Evaluating and Ranking Simulation Tools for Railway Fire Safety with the Analytic Hierarchy Process

Abstract

     Ensuring fire safety in railway systems requires reliable simulation tools capable of reproducing complex physical and behavioral phenomena. Traditional large-scale evacuation drills are costly and difficult to replicate, which makes numerical modeling an indispensable alternative. A wide range of software packages exist for simulating fire dynamics and passenger behavior, each offering different levels of fidelity, accessibility, cost, and validation robustness. Selecting the most suitable tool for railway fire safety applications is therefore a critical decision. This study introduces a structured decision-making framework based on the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) to evaluate and rank simulation tools according to multiple criteria. The proposed methodology provides a reproducible approach for comparing alternatives and identifying the most appropriate software for railway fire safety engineering. Results highlight the advantages and limitations of the platform PyroSim/FDS in comparison with competing software, demonstrating that AHP is an effective method for guiding tool selection.