Greetings [:)]
I was wondering about the use of concrete ties in the industry. Are the railroads going to their use on new and replacement ties? If so, how do they stand up to the flexing and pounding of the traffic over them. I have watched the flexing of track and movement of the wood ties as a train passes over them. Concrete is not very forgiving of flexing on short spans.
Just idle curiosity. [%-)]
Lee S.
I notice BNSF and UP mainlines in Nebraska use concrete ties but NS mainlines in VA don’t use concrete ties. Is this another example of the NS not follwoing the heard or is my impression incorrect? If so, why does the NS takes a differnent approach.
You can definitely feel & hear the difference. On Amtrak’s Empire Builder the ride is pretty loud on the old Northern Pacific between the Twin Cities and Fargo. As I recall we didn’t hit the concrete ties until we were west of Grand Forks on the Great Northern main, but it was certainly noticeable. Not nearly as loud and the ride was smoother with less sway.
Concrete in the West is now a little cheaper than wood, installed, for new construction for main track with high axle loads, has a longer life, and has better gauge-holding. So for new in the West, concrete is usually the lower-cost option.
Concrete can not be put in in-face with wood, i.e., all mixed up. It’s one or the other. So for existing track with wood ties, replacement is wood. The exception is in heavy-curve territory where gauge-holding is a problem; then the railroad may choose to substitute concrete in the curves. It’s an expensive replacement because it has to be done under traffic, and the ballast usually has to be plowed off and replaced.
Concrete is much more vulnerable to derailment damage than wood. There are two schools of thought in concrete tie territory about turnouts and road crossings – some think they should be concrete, others wood. Light rail and transit lines overwhelmingly prefer concrete because the lifetime is so much longer than wood; maintenance windows on light rail are at night and access is horrid.
Going to concrete tie is a expensive step if the railroad is all wood, because it requires d
On Friday I took Metra via BNSF from Aurora to Chicago and noticed that all the ties on the BNSF main line were wood except where the line turns a sharp left into Chicago Union Station and there the ties are concrete for about a half mile or so through the curve.
NJTransit just got done with some track work and put in some concrete ties, but only in certain spots. Usually around grade crossings.
On one curve in Council Bluffs, the UP has placed a concrete tie about every third or fourth tie. About a 1/4 mile section at most.
Jeff
Is this a test? Headquarters is just 30 minutes away.
Thanks for he replies.
I have used quite a bit of concrete, and I was wondering how concrete reacts to the movement of the passing train. You can see the rails and ties being compessed into the ground as weight is applied and rebounding as the train passes. It didn’t seem to me that concrete the size of a railroad tie could stand up to that kind of abuse. but evidently it does quite well.
Happy railroading
Lee s.