Construction of the LGV Rhin-Rhône Branche Est

[Old Timer]

I attach a link to the SNCF website which has a short film showing the construction of the LGV Rhin-Rhône Branche Est.

It shows how the LWR is welded into long strings at the depot as well as showing how new track is installed on new Railways.

Although it is in French, I am sure you will get the gist, and even if you do not, the film is fairly self-explanatory and will give you an excellent insight into how new track is laid.

http://www.lgvrhinrhone.tv/video/lrs-«-long-rail-soude-»-139

Any questions, please feel free to raise them and I am sure either I or one of the other Infrastructure chaps will be able to answer them.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

I attach a link to the SNCF website which has a short film showing the construction of the LGV Rhin-Rhône Branche Est.
It shows how the LWR is welded into long strings at the depot as well as showing how new track is installed on new Railways.

Brilliant film, thanks for sharing.
I hope we have some kit like that.
I notice the rail was from Tata Steel France.

 

[Old Timer]

Brilliant film, thanks for sharing.
I hope we have some kit like that.
I notice the rail was from Tata Steel France.

The French (like the Germans) have various ways and means of illegally subsidising Industries which would otherwise be loss making, and even when the toothless EU does find them in breach of Regulations they simply ignore such on the basis that they will never pay, and as everyone knows this, they get away with it because the whole EU system is corrupt and rotten to its very core.

Unfortunately for us, the UK plays by the rules, so we have no chance.

 

[asylumxl]

Unfortunately for us, the UK plays by the rules, so we have no chance.

While I don't usually agree with you, this is very true. Other countries in the EU practice protectionism with no penalties as far as I can see.

Thanks for the link to the video!

 

[Old Timer]

While I don't usually agree with you, this is very true. Other countries in the EU practice protectionism with no penalties as far as I can see.

Thanks for the link to the video!

No problem just a shame we do not have many of these films in the UK.

 

[Hydro]

I've had a stab at playing with the welding kit at Eastleigh LWR depot, something like 80kA as the rail ends are hammered together.

 

[HSTEd]

The French (like the Germans) have various ways and means of illegally subsidising Industries which would otherwise be loss making, and even when the toothless EU does find them in breach of Regulations they simply ignore such on the basis that they will never pay, and as everyone knows this, they get away with it because the whole EU system is corrupt and rotten to its very core.

Unfortunately for us, the UK plays by the rules, so we have no chance.

Actually what they do is entirely legal, EU procurement regulations do not require you to take the bid that is "best value for money" or similar, they require you to take the bid deemed "most economically advantageous".
This allows the bids to take account of where the products will be manufactured or what nationality the majority of the staff employed to provide a service are.

Only the UK has got it into its head that the rules mean "best value for money" and then complain when they see everyone else doing this.
Do people really believe France and Germany would have passed such regulations in the first place?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

The French (like the Germans) have various ways and means of illegally subsidising Industries which would otherwise be loss making, and even when the toothless EU does find them in breach of Regulations they simply ignore such on the basis that they will never pay, and as everyone knows this, they get away with it because the whole EU system is corrupt and rotten to its very core.

Unfortunately for us, the UK plays by the rules, so we have no chance.

Who mentioned subsidised industries?
I cordially disagee with you on the EU by the way (while not excusing corruption).

 

[Tin Rocket]

fantastic film that,very interesting,at the introduction and in the closing shots there is a lot of ballast in the 4 foot,has it been left like that on purpose?they have the fastenings showing so maybe them shots showed the finished article so to say, or has it yet to be brushed or regulated?the cess paths looked ace as well walking on them as opposed to ballast would save your feet and joints a lot of grief.

 

[Old Timer]

fantastic film that,very interesting,at the introduction and in the closing shots there is a lot of ballast in the 4 foot,has it been left like that on purpose?they have the fastenings showing so maybe them shots showed the finished article so to say, or has it yet to be brushed or regulated?the cess paths looked ace as well walking on them as opposed to ballast would save your feet and joints a lot of grief.

Yes it is rather good, I have to say.

Other than shoulder ballast, any ballast above the level of the top of a sleeper adds nothing to the stability of the track and is actually dangerous on high speed lines as it can ( and does) get caught up in the slip stream and can get thrown.

It is an ironic fact that high speed lines where staff are not allowed onto the track with trains running, also have the best cess paths which were in fact originally constructed and intended for the very opposite reason.

I did hear at one time, that long term knee joint problems could be treated as an Industrial injury by staff who regularly walked on track ballast. I don't know the outcome however.

 

[brianthegiant]

very good film,

whats the machine with the 'golf clubs' whacking the track? is that to get the alignment?

 

[Bald Rick]

Brilliant film, thanks for sharing.
I hope we have some kit like that.
I notice the rail was from Tata Steel France.

Thankfully, we're a bit more efficient in laying track on new lines than the French. Note in the film how they laid a temporary track with ballast (process not shown but quite labourious), then the permanent rails, then on single line gantries removed the temporary track before installing the permanent sleepers.

Over here, we lay the rails using a special tracked machine, then use the New Track Construction machine (Balfour's kit) to lay the final track all clipped up in one go. Takes half the time and half the people. Used to great success on Airdrie - Bathgate.

Also most of our rail is rolled in the steel works at Scunthorpe into c200metre lengths, so there is no need for it to be welded up prior to delivery as shown here. This reduces the number of welds in any given stretch of rail.

Great video though - and I agree we should do more of this over here to showcase what the Britsh rail industry is capable of.

 

[Old Timer]

very good film,

whats the machine with the 'golf clubs' whacking the track? is that to get the alignment?

No its to do with destressing, something we do differently in the UK and elsewhere.

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

Also most of our rail is rolled in the steel works at Scunthorpe into c200metre lengths, so there is no need for it to be welded up prior to delivery as shown here. This reduces the number of welds in any given stretch of rail.

Just read in Modern Railways that the rail for LGV Rhin-Rhone came from Tata Steel at Hayange (Lorraine), using steel blooms from Tata Steel at Scunthorpe, delivered by rail through the channel tunnel.
Also being used on other current rail construction in France.
So there is a significant UK input after all. The Hayange plant boss is also from Yorkshire!

This is the kind of contract which would be lost if we left the EU.

 

[Hydro]

Yes it is rather good, I have to say.

Other than shoulder ballast, any ballast above the level of the top of a sleeper adds nothing to the stability of the track and is actually dangerous on high speed lines as it can ( and does) get caught up in the slip stream and can get thrown.

Not just HS lines, MENTOR had a punctured fuel tank earlier this month from a suspected ballast strike.

High ballast outside of the profile is a hinderence as anything that obscures the rail foot and fastenings prevents a visual inspection.

UK rail generally comes in 709ft (216m) strings. I'm sure not all comes from Scunny welded up, as I know Eastleigh LWR depot was still welding up 709's for drops recently. It's not stopped to my current knowledge.

 

[Trog]

Other than shoulder ballast, any ballast above the level of the top of a sleeper adds nothing to the stability of the track and is actually dangerous on high speed lines as it can ( and does) get caught up in the slip stream and can get thrown.

I wonder if there will be a reversal of the trend towards Victorian style buried track, when computer aided video inspection starts to come in?

 

[Hydro]

I wonder if there will be a reversal of the trend towards Victorian style buried track, when computer aided video inspection starts to come in?

Nope, because it doesn't work with ballast covering everything

 

[Trog]

whats the machine with the 'golf clubs' whacking the track?

It looks to me as if the idea is to encourage the rail to move, and hence get a nice even stress. I have tried to do the same thing myself in the past when short of under rollers, by having the gang shake the rail with heel bars.
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Nope, because it doesn't work with ballast covering everything

Careful you don't want to end up as cynical as me.


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The sleepers used were quite interesting look like a cross between a G44 and an F23. May be something to do with the fact that Johnny Foreigner often does not believe in having a raised ballast shoulder. Nice to see that the Frogs have moved to a proper mono-block style sleeper at long last. Red Fastclips rather than the G44's green as they will only be using CEN60, not a mixture of CEN60 and 113A.

 

[Old Timer]

Nope, because it doesn't work with ballast covering everything

Oh I can think of one or possibly two infrastructure Companies who believe that what the ballast covers so the the eye does not see, the Network Rail Engineeers heart does not grieve over

 

[Hydro]

Out of sight, out of mind