Thanks to close cooperation with railway operators, we continuously improve our products and applications to deliver greater efficiency. One of our priorities is adapting our applications so they can be used more effectively in passenger transport.
Currently, we supply the NavTrain system to three passenger operators — RegioJet, Arriva, and GW Train Regio. Many of the new features are based directly on their suggestions for improvements and feedback from everyday use.
Teaching NavTrain to Work with Delays
The most visible change is the ability to work with expected arrivals and departures according to the timetable and to calculate train delays, which are crucial in passenger transport.
We are testing a system that can work with the timetable for a given route and show the driver the exact time deviation from the planned arrival at a station directly on the screen. The feature is currently in a pilot phase and we are continuing to fine-tune it together with operators.
The current time accurate to the second is now also displayed on the main NavTrain screen, helping drivers better orient themselves with regard to arrival and departure times.
The display of the working timetable (TJŘ) has also been redesigned. Some elements important for freight transport were unnecessary for passenger operators, while other elements were missing. Based on feedback from operators about which features and display methods they prefer, we modified the main NavTrain screen so that it always provides drivers with the most relevant information for each type of transport.
Digital Orders Now Available in the Web Application
For operators who do not have access to the NavTrain application but still want to view digital orders (DO), we have launched a web alternative. Drivers can simply search for the current DO and review the operating conditions for the journey. They can also confirm and sign the acknowledgment directly in the application.
Alongside this, we have also prepared an application for dispatchers where they can view the current status of acknowledgments for DO documents. Dispatchers can clearly see all signed acknowledgments from the last 24 hours, including basic details such as the train number and who signed the document and when.
Evidence of Eligibility for Everyone
NavTrain is not the only application that has undergone changes. The Evidence of Eligibility (EVP) system has also been significantly updated—although in a somewhat less visible way. Most of the changes happened behind the scenes.
We originally developed the EVP system for ČD Cargo, and it therefore relied on their internal databases. To make the application accessible to other operators, we needed to disconnect it from those external systems.
We completely rebuilt the application’s backend and connected it directly to NavTrain. Thanks to this change, we are no longer dependent on third-party data and everything now runs within our internal systems. When a driver travels along a route using NavTrain, this information is sent to EVP, which automatically renews the driver’s eligibility record for that route.
As a result, the new EVP can now function universally for both freight and passenger railway operators.
Betrian Group
Since 2018, the Betrian Group has been focusing on the rail sector in addition to hardware and software development and process digitalization. It is developing the NavSuite ecosystem, which is designed to optimise the planning, monitoring and management of rail traffic. It simplifies complex logistics processes, from planning commodity shipments to managing locomotive maintenance, planning driver shifts and providing real-time navigation support.