Computation of practical capacity in single-track railway lines based on computing the minimum buffer times

Defining the exact amount of capacity in main line railway lines is a key strategic criterion in selection of railway development alternatives. The method of computation of capacity in single-track railway lines is different from double or more track ones. The UIC 406 leaflet defined an invaluable method to compute the capacity on the basis of compressing the actual timetables. In this paper, some new methods are proposed to define the exact amount of practical capacity based on computing the minimum required buffer times during compression process in single-track railway lines. Finally, a bottleneck in Iran mainline railway network is analysed as the case study.