This paper reports the development and testing of two independent, innovative techniques for measuring rail displacements. One system combines remote video monitoring with particle image velocimetry, using a webcam and a small telescope. The second uses sleeper mounted geophones that give a voltage output proportional to the velocity of motion, which can be filtered and integrated to calculate displacements. Laboratory validation tests show that the video monitoring system can measure peak-to-peak displacements to within 0.04 mm from a distance of 15 m for frequencies less than 4 Hz. The geophones measure peak-to-peak displacements to within 0.07 mm for frequencies as low as 1 Hz. Data from three different standards of railway track and/or train speeds are used to explore and quantify the limitations of each system in the field.