Alternative to sleepers and ballast?

[Tiny Tim]

Modern railway track consists of steel rail attached to concrete sleepers on a bed of stone ballast. The materials have changed, but the technique is remarkably similar to that of the earliest Victorian railways. Have alternative methods been attempted? Apart from Brunel's longitudinally sleepered broad gauge I'm not aware of any other attempts to lay track differently.

 

[ainsworth74]

Ballastless track is available as an alternative to traditional track laying methods.

 

[tsr]

Obviously, tramways often use one of the methods that the builders of the earliest horse-drawn railway tracks used, which is to cut, mould or strategically build the surface of a roadway in such a way that wheels at a specific gauge will run in the grooves or channels.

 

[tractakid]

Well, from Euston if you don't fancy Scotrail Virgin provide some non-sleeper services to Scotland...

I'm sorry.

I'll leave now.

 

[BW]

There are plenty of examples of rails being laid onto concrete slabs, eg.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Slab_track_at_St_Pancras.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Track_(rail_transport)#Ballastless_track

 

[DarloRich]

Ballastless track is available as an alternative to traditional track laying methods.

good old slab track - You cant beat it it (in certain circumstances! )

 

[ATW Alex 101]

The wirral line platforms of Moorfields, Central or Lime street don't have ballast

 

[sheff'd victoria]

There are plenty of examples of rails being laid onto concrete slabs, eg.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Slab_track_at_St_Pancras.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Track_(rail_transport)#Ballastless_track

Im sure years ago a saw a picture of a Class 31 in Rail magazine on a section of concrete / trackwork on the test track near Derby ?

 

[ainsworth74]

You will have as I'm almost positive that the RTC did some testing on slab track near Derby. Indeed I think they put some of it into the wild on the MML for testing purposes.

 

[bangor-toad]

There are two sections of test slab track I've seen recently. Both have had the track itself lifted but the base is still there.

One is on the MML between Derby and Ambergate. The slab track was used for part of the goods loops. These have now been shortened and are just using conventional track.

The other is near Bingham station (Nottingham to Grantham line). There seems to have been a loop, now lifted, that used slab track. Again, just the base remains.

There may well be more in the Derby / Nottingham area but these are the bits I've seen over the last couiple of months.
Cheers,
Jason

 

[steevp]

There used to be the remains of some concrete slab experimental track on the former Melton Mowbray line via Barnstone(?) from the Grantham to Nottingham line - on the south side of the track near Radcliffe or Bingham (memory fails me)

 

[Bedpan]

There's some through the platforms at the old Kings Cross Thameslink, and again at St Pancras. When it was laid, I recall them saying that it was being done as it had a considerably longer maintenance free life than conventional track, such that the extra installation cost was recouped by its longer life and lower maintenance costs. On the minus side it takes longer to instal, but this didn't matter at the above locations where the line was out of action for months.

 

[Mojo]

There is a strange arrangement on the Midland Metro near Snow Hill, with multiple sleepers. There appears to be a metal rod between them. http://www.railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/full_photos/snow_hill_sleeper_arrangements_on_metro_track.jpg

 

[Manchester77]

On manchester metrolinks new extensions there is a significant amount of track set in concerete

 

[HSTEd]

Slab track is an important enabling technology for the holy grail of the 24 hour railway.
Combined with things like High Speed Grinding it means that track could be left in operational service for very long periods of time with no significant maintenance.
(Years between possessions in some cases).

The other technologies are solid state LED type signalling equipment and some very interesting innovations in copperless signalling infrastructure (using fibre optics for data links) which drastically reduce the problems of cable theft.

The only technology that as yet completely eludes us is very low maintenance overhead wiring.

 

[Liam]

The track on the Forth Bridge is different, the track looks like it is held in postition either side of a pair of I-beams

 

[broadbander]

Track at Dalmarnock station (29/07/2011):

 

[Wyvern]

One is on the MML between Derby and Ambergate. The slab track was used for part of the goods loops. These have now been shortened and are just using conventional track.

The other is near Bingham station (Nottingham to Grantham line). There seems to have been a loop, now lifted, that used slab track. Again, just the base remains.

The former is just to the south of Duffield station in the up cess.

Both these were part of the original studies by the Research Deparetment.

There was the first just north of the station near Derby Junction, a very short length to test the tracklaying machinery, but I think that has been lifted.

Slab track is an important enabling technology for the holy grail of the 24 hour railway.
Combined with things like High Speed Grinding it means that track could be left in operational service for very long periods of time with no significant maintenance.
(Years between possessions in some cases).

Provided the substrate is stable which isnt the case in most cases. Otherwise it could cost a fortune to repair.

 

[miikey]

Either slab track or longitudanal timbers.
Slab track is good becuase it requires very little maintenance, however the wheel-rail interaction on slab track is very harsh and rail and wheel wear can be accelerated.
Longitudanal timbers require more maintenance than normal track becuase of their construction. They are mainly used on weak overbridges.

 

[Cliveblackpool]

Blackpool's LRT tramway rails are laid on a concrete raft - the Promenade and road sections, the parts where it has its own road have sleepers.

 

[Ploughman]

Slab track is frequently installed as a means of improving the structure gauge clearance.
With normal track on sleepers there is a possibility of movement so an allowance has to be made for this on gauging typically 50mm.
With Slab track this allowance can be virtually ignored or severely reduced.
This has the effect of reducing the amount of lowering required in bridges or tunnels.
Used in platforms for similar reasons.


Earlier comment about slab track in James St station Liverpool.
The whole line in the tunnels is slab track not just the stations.

 

[cdonnigan]

track on the Tyne And Wear Metro on the underground sections from the Newcastle entrance of from gatehead to just after haymarket are all ballest free as well.

 

[Harbon 1]

There is a strange arrangement on the Midland Metro near Snow Hill, with multiple sleepers. There appears to be a metal rod between them. http://www.railaroundbirmingham.co.uk/full_photos/snow_hill_sleeper_arrangements_on_metro_track.jpg

They have these on the DLR also

 

[TDK]

If it's not broken why try to fix it? I cannot see any alternative to be fair as ballast is strong, has fantastic levelling properties and is also has good drainage properties. It is high in work hours laying the track but with settlement etc it is easy to maintain and erradicate any settlement than on a solid base set up.

 

[Trog]

They have these on the DLR also

Pot sleepers they have been around for about a 100 years in one form or another. Lighter and use less materials than the traditional British monoblock sleeper.

One big disadvantage of them is that even the slightest derailment where a wheel hits the bar and you completely loose gauge, and nothing can run until the track is relayed.

 

[Harbon 1]

Pot sleepers they have been around for about a 100 years in one form or another. Lighter and use less materials than the traditional British monoblock sleeper.

One big disadvantage of them is that even the slightest derailment where a wheel hits the bar and you completely loose gauge, and nothing can run until the track is relayed.

Aah, I thought Mojo was referring to the wooden sleepers inbetween

 

[bronzeonion]

I think the track inside the Hampstead Heath tunnel is slab track.

 

[biggus]

If you werent too concerned about longevity and the niceties of cant, etc, is there a system that would enable you to run rails ON TOP OF a road surface, say by spiking chairs down onto the tarmac?

I can see an immediate problem being the rails bouncing such fixings out of the ground as trains pass, but has anyone tackled it?

 

[Ploughman]

Roads would not be level enough, too much variation in the level of the surface.
Then there would be the problem of gradients.

 

[HSTEd]

If it's not broken why try to fix it? I cannot see any alternative to be fair as ballast is strong, has fantastic levelling properties and is also has good drainage properties. It is high in work hours laying the track but with settlement etc it is easy to maintain and erradicate any settlement than on a solid base set up.

If your line is flooded ballast can be seriously damaged or just washed away andwill require massive quantities of work to restore to full operational status.

Slab track will just require a simple check to ensure that the foundation has not been scoured under.