Identify severe track geometry defect combinations for maintenance planning

Abstract

ABSTRACT Combined track defects (multiple types of track defects occurring in the same vicinity of a track section) pose greater challenges and risks for train operational safety. This study proposed a method to identify severe track defect combinations that pose greater risks for vehicle derailments. The method includes three main stages. The first stage uses literature review, industry survey, and Track Recording Car data analysis to determine track defect combinations that exist in reality and are of interest to the infrastructure managers. The second stage uses single vehicle simulations to further fine-tune the focus and select the more severe combinations. The third stage uses comprehensive simulations to determine the increases of derailment risks due to combined track defects. More than 5,000 simulations were conducted in this study using supercomputers. A tabular tool was developed to help infrastructure managers to adjust maintenance reactions when track defects are found in combinations.