Performance Evaluation of Railway Infrastructure Managers: A Novel Hybrid Fuzzy MCDM Model

Aida Kalem, Snežana Tadić, Mladen Krstić (), Nermin Čabrić and Nedžad Branković
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Aida Kalem: Faculty of Traffic and Communications, University of Sarajevo, Zmaja od Bosne 8, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Snežana Tadić: Logistics Department, Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Vojvode Stepe 305, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Mladen Krstić: Logistics Department, Faculty of Transport and Traffic Engineering, University of Belgrade, Vojvode Stepe 305, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
Nermin Čabrić: Faculty of Traffic and Communications, University of Sarajevo, Zmaja od Bosne 8, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nedžad Branković: Faculty of Traffic and Communications, University of Sarajevo, Zmaja od Bosne 8, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mathematics, 2024, vol. 12, issue 10, 1-31

Abstract: Modern challenges such as the liberalization of the railway sector and growing demands for sustainability, high-quality services, and user satisfaction set new standards in railway operations. In this context, railway infrastructure managers (RIMs) play a crucial role in ensuring innovative approaches that will strengthen the position of railways in the market by enhancing efficiency and competitiveness. Evaluating their performance is essential for assessing the achieved objectives, and it is conducted through a wide range of key performance indicators (KPIs), which encompass various dimensions of operations. Monitoring and analyzing KPIs are crucial for improving service quality, achieving sustainability, and establishing a foundation for research and development of new strategies in the railway sector. This paper provides a detailed overview and evaluation of KPIs for RIMs. This paper creates a framework for RIM evaluation using various scientific methods, from identifying KPIs to applying complex analysis methods. A novel hybrid model, which integrates the fuzzy Delphi method for aggregating expert opinions on the KPIs’ importance, the extended fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method for determining the relative weights of these KPIs, and the ADAM method for ranking RIMs, has been developed in this paper. This approach enables a detailed analysis and comparison of RIMs and their performances, providing the basis for informed decision-making and the development of new strategies within the railway sector. The analysis results provide insight into the current state of railway infrastructure and encourage further efforts to improve the railway sector by identifying key areas for enhancement. The main contributions of the research include a detailed overview of KPIs for RIMs and the development of a hybrid multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) model. The hybrid model represents a significant step in RIM performance analysis, providing a basis for future research in this area. The model is universal and, as such, represents a valuable contribution to MCDM theory.

Keywords: key performance indicators; evaluation; railway infrastructure managers; MCDM model; fuzzy Delphi; extended fuzzy AHP; ADAM method (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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