The British Rail Total Operations Processing System And the Birth of Telematics

Urquhart, Neil

Abstract

Contemporary mobility is almost universally supported by telecommunications networks and computing facilities known collectively as telematics. This has allowed closer integration of freight logistics into supply chains, and supported the growth of the on-demand economy. From a passenger perspective it has allowed real-time journey tracking, planning and re-planning in response to disruption. We examine the design and implementation of the British Rail (BR) Total Operations Processing System and make the case that it pioneered the field of Telematics. When introduced in 1971 TOPS was the first computer system that created a digital model of a complex transportation network, updated in real-time, supporting operation and management activities. Although based on an earlier IBM system, BR expanded TOPS and implemented it into a scenario that was significantly more complex than previous usage in the USA. We argue that the fundamental principles that underpin contemporary telematics systems were established through TOPS.

Citation

Urquhart, N. (2024). The British Rail Total Operations Processing System And the Birth of Telematics. IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, 46(3), 61-73. https://doi.org/10.1109/mahc.2024.3393611

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 17, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Apr 25, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-09
• Deposit Date: Apr 23, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 25, 2024
• Print ISSN: 1058-6180
• Publisher: Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 46
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 61-73
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/mahc.2024.3393611
• Keywords: Rail Transportation, Telematics, Communication, Vehicle Routing, Logistics
• Public URL: http://researchrepository.napier.ac.uk/Output/3598385