Oral history interview with Michael (Mick) Haynes conducted and recorded by Jonathan Aylen on 16 April 2018 at the National Railway Museum. Duration: 27 minutes 29 seconds. The interview focuses on Mick Haynes’s role in the development of TOPS (Total Operations Processing System) at British Rail. Worked on TOPS from 1969 including modernisation in early 1980’s including intro; railway career start, railway management trainee, Birmingham Division; joining BR computer training (IT training) course; [00:02:30] programming language learnt, COBOL, PLAN, IBM assembler, CC++, ICL and IBM machines, data networking, knowledge of technology and business; role in TOPS, Manager of Blandford House, responsible for Blandford move to Crewe; working on IT side, relationship with Bob Armitt, 222, based in Marylebone; [00:05:20] relationship between IBM and Southern Pacific, IBM most suitable for real time transactions, ACP airline control programme vs Southern Pacific card based programme; Ventek cards used for TOPS, TOPSTRANS IBM assembler macro language, upgrade to CICS (high level COBOL language based interface); evolution of TOPS, TOPS CICS, addition of passenger trains information on system, final version TOPS 2000; [00:09:15] Blandford House, relationship with IBM and Southern Pacific, BR teams trained by Southern Pacific, modification to system, introduction of STANOX without track and spot, yard visual diagram in TOPS 2000; [00:11:00] ACP operating system, customised access method for TOPS files for fast transaction, writing in assembler, documentation built in the code, introduction of CICS; strategy in place to make TOPS operational seconds after failing, TRUST process, special traps in TOPS to prevent looping errors; [00:15:00] no knowledge of links between TOPS and SAGE American air defence system; TOPSTRANS language; telecommunication, asynchronous message transmission, telex lines with cards, synchronisation only came with TOPS CICS, use of LATA (Line Address Terminal Address), cardless TOPS via emulation, [00:19:00] front end to TOPS, use of multiplexes, dedicated phone cables for TOPS, introduction of TDU’s in late 1970s-1980s, designing TOPS own network system, online with interactive send/response real time transactions; [00:20:20] in-house designing and programming of Xlox Z80 cards for communications; comparison and collaboration with airline system team for first passenger reservation system, IBM 3270 protocols; decision making process, any changes or development by IBM assessed to decide if used or emulated in TOPS; [00:23:00] internet, IP protocols from mid 1990s, no hacking attempts; [00:23:45] CTT (Consigned Through TOPS) in 1981 allowed customer to have own terminal and release wagon, contract bound, early e-commerce; aggregation contracts [00:27:29] [end of interview]

This interview was recorded by Dr Jonathan Aylen of Alliance Manchester Business School, as part of his joint research with Bob Gwynne (then Associate Curator at the National Railway Museum), to understand the history of computerisation on British Railways and their efforts to collect memories of people involved in the implementation of TOPS on British Railways.

TOPS was a computer system implemented by British Railways from August 1973 onwards to control its freight traffic. It provided information on all train movements and all rail vehicles in real time and underpins how the rail system works. It is still in operation today.

TOPS allowed British Rail to keep tabs on its rolling stock across the whole rail network. TOPS was developed in the USA through a collaboration between IBM and Southern Pacific. The British Railways version of TOPS was noteworthy for pioneering multiplexing for computer communication across a national network. The software used was TOPSTRANS, essentially a set of IBM Macros which would call forth the appropriate sub-routines and activate drives.

As with many automation systems, TOPS forced the introduction of new management processes and shaped the way the railway operated. For the first time, there was a systematic inventory of railway assets with a consistent numbering system. It was not just an automation system but a step towards modern management of railways in the UK.