biggus
Member
- Joined
- 26 Sep 2012
- Messages
- 55
What examples do we have in the UK (and in Europe) of roads and railways using a co-aligned right of way?
It seems to me like a good idea for getting new rail routes into major cities but I am not aware of examples in this country.
Taking examples from (light) rail in the USA, one approach is seen in Washington DC where the metro runs out to Virginia for many miles along the middle of the highway 66 alignment. http://goo.gl/maps/zBz0j
The other approach is to elevate the road above the railway or the railway above the road (as seen in the New York Subway). Rail above road presumably requires heavier engineering and a higher ground clearance than the other way round, but rail benefits more than road by being isolated up high.
There would appear to be potential benefits in terms of simplified construction (for the highway 66 example at least) and simplified land acquisition, so why don't we do it more?
I can anticipate operational disadvantages from both a rail and road maintenance point of view, but are these really excessive? Or is our system just incapable of the political coordination required to implement such integration?
It seems to me like a good idea for getting new rail routes into major cities but I am not aware of examples in this country.
Taking examples from (light) rail in the USA, one approach is seen in Washington DC where the metro runs out to Virginia for many miles along the middle of the highway 66 alignment. http://goo.gl/maps/zBz0j
The other approach is to elevate the road above the railway or the railway above the road (as seen in the New York Subway). Rail above road presumably requires heavier engineering and a higher ground clearance than the other way round, but rail benefits more than road by being isolated up high.
There would appear to be potential benefits in terms of simplified construction (for the highway 66 example at least) and simplified land acquisition, so why don't we do it more?
I can anticipate operational disadvantages from both a rail and road maintenance point of view, but are these really excessive? Or is our system just incapable of the political coordination required to implement such integration?
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