Passing bays in an underground mine

Some mining companies are investigating the use of road trains to increase productivity in underground mines. Road trains require dedicated passing bays in declines. The spacing of these passing bays can have a significant impact on haulage productivity. This technical note describes the use of simulation to find the optimal spacing. If the distance between passing bays is sufficiently small then descending trains can be interleaved with ascending trains, which increases productivity. If the spacing is too small, however, productivity can decrease as descending trains wait in passing bays for ascending trains. For a real mine the spacing should be less than the theoretical critical distance to cope with variations in loading and unloading durations. Refereed/Peer-reviewed