DEVELOPING A TRAM DRIVER ROUTE LEARNING TRAINING SIMULATOR FOR MANCHESTER'S METROLINK TRAMS

This paper explores the role of 'micro' simulation for Tram Driver Route Learning in complex environments and discusses the management of change in the way that route learning can be trained to improve training productivity and quality. It considers the human factors associated with differences between virtual and real environments and the benefits and limitations of the 'micro' simulation approach. The benefits realised included the reduction of training time by 90% with associated substantial reduction in costs while providing a training experience that is more robust and consistent compared with traditional methods.