United States Department of Transportation
i
Effect of enhanced trackbed support on railway/highway at-grade crossing performance.
-
2014-12-01
[PDF-23.80 MB]
Details:
-
Creators:
-
Corporate Creators:
-
Corporate Contributors:
-
Subject/TRT Terms:
-
Publication/ Report Number:
-
Resource Type:
-
Geographical Coverage:
-
Corporate Publisher:
-
Abstract:This report documents the long-term performance of 89 railway/highway at-grade crossings in
Kentucky and adjacent states that contain asphalt underlayment underneath the ballast. Asphalt
underlayment increases load carrying capacity for trains and highway vehicles while enhancing
the support structure’s waterproofing and confinement. The asphalt underlayment crossings
studied were installed at sites that had historically exhibited poor performance and short service
lives. Most of the crossing sites evaluated were 10-15 years old; however, their ages ranged up to
30 years. All of the crossings investigated have shown excellent performance since the
installation of asphalt underlayments. No crossing failures, such as excessive settlement or mud
pumping, have been noted, and the service lives of the crossing surfaces have been significantly
improved. Detailed results from periodic inspections are included. A literature survey focuses on
eleven public agencies and railroad companies that implement asphalt underlayments. Most of
these entities install asphalt underlayments at heavy traffic/tonnage crossings that have routinely
shown evidence of weak support leading to inferior performance. This survey, along with the
empirical results of this study, indicates that asphalt underlayment, irrespective of material used
on crossing surfaces, extends the service life of crossings and improves their performance.
-
Format:
-
Funding:
-
Collection(s):
-
Main Document Checksum:
-
Download URL:
-
File Type:
