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Full-Text Articles in Science and Technology Studies
The Asian Evolution Of High Speed Rail, Philip G. Laird
The Asian Evolution Of High Speed Rail, Philip G. Laird
Dr Philip Laird
In Australia, in 2001, the Howard government released an East Coast HSR Scoping Study. This followed two major investigations by the private sector into HSR options for Australia; the first being a Sydney Canberra Melbourne Very Fast Train as proposed in 1984 by CSIRO, and the second being the Sydney Canberra Speed HSR proposal.
Too Many Loads On Our Roads When Rail Is The Answer, Philip Laird
Too Many Loads On Our Roads When Rail Is The Answer, Philip Laird
Dr Philip Laird
“Without trucks, Australia stops” is now a fact of modern life. But when all costs are considered, road freight is an expensive way of moving large amounts of freight. And, as shown by ongoing fatal crashes involving large trucks, road freight can also be dangerous. The main beneficiaries of road freight are not the truck drivers who work hard in a dangerous occupation, but the companies that choose to consign large quantities of freight by road. Road freight has seen strong growth, in part, due to good service levels and major road improvements that include highways with dual carriageways and …
High Speed Rail In Australia - Much Studied And Slow To Start, Philip Laird
High Speed Rail In Australia - Much Studied And Slow To Start, Philip Laird
Dr Philip Laird
High Speed Rail or HSR with electric passenger trains operating at speeds of 250km/h or more is now operational in 11 countries and has been under recent consideration in Australia for future operation between Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and Brisbane. The paper outlines HSR studies in Australia and conditionally quantifies the potential reduction of aviation fuel use at up to 0.5m litres per annum from the introduction of HSR by 2020 in Australia with a reduction of external costs at $540m per annum by 2020. In addition, HSR in Eastern Australia by 2020 could allow for some 300 slots to be …
Shifting Freight To Rail Could Make The Pacific Highway Safer, Philip G. Laird
Shifting Freight To Rail Could Make The Pacific Highway Safer, Philip G. Laird
Dr Philip Laird
Articulated trucks such as semi-trailers and "B-Doubles" are involved in about 30% of fatal road accidents on the Pacific Highway. As the number of trucks carrying freight between Sydney and Brisbane increases, we will see more tragic incidents like the fatal crash involving a B-Double on 8 January 2012 near Urunga.
Faster Out Of The Station: Asia Surges Ahead On Rail, Philip Laird
Faster Out Of The Station: Asia Surges Ahead On Rail, Philip Laird
Dr Philip Laird
It is interesting to see the progressmade by Asian countries since 2001 in developing high-speed rail (HSR),while Australia is missing out.
Government Rail Asset Sales, And Return To The Public Sector, In New Zealand And Tasmania, Philip G. Laird
Government Rail Asset Sales, And Return To The Public Sector, In New Zealand And Tasmania, Philip G. Laird
Dr Philip Laird
The paper outlines the sale, with a track lease, in 1993 of the state owned New Zealand Railways Corporation to a consortium, TranzRail Holdings formed by the United States and New Zealand interests. It also notes increases in productivity and traffic levels to 1999 with subsequent problems leading to the New Zealand Government agreeing in 2003 to repurchase and rehabilitate the track. The paper then outlines transfer of effective ownership of the trains and related services in 2003 to an Australian company, and in 2008 back to the New Zealand Government at appreciable net cost.After a brief outline of railways …
Effects Of Geosynthetic Reinforcement On Performance Of Ballasted Rail Track, Pongpipat Anantanasakul, Buddhima Indraratna, Sanjay S. Nimbalkar, Tim Neville
Effects Of Geosynthetic Reinforcement On Performance Of Ballasted Rail Track, Pongpipat Anantanasakul, Buddhima Indraratna, Sanjay S. Nimbalkar, Tim Neville
Buddhima Indraratna
The 'field' performance of different geosynthetics to reinforce ballasted rail tracks was investigated. An extensive monitoring program was undertaken on fully instrumented track sections constructed near Singleton, New South Wales. Four types of geosynthetics were installed at the ballast-subballast interface of track sections located on subgrades with three distinctly different values of stiffness. It was found that geogrids could decrease vertical settlements of the ballast layer with obvious benefits of improved track stability and decreased maintenance cost. It was also found that the effectiveness of reinforcing geogrids increased when the subgrade stiffness decreased. Keywords: Geosynthetic, Reinforcement, Rail track, Ballast.
Rail Track Infrastructure For Enhanced Speed - Analysis Design And Construction Challenges, Buddhima Indraratna, Sanjay Shrawan Nimbalkar, Jayan Sylaja J S Vinod
Rail Track Infrastructure For Enhanced Speed - Analysis Design And Construction Challenges, Buddhima Indraratna, Sanjay Shrawan Nimbalkar, Jayan Sylaja J S Vinod
Buddhima Indraratna
Rail is one of the largest transportation modes offering freight and passenger traffic in rapidly developing nations, including India. Conscious efforts to improve productivity, modernization and technology upgrading have led to an impressive growth in railways. Large-scale physical modeling, sophisticated numerical modeling and full-scale field monitoring often provide significant knowledge to better understand track performance and to extend the current state-of-the-art in design. A series of large-scale laboratory tests were conducted to establish relationships between (i) ballast breakage and train speed, (ii) ballast fouling and strength and (iii) interface strength and geogrids. Comprehensive field trials were carried out on instrumented …
From Theory To Practice In Rail Geotechnology, B Indraratna, Sanjay Nimbalkar, N Tennakoon, Q D. Sun
From Theory To Practice In Rail Geotechnology, B Indraratna, Sanjay Nimbalkar, N Tennakoon, Q D. Sun
Buddhima Indraratna
In recent times the increase in axle loads and train speeds have posed serious geotechnical issues with ballasted railway tracks, both in Australia and the world. The large deformations and degradation of ballast under cyclic and impact loads, and the low bearing capacity of compacted ballast and impaired drainage often exacerbate track maintenance. In recent times in Australia, geosynthetics have been trialed in ballasted tracks constructed on soft and saturated formations to help improve stability and longevity. Comprehensive field studies on instrumented tracks at Bulli (near Wollongong) and Singleton (near Newcastle) supported by RailCorp and ARTC, were carried out to …
Effects Of Fouling On The Stress-Strain-Degradation Behaviour Of Rail Ballast, Buddhima Indraratna, Nayoma C. Tennakoon, Sanjay Nimbalkar, Cholachat Rujikiatkamjorn
Effects Of Fouling On The Stress-Strain-Degradation Behaviour Of Rail Ballast, Buddhima Indraratna, Nayoma C. Tennakoon, Sanjay Nimbalkar, Cholachat Rujikiatkamjorn
Buddhima Indraratna
Ballast is most commonly used as a structural component of rail track due to its high load bearing capacity, resiliency and rapid drainage. However, ballast along coal freight corridors often becomes fouled due to spilling of coal from moving wagons, in addition to further track deterioration attributed to particle breakage and pumping of soft subgrade. Highly fouled ballast needs to be cleaned or replaced to maintain the desired track resiliency, load bearing capacity and the track alignment. In order to identify the risk associated with fouling, it is important to accurately assess the amount of fouling. In this paper, the …