The Passenger Demand Forecasting Handbook Summary

The PDF Handbook summarises over twenty years of research on rail demand forecasting, providing guidance on aspects such as the effects of service quality, fares and external factors on rail demand. It is recognised within the industry as the key source of evidence in this area, which is reflected by the board membership of the scheme.

The Handbook provides guidance on applying this understanding to the preparation of forecasts for:

• investment appraisal
• pricing decisions
• timetabling and operating decisions
• business planning and budgeting.

The Handbook is regularly updated, to ensure all research is both relevant and based on the latest available evidence. The latest edition, PDFH v5 was published in August 2009 following consultation with a wide range of industry experts and, in addition to revsions to the guidance to reflect recent reaserch findings, the new version was also designed to be more user-friendly enabling relevant information to be accessed easily.

The PDFH is provided to all Full and Associate members. This includes a new web-based version created as part of the 2009 update. Details on how to access the web-version can be obtained from the scheme manager who can also supply PDF versions of the Handbook.