Rake Link
The
overall high-level plan for rake movements is described in a rake link booklet
issued for official use only by a Zonal railway, which has details of the
planned rake links, composition, marshalling order, permissible loads and
accommodation in Mail / Express & Passenger trains handled by the Zone.
The
schedule of the train is drawn by the respective Zonal Railway so as to run to
the maximum before taken for the regular maintenance. This is published through
a booklet by COM and CPTM. The rake link is drawn up keeping in mind asset
utilization and maintenance schedules for the stock. The day-to-day operational
schedules are then drawn up with this as the basis and used by the operational
staff / marshalling yard staff. The rake link is also used by the reservation
staff to determine the sizes and distribution of reserved accommodation quotas.