Chapter 2

Railway Construction
Contents

2.1 Alignment and Gauges Classification of Railways

2.2 Permanent ways Ideal requirement, component parts
2.3 Railway Track Geometrics
2.4 Branching of Tracks
2.5 Track Maintenance
 2.1 Alignment and Gauges Classification of Railways
Railway Track Gauge
Gauge is defined as the minimum distance between two rails.
The gauge is measured as the clear minimum distance between
the running faces of the two rails

Types of Gauges on World Railways

Various gauges have been adopted by different railways in
the world due to historical and other considerations.
 Standard gauge (1435mm)
 Broad gauge (> 1435mm)
 Narrow gauge (< 1435mm)
Approximately 60% of the
world's existing railway lines
 Choice of Gauge
 Theoretically the following factors influence the choice of the
gauge
 Cost Considerations
 Traffic Considerations-wider gauge can carry larger
wagons and coaches, it can theoretically carry more
traffic
 Physical Features of the Country
 Uniformity of Gauge
Alignment of Railway Lines

Introduction
 Alignment of railway line refers to the
direction and position given to the center
line of the railway track on the ground in
the horizontal and vertical planes.
 Horizontal alignment means the
direction of the railway track in the plan
including the straight path and the
curves it follows.
 Vertical alignment means the direction it
follows in a vertical plane including the
Basic Requirements of an Ideal Alignment
 An ideal alignment should fulfill the following requirements:
1. Purpose of the track 4. Economic Considerations
 Transportation service
 Shortest route
 developing of backward areas
 Construction and
 Political and strategic
maintenance cost
consideration
 Minimum operational
 To connect industrial towns
expenses
 connecting new trade centers
 To open up new track 5. Maximum Safety and
 Shortening the existing track Comfort
2. Integrated Development 6. Aesthetic aspects
3. Feasibility
 Selection of a Good
 Alignment
Normally, a direct straight route connecting two points is the
shortest and most economical route for a railway line,
 but there are practical problems and other compulsions which
necessitate deviation from this route.
 For selecting a good alignment, the following factors are generally
considered:

1. Obligatory points or Controlling Points

 Important cities and towns
 Major bridge sites and river crossings
 Sites for tunnels
 Existing passes and saddles in hilly terrain
2. Gauge of the track
3. Type of traffic
4. Geometric standards
5. Topography of the country
6. Economic considerations
7. Geological Formation
8. Effect of Flood and Climate
9. Position of Roads and Road Crossings
10. Proximity of Labor and Material
11. Location of Railway Stations and Yards
12. Religious and Historical Monuments
13. Political Considerations
 2.2 Permanent ways Ideal requirement, component parts

The permanent
way or track
consists of :- the
rails, sleepers,
fittings and
fastenings, the Figure :- Various components of a track

ballast, and the


formation
The track or permanent way is the railroad on which trains run.
 It consists of two parallel rails fastened to sleepers with a specified
distance between them.
 The rails are joined in series by fish plates and bolts and these are
fastened to the sleepers with various types of fittings.
 The sleepers are spaced at a specified distance and are held in
position by the ballast. The sleepers are embedded in a layer of ballast
of specified thickness spread over level ground known as formation.
 The ballast provides a uniform level surface and drainage, and
transfers the load to a larger area of the formation
 Each component of the track has a specific function to perform:-
1. The rails act as girders to transmit the wheel load of trains to the
sleepers
2. The sleepers hold the rails in their proper positions, provide a
correct gauge with the help of fittings and fastenings, and
transfer the load to the ballast
3. The formation takes the total load of the track as well as of the
trains moving on it.
Requirements of a Good Track or Permanent way
 In general a track should provide a comfortable and safe ride at the
maximum permissible speed with minimum maintenance cost.
 To achieve these objectives, a sound permanent way should have the
following characteristics.
(a) The gauge should be correct and uniform.
(b) The rails should have perfect cross levels
(c) The alignment should be straight and free of kinks
(d) The gradient should be uniform and as gentle as possible
(e)The track should be resilient and elastic in order to absorb the
shocks and vibrations of running trains
(f) The track should have a good drainage system so that the stability
of the track is not affected by waterlogging
(g) The track should have good lateral strength so that it can
maintain its stability despite variations in temperature and other such
factors.
(h) There should be provisions for easy replacement and renewal of
the various track components.
(i) The track should have such a structure that not only is its initial
cost low, but also its maintenance cost is minimum.
The track components are:-
1. Rail
2. Sleepers
3. Track Bed (Ballast, Sub ballast and Formation)
4. fittings and fastenings
 1. What is Rail?
 Rails are the members of the track laid in two parallel lines
to provide an unchanging, continuous, and level surface for
the movement of trains.
e) Rail forms(types) used at present:
f) Rail Requirement
 To be able to withstand manifold and high forces,
the rails must meet the following requirements:
 2.Sleepers
a) Functions:
 to provide support and fixing possibilities for the rail foot and
fastenings
 to sustain rail forces and transfer them as uniformly as possible to
the ballast bed;
 to preserve track gauge and rail inclination
 to provide adequate electrical insulation between rails;
 to be resistant to mechanical influences and weathering over a
long time period
d) Types
1. According to production
of material:
 Reinforced Concrete
sleeper
 Wooden sleeper
 Steel sleeper
2. According to their usage:
 Regular sleeper
 Switch sleeper
 Bridge sleeper
Wooden sleepers
 Dimension: 15cmx25cmx2.7m
 Weight: appx 100kg
 Types
 Soft wood (pine wood)
 Hard wood (beech, oak, tropical
 Use
 Switches, sharp curves, bridges

 Easily deteriorates unless treated with creosote

Creosote treating can reduce insect infestation and rot.
Concrete sleepers
Advantages:
 heavy weight (200-300 kg),
useful in connection with
stability of Continuous welded
track (CWR);
 long service life provided
fastenings are good or can be Drawbacks:
replaced easily; • less elastic than wood.
 great freedom of design and • On poor formation, pumping may
construction occur
 relatively simple to • Susceptible to corrugations and poor
manufacture quality welds
• Risk of damage from impacts
(derailment, loading/unloading)
• Dynamic loads and ballast stresses
can be as much as 25% higher
Comparison between Wooden & Concrete
Sleepers
Steel sleepers
Strong points:
• Long service life
• Great dimensional
accuracy
But they suffer from:
• Insulation
•Relatively high price
 3.Track Bed (Ballast, Sub ballast and
Formation)
Track Bed
 Function: Support and a)Ballast
fasten the position of the - it is a layer of loose, coarse
sleeper and deliver the force grained material placed and
to roadbed. packed below and around
 Type: sleepers.
 Ballast track  for distributing the load
 Non-ballast or Slab from the sleepers to the
track formation and
 for providing drainage
 as well as giving
longitudinal and lateral
stability to the track.
b) Sub Ballast
c) Non-Ballast Track/Slab Track
 In slab track, ballast is replaced by another stable load
distributing material such as concrete or asphalt.
 Main types of non-ballasted track
 Embedded in concrete
 Prefabricated slabs

 Monolithic slab

 AC-road bed

 Embedded rail
d) Formation or Subgrade

 Is the prepared earth on which the railroad ballast

section and track structure are built.
 A sub grade is an earth structure, which is formed
through excavating or filling and can bear the track
structure directly.
 Two main functions of the railroad sub grade are:
 To bear the traffic load without becoming damaged
 To drain off the water to the side.
Characteristics
1) Roadbed sections
 Usually, the cross section perpendicular to the center
line is called the roadbed section.

 According to the topography and the shape of the cross

section, the roadbed section can be divided into six
types.
 2) Road shoulder & side slope

 Road shoulder: those part  Function of road shoulder:

without ballast bed;
 Side slope: the slope apart from
road shoulder.
 Bear the force, strengthen
the stability of roadbed
 Keep ballast bed
compacted
 For the walk of workers
 Be convenient for the
setting of signs
Ground treatment

 When sub grade bed of soil cutting can not satisfy material and
strength requirements, replacement measures are usually
adopted.
 Common measure for ground improvement
Excavation and Replacement of soft soil

Impact (vibration or compaction )

Lime stabilization

Cement stabilization  Crushed rock pile

Surcharging  Sand compaction pile

 Geotextile
 Sand column
 4. Rail fastening system
 A Rail fastening system is a means of fixing rails to railroad
sleepers.
a) Function:
The purpose of the rail fastenings:
 To maintain the track gauge

 Offer sufficient resistance in a vertical direction

 To transmit forces acting on and in the rails to the sleepers (cross,

longitudinal, concrete plates etc.)

 Electrically insulate the sleeper against the remaining track grid,

to minimize the loss of signals of the direct-current circuits.

Types of Joints :- Two Types
1- Rail Joint
a) Fasteners
b) Welds
2- Middle Joint Fasteners
b)Welds

 Welding of Rails improves

 Reduce joints and joint
impact
 Welding methods
 Contact welding
 Thermal welding

 Gas pressure welding

 Advantages:
 Smooth driving
 Low maintenance
 Long life