1 SUMMARY
Track slab systems are not new to the Australian market but rarely installed. The reason may be
limited knowledge of the extensive possibilities combined with some not satisfying experiences. Track
slab systems should not be considered as a replacement of ballasted track systems in every
environment or every upcoming project but as a worthy alternative for designated sections of the
railway network. The advantages of track slab systems will help network owners providing a better
and more reliable railway network. Consequently railway operators, their clients and passengers will
benefit from higher track availability.
As a specialist in track slab construction I am There are some key factors required to
Figure 1 Typical cross section of ballasted track and track slab AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
achieve ride comfort and safety. Good track geological formation to the top of the capping
quality requires at the onset a well constructed layer must be designed to meet the particular
track system which is then adequately load requirements for each network.
maintained throughout the assets lifecycle. Nevertheless substructure layers must be able
However, the operational demands on our to support the vertical and horizontal forces
railway lines mean that network operators are whilst being appropriately composed to be
stretched to provide appropriate possession free-draining.
windows for the required maintenance and
track renewal works. A typical superstructure of ballasted track
consists of bottom ballast, sleepers, top
In response to these restrictions on track ballast, jewellery and rails.
access European engineers began looking for
alternatives to the ballasted track systems in A typical superstructure of track slab consists
the 1950s [1]. Ballastless systems were of an hydraulic bonded bearing layer, concrete
regarded as a suitable alternative option or asphalt bearing layer, sleepers or single
because among others they promised stable supporting points embedded or sitting on top
track geometry. The original proposed system of the concrete or asphalt layer, jewellery and
would consist of a firm layer like concrete or rail. Together with the frost protective layer
asphalt which supports the sleepers and rails. (similar to capping layer of ballasted track but
Predecessors of the so called track slab typically 500mm to 700mm thick) the diverse
systems were already in use on light railways stiffness of layers transfer the traffic loads
such as underground metros in major cities. damage-free into the substructure. Typically
Many different track slab systems were the hydraulic bonded bearing layer is a mix of
developed during the 1970s and over the mineral aggregate compacted by a hydraulic
following years (e.g. over 55 different track bonding agent (e.g. Portland cement) and is
slab systems in Germany in 30 years). placed with road finishers.
3.1 Comparison ballasted track track The different track slab systems are shown in
slab figure 2, sorted into six main categories:
Figure 1 shows a typical cross section of both Systems with sleepers cast into an in-
ballasted and track slab systems. To simplify situ concrete track slab (e.g.
the comparison it is assumed that both the Rheda2000)
ballasted track slab and track slab systems are Systems with elastically encapsulated
built on an earthworks formation. The sleepers cast into an in-situ concrete
substructure of both systems, from the track slab (e.g. LVT)
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
Systems with sleepers bearing directly that they are installed on earthworks. Diverse
on an asphalt or concrete slab (e.g. papers and studies of European network
Getrac) owners such as SBB (Swiss railways) and DB
Systems consisting of pre-fabricated (German railways) show that track slab on
track slab elements or plates (e.g. earthworks is an expensive alternative to
OeBB-Porr plate, J-slab on ballasted track; not because of the track slab
Shinkansen lines) system itself but because of the extensive
Systems with single supporting points preparation works in the earthwork layers to
cast or anchored into an in-situ provide a settlement-free foundation. These
concrete track slab (e.g. Delkor Egg) studies conclude that track slab systems
Systems with continuously embedded provide a very good alternative to ballasted
rails (e.g. edilon-sedra systems) track when installed on structures such as
bridges, tunnels, troughs, or in highly used
Table 1 Selected advantages and disadvantages of ballasted track compared to track slab
A lot of different track slab systems were track sections (stations, tight curves, junctions,
developed always with the goal to fulfil special etc.) or in an environment where combined
requirements rail-road traffic is expected. Track slab
systems in general are the standard in newly
Before the decision is made in favour of one or constructed or refurbished European tunnels
the other systems, network owners and longer than 500m.
operators should satisfy themselves whether
ballasted or ballastless track systems will fulfil 4 HOW TO INSTALL TRACK SLAB
their requirements throughout the whole of SYSTEMS?
asset life-cycle. Table 1 outlines the
There is a variety of track slab and fastening
advantages and disadvantages of each
systems available on the market. Each system
system. should be installed in accordance with the
specification. Track slab can be built by either
As articulated in Table 1 the comparison
between the two systems is based on the fact the bottom-up and top-down methodology.
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
form a skeleton track. Ideally the skeleton layers with wider tolerances and the
track will be adjusted directly using the gauge installation of pre-cast elements as part of the
face and top of rail (TOR) as survey working top layer combined with openings for
points. Using the head of the rail will reduce fastenings has made it possible to optimise the
the risk of track geometry irregularities installation methodology. The fastenings and
occurring if using other survey working points rails are adjusted to final track geometry and
such as the foot of the rails, fastenings and small quantities of grout are poured to fix the
sleepers. The manufacturing tolerances of all fastenings.
these elements added up can have a negative
impact on the final track geometry. After the 4.4 Achieving track geometry
skeleton track is adjusted and fixed, the requirements
concrete can be poured. One of the Once the concrete has been poured the track
advantages compared to the bottom-up slab is more or less fixed in position for its
methodology is that no concrete layers need to lifetime. Driven by the need to get the
be prepared within very tight tolerances. Only alignment right first time and the tight
Figure 5 different adjustment tools, left: adjustment jack, middle: gauge bar, right: adjustment bar
the drainage requirements of surface need to tolerances permitted on high speed lines
be met. proper adjustment methods have been
developed. The very tight construction
Whatever system is used it must be possible tolerances for the German high speed lines
to fix formwork and pour the concrete without are close to the technically achievable limits.
impacting on the positioning equipment. Once
the concrete is firm enough to support the These tolerances (see Table 2) were
weight of the track the positioning equipment developed for main and high speed lines but
can be removed and reused. once the network owners and operators
realised the positive impact on riding comfort,
wear and maintenance these very tight
4.3 Combination of both methodologies tolerances could also be found in tender
More recently a combination of both methods documents of light rail systems (even where
has been developed. Using the advantages of the maximum speed is less than 100km/h).
fast and cost effective placement of base
Track
2 mm in relation to the design superelevation
superelevation
Deviation of the actual versine of two adjacent verification points from the
Longitudinal
design versine:
level (vertical
2 mm for points at a distance of 5 m
versine)
10 mm for points at a distance of 150 m
Deviation of the actual versine of two adjacent verification points from the
Direction
design versine:
(horizontal
2 mm for points at a distance of 5 m
versine)
10 mm for points at a distance of 150 m
Table 2 list of requirements for the construction of track slab / DB Netz AG (German Railways Network
Owner
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
To fulfil the tight tolerances during construction of the super- and substructure of the ballasted
the construction companies developed simple track.
and highly engineered adjustment methods.
Some examples are shown in figure 5. 4.6 Thoughts on Design & Construction
(Engineering)
4.5 Transition track slab to ballasted As mentioned above there are several track
track slab systems on the market.
Transition structures between track slab and
ballasted track are a critical and often The first step when designing a track slab
underestimated area in the superstructure. system is to match the systems to the needs of
the upcoming project, bearing in mind any
The purpose of the transition is to provide a special circumstances. The design must not
smooth transfer between the stiff track slab only meet the requirements of supporting the
section and the soft ballasted track section. rail traffic, but should also be buildable in an
efficient manner during the construction phase.
Most of the existing solutions especially for
high speed lines are very complex in their For example, precast heavy elements are
design, containing various sleeper types and more difficult to handle in narrow surroundings
pads, glued ballast and additional rail. These than small and comparatively light direct
constructions also show unsatisfying fixation fastener systems. The planned track
maintenance constraints. slab system will have a direct impact on the
construction costs. Getting the construction
Rhomberg developed a solution which companies and network owners involved in the
combines an easy to build and well to maintain design stage will help the project find the right
construction (e.g. by tamping machines). The system and reduce the construction costs.
focus during the development was to provide a
durable and reliable structure with materials Installing track slab doesnt mean simply
also used on the ballasted track section (e.g. pouring concrete around the sleepers or rails.
standard sleepers and fixation, standard High quality construction is required
ballast). The patented construction shown in demanding specially designed tools and
figure 6 works as a steel bridge embedded in equipment to guarantee a proper track
the ballast bed with one abutment on the track geometry is achieved. The development of the
slab side. It provides a smooth transition concreting process starts in design phase by
between the two different stiffnesses of specifying the right concrete mix design, e.g.
ballasted track and track slab. The pre- self levelling and self compacting concrete,
fabricated elements will follow the settlement flowable concrete with early firmness,
pumpable concrete etc. The designers should
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
keep in mind that diverse concrete delivery better riding comfort due to more
methods are available and these will usually stable track
not be defined until tender stage or early reduction of rail stresses because of
process engineering/planning phase. It is defined and constant rail deflection
therefore important to be able to adapt the over the whole life cycle of the rail
concrete mix design to the delivery and reduced maintenance works and
pouring method. Nevertheless the chosen easier access due to stable and even
concrete mix has to fulfil the requirements of surface
the track slab system. Finding the right better drainage of surface water
concrete mix means understanding its higher availability of tracks due to
complex delivery and pouring method as well fewer and shorter possessions
as its final purpose of supporting the sleepers better transport safety due to stable
and rails. tracks
Rail engineers experienced in ballasted track In projects where system height or weight
need to accept and make allowance in their have significant impact on other structures, or
construction methodology for the fact that where a trafficable surface is required, track
there is only one chance to get the track slab systems can be an alternative to ballasted
geometry right. There is no mechanised track track. Tunnels and bridges normally provide
alignment with computer guided tamping stable ground conditions and demand a track
machines when working with track slab. structure with a high level of availability and
reliability. Similar requirements apply for light
Furthermore, experienced civil engineers who
rail lines with combined rail and road traffic.
are used to working with concrete need to
Because of the constraints in dense populated
appreciate that the tolerances in rail
areas light rail alignments may share running
construction are much tighter than in other
space with road traffic.
infrastructure works. Hence, the component
assembly, the delivery and the finishing of One of the key factors for the successful
concrete associated with track alignment delivery of a track slab system is to find a
creates an interface which has to be very well logistical solution to the transportation of
integrated into the whole process. materials, plant and personnel in restricted
spaces during the construction phase.
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
Figure 7 typical single track tunnel, Rhomberg project: Cologne Metro Installation of track slab system
on single supporting points (distributed on walkways)
1,540 sleepers, 650mm spacing, 80kg concrete pouring works and so on. Special
each or 200 sleepers per delivery logistical solutions like transporting the 12m to
truck equal to 8 trucks per week 25m long rails on the newly completed tracks
20 legs of 110m long rails instead of using road trucks could help
Transportation for daily work shift reducing impact on public roads. The same
changes could apply to delivering sleepers,
Site engineers, surveying teams, etc. reinforcement and concrete. Work trains
designed for this type of environment could
Generating a lot of traffic in a tunnel requires a pick up the materials from a stockpile with a
planned logistical solution. With advancing yard functioning like an intermodal terminal.
progress of the track slab system, the following
works will start and will also require There are successful examples for these types
transportation through the tunnel over the of work trains running on light rail tracks. E.g.
completed sections. (see 7.1 Track slab the CarGo Tram in Dresden (GER) delivers
installation the Loetschberg base tunnel car parts to the Volkswagen factory running
(CH)). over infrastructure normally used to move
passengers. The route from the logistics
It is possible to apply this tunnel logistics center to the factory runs straight through the
concept to working in an urban street inner city of Dresden. The use of road trucks
environment. Imagine building a new light rail would cause an increase in road traffic.
in the CBD of Sydney, let us take George Furthermore deliveries by train are more
Street as our example. This worksite can be predictable and projectable compared to road
compared with a tunnel system with only bound traffic when leaving the storage area
limited access from the outside. It also has the and arriving at the job site. A much better
further complication of being a living coordinated and safer material supply chain
environment with traffic going on 24/7; cars, will be the result which will positively affect the
busses, trucks and pedestrians will have to construction progress.
pass the inner city worksite safely and ideally
without interrupting the ongoing construction 7 CASE STUDIES OF SUCCESSFUL
works. Like in a tunnel there are only very DELIVERED TRACK SLAB PROJECT
limited stockpile sites available within the close In the following section a selected project have
vicinity of the actual work. So every delivery been used to highlight some key factors for the
has to be scheduled, e.g. sleepers should be successful delivery of track slab projects in a
delivered before the rails, alignment constrained environment like tunnels. The
adjustment works have to be coordinated with main focus of this example is the installation of
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
the track elements which will be shown as a track slab. The whole delivery process wont
single work site knowing that in those complex be discussed in this paper due to its
projects several other activities happen complexity. But the specially developed
simultaneously. installation process of the track slab is
described below.
7.1 Track slab installation the
Loetschberg base tunnel (CH) Reusable 18m long skeleton track panels were
equipped with LVT sleepers. These were
The Loetschberg base tunnel in Switzerland is
prepared in an assembly shop outside of the
part of one of the main routes crossing the
tunnel. 120 of these prefabricated skeleton
Alps from North to South. The 35km long twin
tunnel system was equipped with panels were transported by train into the
Switzerlands standard track slab system LVT tunnel each three weeks. The skeleton panels
were constructed to be trafficable by the work
(Low Vibration Track).
trains once they were roughly adjusted and
One advantage of the LVT-system is its temporarily fixed to the ground. After placing
effective vibration attenuation due to the dual- 2,160m of temporarily track with a gantry
level elasticity of the system with a mass crane running on the side walkways the final
(concrete block) between two elastic adjustment of the alignment began. This was
components (rail pad and block pad). It is then followed by pouring the concrete in two
suitable for high speed, heavy haul and light stages. The concrete was delivered in 7m3
concrete mixing drums, transported from the
Figure 8 Overview Loetschberg base tunnel Figure 9 Low Vibration Track sleeper (LVT)
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
Work flow
direction
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
Table 3 Example of the difference of quality of track position between slab track and ballast track [4]
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra
Garry Thuer & Henrik Vocks Track slab system technology in Australia
Rhomberg Rail Australia Innovation challenges based on European
long term experiences
beginning of a project has significant impact on costs together with upcoming projects will
the maintenance costs over the whole lifetime provide opportunities to discover and
of the track (factor 2:1). The report also implement the advantages of track slab
concludes that the Life Cycle Costs LCC of systems. The experiences and the lessons
one of the cheaper, and by SBB preferred, learnt overseas can be used by Australian
track slab system are equivalent to ballasted companies to avoiding some of the learning
tracks on open track. In tunnels the track slab steps of the European development process.
is the most economic solution [2].
REFERENCES
Another paper [3] describes that the contractor
[1] Denis Kocan (11/2005), 12. Fachtagung
in projects, especially in Public Private des IFF Weimar e.V., Feste Fahrbahn
Partnerships (PPP), has to guarantee Oberbau Einsatzgebiete fuer die
operation over a long period and to a large Betontechnologie; (12.Symposium of IFF
degree its profit depends on achieving levels Weimar association, Track Slab
of availability of the infrastructure. Therefore a Superstructure Fields of Application for
reliable and highly available railway is one of
concrete)
the keys to profitability. Also track slab has an
advantage over ballasted track when it comes [2] R. Steinegger and others,
to maintenance requirements, which has been Systementscheidung Feste Fahrbahn
long understood. versus Schotteroberbau fuer die
schweizerische Bundesbahn (SBB);
Table 3 describes the track quality value Q of (System Decision Track Slab versus
ballasted track and track slab sections Ballasted Track for the Swiss Railways
compared over a 5 year period at the high
SBB)
speed line Hannover Wuerzburg in particular
the Sengeberg tunnel. The track quality value [3] R. Schilder and others, RTR special
is a numeric conclusion including the track (2007), Installation Quality of Slab Track
parameters horizontal and vertical alignment, A Decisive Factor for Maintenance
superelevation, twist and gauge. The track
quality value (red graphs) of the track slab [4] E. Darr / W. Fiebig, Feste Fahrbahn -
section stays more or less the same over the 5 Konstruktion und Bauarten fr Eisenbahn
year period and significantly under the more und Strassenbahn; (Track Slab
variable values for the ballasted track section. Construction and Systems for Heavy and
The value of the ballasted track section shows Light Rail)
a rapid increase of the track quality value
(=degradation of track geometry) until a major
reconditioning was done.
9 CONCLUSION
Australian experiences of installing track slab
systems are limited to some smaller projects
where ballasted track couldnt fulfil the design
requirements e.g. track stability, limited
clearances, limited superstructure height
(underpass) or where combined road/rail traffic
was necessary (light rail). The increasing
traffic, the demand of high availability of
railways and the quest of cutting maintenance
AusRAIL 2012
27 28 November 2012, Canberra