Track performance under heavy-axle-loads at the eastern and western mega sites

摘要

Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI), under the Strategic Research Initiatives (SRI) Program of the Association of Ameri- can Railroads (AAR) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), continues to spearhead track and structure research at two heavy-axle-load (HAL) revenue service test sites; the western mega site is located near Ogallala, Neb., and the eastern mega site is located near Bluefield, W. Va. Both mega sites are on mainlines that see predominantly loaded 286,000-pound coal car traffic, contributing to an estimated annual tonnage of 220 to 250 million gross tons (mgt) at the western mega site and approximately 55 mgt at the eastern mega site.