Quote:
Originally Posted by Panther Al
Depends on how long the track has been out of service, but mainline rail should be in fairly good condition even after two to three years: A lot of the tricky bits - turnouts, and the like - might need some attention, but the bulk of the major mainlines even in the 90's was being converted over to concrete ties and welded 130 pound or higher rail in the US, and nearly all of Europe was converted over on the mains with the same as well. I would still take a gauging party down the tracks to confirm, especially where there might have been tracked vehicle activity on or near tracks, but I would feel reasonably confident to run down the tracks - slowly.  |
I guess it must depend on the location and possibly RR, because in five different states the places I generally see concrete ties are on curves. Concrete come with their own set of problems as far as maintenance goes, and they cost a lot more than wood. They're a pain to replace or change the hardware out on, compared to wood. I friggin hate concrete ties.
The condition of the rails themselves isnt the only concern I'd have. I prob should have gone more into detail, but I kinda got caught up playing World of Tanks.
Without maintenance crews, the natural cycles of hot and cold are going to play merry hell on the lines. Especially hot. Welded rail isn't immune to that, either. You're right in that sending a vehicle to check gauge ahead of the train would most likely work, esp if you've got nothing against moving your cargo slowly. It'd suck to hit a spot where the heat made the track all wonky, doing it's best impersonation of a sidewinder snake, at 55 mph when you're hauling a couple hundred thousand tons of coal. Or, you know, ANYTHING for that matter.
After seeing what a week of 95-105 degree temps can do with rail (it's fun to cut when it's 105 degrees out), I hate to imagine what several years without maintenance would result in.
After a winter or two with no maintenance, I'd definitely be sending someone who knew what they were about ahead of any traffic on jointed rail. But I really dislike jointed rail. So that could be my personal opinion creeping in.
Also, the welded vs jointed is greatly dependent on the RR. I've seen one that has jointed (I'm pretty sure 115 lb) rail on their mains. And not some "corn field to grain silo" RR, either, they've got track through about half of one of the biggest states in the US. 'Course, they seem to exist more as a tax write-off for a certain mining billionaire more than anything else, so it doesn't surprise me that their track is....eh....."unsat" (In my opinion, of course).