The technical solution for energy saving on electrified railways is usually provided by optimizing driving strategy,regenerative braking and energy storage systems.For consuming traction energy more efficiently during a single-train journey,an effective method is trading-off reductions in energy by setting a reasonable running time.Coasting control is a viable means to balance the specific run-time and the energy consumption.However,identifying the necessary coast starting points under the constraints of current service conditions is not simple.The paper presents an application of simplex method to searching for the appropriate coast points for urban mass transit trains and an investigation of the feasibility and performance of this searching measures in locating coast points with the aid of a single train simulator,according to specified inter-station run times.