Resilient Mats for Improved Performance of Rail Track Foundation

Abstract

Transportation is the major factor in the economic, social and overall development of any country. Railways are the key to achieve such a fast track development in lesser time. Indian Railway (IR) has put itself in challenge of gaining competency and a large share of the transportation market, as was in the old days. And as these changes are happening very fast, a simultaneous development in the technology must undergo swift transformation. This paper presents application of globally tested and accepted technology of resilient mats made from recycled rubber, used in rail track foundation as Under Sleeper Pads (USP) or as Under Ballast Mats (UBM). But global standards are completely different from Indian Standards, so some modifications are necessary before application. In this paper, a standard section of rail track currently adopted by Indian Railways is compared with the section modified with the application of resilient mat. When analysed, various benefits such as improved life cycle of track, reduced maintenance cost, etc., have been seen. So this could be a game changer technology for IR to achieve goal within the approved budget and the allocated time period. Also the stability of track was seen to be improved sufficiently with the use of resilient mats to operate semi high-speed trains and higher axle loads.