comprising the completion of 27 new lines (totalling 199 track miles) and 68 stations, with 65 new station sites identified by Network Rail or government for possible construction. However the great majority of these new lines and stations are in Scotland, Wales and London. The report examine schemes in England only, due to fact rail development in Scotland and Wales was already being organised by Transport Scotland and the Welsh Assembly. ==Methodology== ATOC took a top down approach to the method of identifying possible sites for introducing new services and infrastructure, by first identifying areas and communities not well served by the current national network, and then comparing those with opportunities for development based on simple reinstatement or existing lines or the construction of relatively short new lines. This approach took into account the fact that many communities had grown in population since losing a previous service, and others had been entirely built without a rail connection. Using demographic and industry data, ATOC compared the usage levels of passenger rail in other well-served areas of the country, and determined a baseline population figure of 15,000 (based on the 2001 census), above which level, communities were considered potential candidates for commercially viable new schemes. These potential locations were then compared with a map of the lines and services that had been cut in the Beeching Axe of the 1960s, and beyond. This identified a candidate list of 75 possible communities, which were further reduced based on an analysis using passenger demand forecasting, local traffic congestion levels, local commuting patterns, the feasibility of any new rail route, the capital cost, and the proximity of existing rail access locations. Many options were eliminated due to the loss of important permanent way features such as bridges, although many of the remaining proposals include construction of new level crossings and in at least one case the construction of a new bridge. The 35 locations that remained after this analysis were then evaluated further against the use of possible new services by customers, taking into account for example factors such as local traffic congestion, to give a benefit-cost ratio (BCR) figure for each scheme, which determined whether these schemes would be included in the report as commercially viable in the opinion of ATOC. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Connecting Communities: Expanding Access to the Rail Network」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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