Switches present a single point of failure to the rail infrastructure, in an era when most others have already been eliminated. In the UK, this means switch failures present a disproportionally high impact from service affecting failures.

The effect is compounded as switches are almost always sited at key locations, with a failure affecting more than just the traffic on immediate approach. Failures require emergency intervention by the maintenance organisation to restore operation, which potentially means rushing to put boots on ballast at rush hour.

Repoint offers multi-channel redundancy of actuation, locking and detection.

Should a channel become faulty, it can be isolated, and the maintenance organisation informed. The switch will continue to operate, and trains can continue to run, until such a time as replacement of faulty components becomes convenient. The result is a significant reduction in service delays.

Modelling for the British mainline network indicates Repoint would have prevented around 90% of points failures (2010-2013).