Transition zones between railway tracks on embankments or natural ground, and fixed substructures such as bridges and culverts, typically require extensive maintenance to retain acceptable track geometry. These high maintenance costs and the potential to cause delays to train services are of major concern for railway infrastructure managers. In view of the importance of the problem, surprisingly little research has been carried out to identify the fundamental causes of the poor performance of transition zones. To better understand the physical mechanisms involved, an extensive monitoring and investigation programme was undertaken on a typical transition zone in the Netherlands, comprising reinforced concrete approach slabs linking the normal track onto a concrete culvert. Accelerations and velocities of the track, soil, and approach slabs in response to passenger trains were measured, from which displacements were calculated. In addition, track settlements and pore water pressures were monitored over a 1-year period. This article presents and discusses the measurements made. The results highlight the problems associated with track quality at a transition zone, including the large dynamic displacements induced during train passage and the tendency for ongoing long-term movement. The implications of these for design and maintenance are discussed.


    Access

    Check access

    Check availability in my library

    Order at Subito €


    Export, share and cite



    Title :

    An Assessment of Transition Zone Performance


    Contributors:
    Coelho, B (author) / Hölscher, P (author) / Priest, J (author) / Powrie, W (author) / Barends, F (author)


    Publication date :

    2011-03-01


    Size :

    11 pages




    Type of media :

    Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English




    An assessment of transition zone performance

    Coelho, B. / Holscher, P. / Priest, J. et al. | British Library Online Contents | 2011


    An assessment of transition zone performance

    Coelho, B | Online Contents | 2011


    Transition Zone Modeling

    Reshotko, Eli | NTRS | 2007


    Volume-based Transition Zone Assessment of Hybrid Unmanned Aerial-Underwater Vehicles

    Aoki, Vivian Misaki / De Oliveira Evald, Paulo Jefferson Dias / Pinheiro, Pedro Miranda et al. | IEEE | 2022


    Landing zone assessment

    DONG YINGDA / HACIOGLU MUSTAFA | European Patent Office | 2022

    Free access