Track Support Measurements for Improved Resiliency of Railway Infrastructure

Track support is necessary for reliable, resilient railroad track infrastructure. Ability to recover quickly from adversity is a hallmark of the railway industry, and ability to rapidly restore track to service is a main element contributing to resilience of rail service. Poor track support conditions can increase dynamic and impact loading on track superstructure components that can accelerate deterioration of track components, potentially inhibiting the resilience of railroad track. As track components deteriorate or material properties continue to degrade in an area, affected ties become poorly supported and shed their load to better-supported ties. Various problems develop owing to increased tie load, rail stress, and ballast stress, leading to ballast degradation and track or tie vibrations. These problems can be avoided if proper track support is uniformly provided so that no area is overstressed. Several measurement techniques are discussed for evaluating track support: modulus and transient displa...