Writing a timetable

[zbang]

Since there are often discussions of the timetables, how are they created? I imagine that they're initially driven by demand across the system and stock availability but what else goes into the process? Eventually it has to get to allowed driving hours & breaks, driver availability(?), transit time between stations, station dwell, and I'm sure many other factors, then something calculates all of the clock times for everything.

What's the actual process? (I don't recall reading about it in any of my books.)

[spsmiler]

All I know is that its specialised and skilled job - and that one clever and cheeky bod working at 55 Broadway wrote a timetable that included an evening rush hour westbound District line train which skipped 'quite a few stations' so that he got home to Chiswick Park a little more quickly and comfortably than he would of, had all trains called at all stations!