Chapter 4

Railway Construction
 Introduction to railway projects
and processes
 Stages of newline construction
 Different methods of track laying
Why???
• A healthy infrastructure is a necessary
ingredient of a robust economy.
Infrastructure systems are a part of the
nation's economy (through
expenditures),
and infrastructure systems are also
necessary to accommodate economic
expansion and productivity.
1. Introduction
Typical Infrastructure Planning steps

1. Establishment of goals and objectives

2. Problem identification and analysis
3. Solution identification and impact assessment
4. Formulation of alternatives and analysis
5. Recommendations: including priorities and
6. Decisions: including financing.
7. Implementation: final design, construction planning, construction.
8. Operation and management
Railway Infrastructure

• Demand for railway infrastructure is driven by

 higher speeds and higher axle loads

 higher availability and fewer disturbances

satisfy environmental demands

higher reliability and safety

2. Stages of New line construction

The main work involved in the construction of a new line is

the following.
 
(a)  Land acquisition
 
(b) Earthwork and bridges
 
(c)  Station building, staff quarters, and other allied
facilities, including platforms and sheds
 
 Cont.
(d) Plate laying, including ballasting of track
 
(e)  Opening of section for traffic
Cont.
Land Acquisition
(i) Width of formation: The land should be adequate to accommodate the
width of formation.
(ii)  Side slope, and back slope: The side slope depends on the nature of the
soil and is normally taken as 2:1 (horizontal: vertical).
(iii) Width of berms: The usual width of the berm is kept at 3 m.
 (iv) Borrow pits: If the land is not very costly, adequate land should be made
available for borrow
•pits also. Borrow pits may be on one side of the track for low banks and
on both sides for medium and high banks.
•When the land is costly, borrow pits need not be provided for and earth
can be borrowed from adjoining areas.
• Extra land is, however, required for station yards, level crossings, and
bridge approaches.
Cont.
Earthwork for Formation
  The formation may be in an embankment or a cutting depending
upon the rail level and general contour of the area. A formation in
an embankment is normally preferred from the point of view of
good drainage.
Bridges and Minor drainage Structures
 Bridges should be designed for the heaviest locomotive likely to
pass that section.
 Depending upon the topography of the country and the type of
stream to be crossed, pipe culverts, reinforced cement (RCC)
slab bridges, plate girders or prestressed concrete (PRC) girder
bridges or steel bridges, are designed.
 Bridges, being important structures, are normally preferred to be
made for double-line tracks, even in single-line sections, with a
view to plan for future expansion.
Cont.
Service Buildings and Staff Quarters

• Service buildings include the station master's office, telegraph office, etc.,

which are basically required for providing services for running the trains.

• Other passenger amenity works such as platforms, foot over bridges,

waiting halls, and retiring rooms are also provided at stations.

• All these constructions are simultaneously taken up by civil

engineers, electrical engineers, and signal engineers so that they can
progress together.
Cont.
Plate Laying or Track Linking
 
 Once the formation is ready, plate laying or track linking is
required. It consists of laying rails, sleepers, and fastenings.
The following methodology is adopted for plate laying.

A railway sleeper is a rectangular

object.
Ties/sleepers are members
generally laid transverse to the
rails, on which the rails are
supported and fixed, to transfer the
loads from rails to the ballast and
sub grade, and to hold the rails to
Cont.
3.Methods of Track laying
Tram Line Method
 
In this method, a temporary line known as the 'tram line'
is laid by the side of the proposed track for taking track
materials to the site. This method is useful in flat terrain,
where laying the tram line on natural ground may be
comparatively easier. This method is, however, seldom
used in practice.
 
A modification of the above method is the side method.
This method is used where track and bridge material is
carried to the site on trucks on a service road parallel to
the track. The material is then unloaded near the work
site. This method is used only in cases where
comparatively flat gradients are available.
 
Cont.
American Method
 In the American method, rails and sleepers are first assembled in the base depot
and
pre-assembled track panels are then taken to the site along with the necessary
cranes, etc.
The track panels are unloaded at the work site either manually or with the help of
cranes and are then laid in the final position.
This procedure is used in many developed countries, particularly
those where concrete sleepers are laid, since these sleepers are quite heavy and it
is not easy to handle them manually.
Cont.
Telescopic Method
 This method is widely used on Indian Railways. In this method, the rails, sleepers,
and other fittings are taken to the base depot and unloaded.
The track material is then taken to the rail head and the track is linked and packed.
The rail head is then advanced up to the extent of laid track. The track material is then
taken up to the advanced rail head with the help of a dip lorry and the track is again
linked and packed.
In this way, the rail head goes on advancing till the full track is linked.