Evaluation of the maintenance window scheme using fuzzy soft set theory

Abstract The maintenance window scheme (MWS) is one of the most important railway transportation organizational plans and plays an important role in ensuring railway operational safety. However, MWS setting is a very complicated process, and most countries currently do so with the help of a computer-aided decision system. In general, a decision system can generate multiple alternatives for MWS within an acceptable time. Therefore, how to choose the best option from the alternatives is a vital decision. This paper presents a novel framework for MWS evaluation based on the Chinese railway system. Specifically, the requirements of each department related to MWS setting are analysed, and we construct an evaluation indicator system for MWS based on the preferences of different departments. Then, we apply the fuzzy soft set theory to MWS evaluation, a method that not only effectively deals with evaluation of uncertain information, but also gives flexibility for experts to input their subjective judgment. Additionally, using the “AND” operation of soft set theory allows combing evaluation information from multiple evaluators to give comprehensive results. Finally, a case study illustrates the proposed framework, showing that the proposed evaluation indicator system and evaluation method are effective and practical