Reason for wavy line on track

[ryan125hst]

Thank you for the information! It was certainly puzzling me when I saw the strips. Is it still applied when rails are replaced or when new rails are laid, or is it a thing of the past?

 

[Joseph_Locke]

A pleasure.

It is still specified as new work in track circuited areas.

 

[Trog]

A quick read of a few standards suggests the use of stainless steel rods, containing 20% Cromium, 10% Nickel, and 2% Molybdonum. Presumably this gives a hard strong weld metal as the design use of this type of rod is the welding of armor plating.

 

[whhistle]

I have been told it is done as a zig zag because it is a very hard metal, and if it was done in a straight line down the middle of the head there was a risk that it could over time damage the wheels.

Much like overhead power lines are not straight but they zig-zag across the pantograph, thus not creating a worn dip in one section of the panto.


While I don't doubt the knowledge of others here, why are they usually only found in bay platforms?
Edit: I may have just found the answer in post 23.

 

[Railsigns]

I have been told it is done as a zig zag because it is a very hard metal, and if it was done in a straight line down the middle of the head there was a risk that it could over time damage the wheels.

I'm not convinced by that reasoning, since the distances involved are very short and speeds very low.

Differing rail/wheel profiles will affect where a train's wheels make contact with the rails. Particular profile combinations could mean that the wheels only make contact with one side of the rail head, possibly rendering a straight strip useless. Zigzagging the strip across the full width of the rail head caters for every possible wheel/rail profile.

 

[ATW Alex 101]

there are some wavy lines at platform 1 in chester by the buffer IIRC

 

[miikey]

They are used to ensure track circuit.