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Railway system Ballastless track

Infrastructure The
demands
Load ablation on the
track
Superstructure
system
Types of Superstructure have
changed
Rails
greatly
Sleepers / Ties since the
start of
Fastenings
railways.
Ballast This
applies
Wandering protection
not only
Insulated adhesive joints to

Protection of the tracks

Ballastless track

Subgrade
Turnouts
Special designs
Level crossings
Power uses
Gleisbau-Welt systems
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Ballastless track also allows turnout designs

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

© Thorsten Schaeffer

Maintenance of way parameters such as axle load and speed, but also less obvious factors such as
train length and frequency.
Railway vehicles
In addition to the classical design of track grid floating in ballast, other non-
conventional designs have been developed with varying degrees of success.
The railway permanent way has an average useful life of between 30 and 60
years. Because of the large financial investments that are necessary,
innovations in the field of railway infrastructure only gain acceptance slowly.
Therefore, it would be wrong to describe the sector as slow at implementing
innovations. The numerous and different certification regulations, some of
which are due to national specifications, make it difficult to introduce new
products. Changes in the track have consequences for safety, which is why an
in-depth examination of any new design is understandable. Current efforts at
the European level aim to shorten the process, in order to facilitate the
opportunities for innovation.

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

Ballastless track in Vienna Central Station

© Franz Piereder

Ballast was originally chosen as a basis for the railway infrastructure due to its
ready availability and good maintenance options. It is currently, however, this
very component which limits the service life of the complete system. The
replacement of the complete system was previously influenced by wear on the
sleepers and rails, but now due to the increased useful life it is the ballast. It
was only through the invention of the soled sleeper that the properties of the
ballasted track could be significantly improved.

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

The negative impact of the ballast on the service life of the track led to initial
designs of ballastless track. The ballast is replaced by sub-layers of concrete
or asphalt which, unlike ballast, have no or only slight plastic deformation. The
lack of elasticity of these layers is compensated by the conscious use of
elastic components. Only in this way can the necessary deflection of the track
and the resulting load distribution on multiple supporting points be achieved.

The use of ballastless track requires settlement free or low settlement subsoil.
Inhomogeneous settlements of the selected support structure can be balanced
only with difficulty or not at all. First tests with ballastless track were carried out
by the DB in 1959 in Hengstenberger Tunnel and in Schönsteiner Tunnel. On
the main line it was installed for the first time in 1967 in Hirschaid Station. The
first applications, however, were not very successful. The fastening bolts failed
in the tunnel areas due to corrosion and on the main line the negative
consequences of subsidence in the subsoil were reflected in the system. Only
23 years after the installation in Hirschaid Station it had to be replaced again.
Nevertheless due to its low maintenance requirement the system showed
[1]
possible advantages compared with conventional ballasted track.

In Japan, the tracks of the Shinkansen high speed lines are carried on piles.
The resulting homogeneous subsoil is the best prerequisite for the continuous
homogeneous support of the track grid of the ballastless track. Therefore it
was decided, even after problems with the ballast track (Tokyo-Osaka), as a
[1]
general rule to use the design of ballastless track.

A prerequisite for the success of the ballastless track system is the low
settlement of the foundation. Thanks to the targeted arrangement of elastic
elements it is possible for the stiffness of the individual layers to be co-
ordinated. [[ Freystein, H.; Muncke, M.; Schollmeier, P.: Handbuch Entwerfen
von Bahnanlagen. [Manual for the design of railway installations] Regelwerke,
Planfeststellung, Bau, Betrieb, Instandhaltung  [Set of rules, planning
permission, building, operation, maintenance]  [e-Book inside]. Eurailpress,
Hamburg, 2015. ]] 

The design of a ballastless track is generally made up of the following

components:

Rail.
Rail fastening.
Sleeper.
Concrete or asphalt base layer.
Hydraulically bound base layer.
Frost protection layer.
Subsoil.

Over the years, different types of ballastless track have been developed. In
general, these can be divided in terms of their construction in Europe into two
groups.[2]

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

Classification of different types of ballastless track

Embedded design

Bozberg/STEDEF system Zurich Airport

© Plasser & Theurer

In the embedded design a friction locked joint is created between the track grid
and the track bed layer. In a first step, the track grid is fitted either in the
classic manner over the individual sleepers or by prefabricated components.
After the geometric alignment (often by spindles) and a possible pre-tensioning
of the rail fastening systems, the background is filled with in-situ concrete.

Representative: 

RHEDA type
Heitkamp type
SBV type
Züblin type
SBB-Bözberg/Stedef type
LVT type

Directly supported design

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

In the directly supported design there is no force-locking connection between

the track grid and the track-bed layer. The vertical reference position of the
track is produced through the track-bed layer. Here an elaborate spindle can
thus be omitted. Directly supported designs are generally constructed with
asphalt trackbed layers, on which the sleepers covered with the geotextile are
laid. If the weight of the track grid does not stop it lifting when a train passes
over it the sleepers must be vertically anchored. The ballast placed on the
sleeper ends and in the sleeper cribs protects the track-bed layer against UV
rays and heat and stabilises the horizontal track geometry.

Representative: 

SATO type
ATD type
BTD type
Walter type
GETRAC type

Support point bearings without sleepers

ÖBB-PORR system after pouring

© Franz Piereder

In this type of bearing there is no sleeper, and the rail is directly connected
with the track bed layer made of concrete. Regarding the design, a distinction
is made between:

monolithic support on site

use of prefabricated plates or frames

Representative: 

Rasengleis

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia

Hochtief/Schreck-Mieves/Longo type
FFC type
BES type
BTE type
Bögl type
ÖBB-PORR type

Continuous support

The rail is set up without a rail fastening on a longitudinal beam in a dedicated

space. The rail is then encapsulated in concrete many times and through the
elastic elements stabilised in its position. Due to the large amount of cladding
required this type is mainly used in sound and vibration-intensive areas.  

Clamped rails are not used on the main line and, therefore, not discussed
further in this chapter. 

Advantages of ballastless track

To a large extent maintenance free

Reduction of maintenance costs
Increase in the capacity
No flying ballast at high speeds
Unrestricted use of the eddy current brake

Disadvantages of ballastless track 

High investment costs

Bad air noise properties
Risk of changes in the position of the track due to possible difficult
correction process
High weight

High repair costs if there is derailment damage

You can find suitable specialist literature to

the topic here:
The Basic Principles of Best Practice in Track
Mechanised Track Maintenance, Vol 1 -
Maintenance Infrastructure Management

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Ballastless track - Superstructure :: Trackopedia
This book is dedicated to the many
people involved in the day to day
planning and performance of track
maintenance activities. Providing a
practical approach to everyday
challenges in mechanised track
maintenance, it is not just intended
as a theoretical approach to the track
system.  and improvement of the
Railways aim at transporting people
and freight safely, rapidly, regularly,
comfortably and on time from one
place to another. This book is
directed to track infrastructure
departments contributing to the
above objective by ensuring the
track infrastructure’s reliability,
availability, maintainability and safety
– denoted by the acronym RAMS.
Regular, effective and affordable
track maintenance enable RAMS to
be achieved.
© Trackopedia
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Infrastructure Management Volume
1 looks at aspects of infrastructure
management with particular
reference to the single European
railway area. Based on best-practice
examples from Central Europe,
measures for the targeted retrofitting
infrastructure maintenance of the
existing network are presented. In
many cases, infrastructure operators
are faced with a generational
change, which accelerates the
process. Modern information and
communication technology can
simplify the comprehension and
presentation of complex contexts.
Modified approaches to asset
management and life-cycle
management enable implementation
of the "transparent permanent way"
or the "railway 4.0".
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