This paper presents a simulation-based analysis of hybrid and plug-in hybrid propulsion system concepts for diesel-electric multiple unit regional railway vehicles. These alternative concepts primarily aim to remove emissions in terminal stops with longer stabling periods, with additional benefits reflected in the reduction of overall fuel consumption, produced emissions, and monetary costs. The alternative systems behavior is modeled using a backward-looking quasi-static simulation approach, with the implemented energy management strategy based on a finite state machine control. A comparative assessment of alternative propulsion systems is carried out in a case study of a selected regional railway line operated by Arriva, the largest regional railway undertaking in the Netherlands. The conversion of a standard diesel-electric multiple unit vehicle, currently operating on the network, demonstrated a potential GHG reduction of 9.43–56.92% and an energy cost reduction of 9.69–55.46%, depending on the type of service (express or stopping), energy storage technology selection (lithium-ion battery or double-layer capacitor), electricity production (green or grey electricity), and charging facilities configuration (charging in terminal stations with or without additional charging possibility during short intermediate stops) used. As part of a bigger project aiming to identify optimal transitional solutions towards emissions-free trains, the outcomes of this study will help in the future fleet planning.

The aim of this paper is efficiency assessment of railway companies from larger Europe during the most recent time period, taking into account different input-output configurations. For this aim, two-stage analysis is employed, where efficiency scores are obtained by DEA in the first stage, while in the second stage different statistical tests are conducted and Tobit analysis is used in order to evaluate influence of different environmental factors. It has been found that railways were oriented either on passenger or freight transportation, with only few companies demonstrating high performance in both modes. While companies from Western Europe showed higher performance than companies from Central and Eastern Europe regarding passenger and overall transportation, this is not the case concerning freight transportation. Except for few companies, there are no clear trends in performance during the period observed, in terms of constant efficiency level increase or decrease. Great impact of factors selection on results has been identified.

The aim of the paper is to make an analysis of the efficiency of selected transport units in the military logistics and military vehicles in carrying out the tasks of cargo transport using the method of stochastic frontier analysis (SFA) and the data envelopment analysis (DEA), and creating the basis for further investigation of the parameters that influence the efficiency of military transport units and military vehicles. The research was carried out in ten military transport units intended for the realization of tasks dealing with the logistic function of movement and transportation. The efficiency analysis was done for military vehicles used for carrying out cargo transportation tasks for the needs of supply and special needs of command, units and military institutions. The data was obtained from the software package used to monitor the exploitation of military motor vehicles in the period of one calendar year. The results show that the method selection has a major impact on the obtained technical efficiency assessments, and therefore on possible management decisions based on the performed efficiency analysis. .