By Jeff Tuzik On freight railroads, rail is generally the largest single asset, capital expenditure, and one of the primary costs. From a maintenance perspective, rail is subject to wear and defect development, both of which can be actively managed in a number of ways. From an accounting perspective, rail …
Presenting experts at Wheel/Rail Interaction 2022 made it clear that there’s more to inspection than meets the eye. Education and training can help reduce errors and improve inspection efficiency. By Bob Tuzik “Human Factors” are frequently cited as cause codes in railway incidents and derailments. But while track and mechanical …
by Jeff Tuzik Transit systems around the world, despite their differences, all contend with the same issues to some degree. Issues like vehicle- and ground-borne vibrations, excess noise, and timetable delays often rise in priority as they generate increasing numbers of complaints. These issues are often symptoms that can be …
By Jeff Tuzik The concept of big data is something the railroad industry has been aware of for many years. The Federal Railroad Administration, for example, has been involved in research and development projects involving big data, neural networks and machine learning since as early as 2002. The prevalence and proliferation …
By Jeff Tuzik Rolling Contact Fatigue (RCF) is an issue every railroad, and many transit systems, around the world must contend with. Despite its ubiquity, RCF is not perfectly understood. There are many researchers, railroad operators and suppliers, experts in their field, working to understand and eliminate RCF and its attendant …
By Jeff Tuzik For over 20 years, the Wheel/Rail Interaction conferences have brought together railway industry professionals, researchers and suppliers to share their expertise in the field of wheel/rail interaction. Until recently, the conferences have been held only in the United States and have drawn on North American experiences. In …
By Jeff Tuzik (See Part 1) The benefits of taking a proactive approach to wheel/rail interface management are well known. Year after year at Wheel Rail Interaction conferences, speakers have extolled the benefits of moving away from costly reactive maintenance strategies. The “firefighting” method of moving from one critical exception to …
By Bob Tuzik • May 26, 2005 The Federal Railroad Administration’s Office of Research and Development is not the best known R&D organization in the industry, but it is one of the most important. It’s work figures prominently in rulemaking and the regulatory process for the industry. That role is …
By Norman Hooper • July 2010 See Part 1. Experience has shown that an efficient and cost-effective rail grinding program requires attention to basic track inspection and maintenance procedures. This includes attention to “hot spots,” such as joints, welds and road crossings. Figure 1 shows a rail joint at the end …
By Mike Roney • July, 2009 Canadian Pacific has taken a unique approach to reducing the stress state in its western corridor. The approach includes the implementation of distributed power and the implementation of friction management. It also includes examination of their combined effects — something that is relatively new. Looking at …