K - For enroute projects this has to be the way to go. Free, direct routing has to be more efficient. But the best plans come unstuck and the challenge will be putting it back together after a disturbance. A couple spring to mind but from a drivers' viewpoint, the worst that happens to us is a missed slot combined with these wretched CDM systems. The moment you get on the wrong side of these things your day goes down the toilet. A more complicated system will give a greater opportunity for the computer to say "No!" If you are involved in the design, would it be possible for the final version to be transparent? At the moment we, like the local controllers, are virtually in the dark when it comes to delays. We are given a story from a faceless, totally unaccountable system that we are unable to reason with. It might not reduce the delay, but at least we have something to tell our passengers (i.e. the ones who actually pay!) as to why they are going to miss their connections, trains home or four hours of holiday.
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