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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2010. Track-Related Research, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/14347.
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TRANSPORTAT ION RESEARCH BOARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 2010 www.TRB.org T R A N S I T C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M TCRP REPORT 71 Research sponsored by the Federal Transit Administration in cooperation with the Transit Development Corporation Subject Areas Public Transit • Rail Track-Related Research Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation Xinggao Shu Nicholas Wilson TRANSPORTATION TECHNOLOGY CENTER, INC. Pueblo, CO

TCRP REPORT 71: VOLUME 7 Project D-7/Task 16 ISSN 1073-4872 ISBN 978-0-309-11817-0 Library of Congress Control Number 2001135523 © 2010 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. COPYRIGHT INFORMATION Authors herein are responsible for the authenticity of their materials and for obtaining written permissions from publishers or persons who own the copyright to any previously published or copyrighted material used herein. Cooperative Research Programs (CRP) grants permission to reproduce material in this publication for classroom and not-for-profit purposes. Permission is given with the understanding that none of the material will be used to imply TRB, AASHTO, FAA, FHWA, FMCSA, FTA, or Transit Development Corporation endorsement of a particular product, method, or practice. It is expected that those reproducing the material in this document for educational and not-for-profit uses will give appropriate acknowledgment of the source of any reprinted or reproduced material. For other uses of the material, request permission from CRP. NOTICE The project that is the subject of this report was a part of the Transit Cooperative Research Program conducted by the Transportation Research Board with the approval of the Governing Board of the National Research Council. Such approval reflects the Governing Board’s judgment that the project concerned is appropriate with respect to both the purposes and resources of the National Research Council. The members of the technical advisory panel selected to monitor this project and to review this report were chosen for recognized scholarly competence and with due consideration for the balance of disciplines appropriate to the project. The opinions and conclusions expressed or implied are those of the research agency that performed the research, and while they have been accepted as appropriate by the technical panel, they are not necessarily those of the Transportation Research Board, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, or the Federal Transit Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Each report is reviewed and accepted for publication by the technical panel according to procedures established and monitored by the Transportation Research Board Executive Committee and the Governing Board of the National Research Council. The Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, the National Research Council, the Transit Development Corporation, and the Federal Transit Administration (sponsor of the Transit Cooperative Research Program) do not endorse products or manufacturers. Trade or manufacturers’ names appear herein solely because they are considered essential to the clarity and completeness of the project reporting. TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM The nation’s growth and the need to meet mobility, environmental, and energy objectives place demands on public transit systems. Current systems, some of which are old and in need of upgrading, must expand service area, increase service frequency, and improve efficiency to serve these demands. Research is necessary to solve operating problems, to adapt appropriate new technologies from other industries, and to intro- duce innovations into the transit industry. The Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) serves as one of the principal means by which the transit industry can develop innovative near-term solutions to meet demands placed on it. The need for TCRP was originally identified in TRB Special Report 213—Research for Public Transit: New Directions, published in 1987 and based on a study sponsored by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration—now the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). A report by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), Transportation 2000, also recognized the need for local, problem- solving research. TCRP, modeled after the longstanding and success- ful National Cooperative Highway Research Program, undertakes research and other technical activities in response to the needs of tran- sit service providers. The scope of TCRP includes a variety of transit research fields including planning, service configuration, equipment, facilities, operations, human resources, maintenance, policy, and administrative practices. TCRP was established under FTA sponsorship in July 1992. Pro- posed by the U.S. Department of Transportation, TCRP was autho- rized as part of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA). On May 13, 1992, a memorandum agreement out- lining TCRP operating procedures was executed by the three cooper- ating organizations: FTA, the National Academies, acting through the Transportation Research Board (TRB); and the Transit Development Corporation, Inc. (TDC), a nonprofit educational and research orga- nization established by APTA. TDC is responsible for forming the independent governing board, designated as the TCRP Oversight and Project Selection (TOPS) Committee. Research problem statements for TCRP are solicited periodically but may be submitted to TRB by anyone at any time. It is the responsibility of the TOPS Committee to formulate the research program by identi- fying the highest priority projects. As part of the evaluation, the TOPS Committee defines funding levels and expected products. Once selected, each project is assigned to an expert panel, appointed by the Transportation Research Board. The panels prepare project state- ments (requests for proposals), select contractors, and provide techni- cal guidance and counsel throughout the life of the project. The process for developing research problem statements and selecting research agencies has been used by TRB in managing cooperative research pro- grams since 1962. As in other TRB activities, TCRP project panels serve voluntarily without compensation. Because research cannot have the desired impact if products fail to reach the intended audience, special emphasis is placed on dissemi- nating TCRP results to the intended end users of the research: tran- sit agencies, service providers, and suppliers. TRB provides a series of research reports, syntheses of transit practice, and other support- ing material developed by TCRP research. APTA will arrange for workshops, training aids, field visits, and other activities to ensure that results are implemented by urban and rural transit industry practitioners. The TCRP provides a forum where transit agencies can cooperatively address common operational problems. The TCRP results support and complement other ongoing transit research and training programs. Published reports of the TRANSIT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM are available from: Transportation Research Board Business Office 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001 and can be ordered through the Internet at http://www.national-academies.org/trb/bookstore Printed in the United States of America

CRP STAFF FOR TCRP REPORT 71: VOLUME 7 Christopher W. Jenks, Director, Cooperative Research Programs Crawford F. Jencks, Deputy Director, Cooperative Research Programs S. A. Parker, Senior Program Officer Eileen P. Delaney, Director of Publications Maria Crawford, Assistant Editor TCRP PROJECT D-7/TASK 16 PANEL Field of Engineering of Fixed Facilities Anthony Bohara, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, Philadelphia, PA (Chair) Steven Abramopaulos, PATH Corp., Jersey City, NJ Michael O. Brown, San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District, Oakland, CA Michael K. Couse, DMJM Harris AECOM, St. Paul, MN James Dwyer, Consultant, Wexford, PA William H. Moorhead, TRAMMCO, LLC, Smithfield, VA Jeffrey G. Mora, Consultant, Washington, DC James Nelson, Wilson, Ihrig & Associates, Inc., Oakland, CA Jerome M. Nery, RTD Fastracks, Denver, CO Terrell Williams, FTA Liaison Louis F. Sanders, American Public Transportation Association Liaison Gunars Spons, Federal Railroad Administration Liaison Elaine King, TRB Liaison C O O P E R A T I V E R E S E A R C H P R O G R A M S

This report includes the results of a research task carried out under TCRP Project D-7, “Joint Rail Transit-Related Research with the Association of American Railroads/ Transportation Technology Center, Inc.” The report includes comparisons of two guard rail installation philosophies and the effects of vehicle types, wheel flange angle, wheel/rail (W/R) friction coefficient, curve radius, cant deficiency, and track perturbation on flange climb derailments that have been investigated through simulations. It offers guidance that transit agencies can follow in their W/R maintenance practices for both transit rail cars and light rail vehicles. This report should be of interest to engineers involved in the design, con- struction, maintenance, and operation of rail transit systems. Over the years, a number of track-related research problem statements have been sub- mitted for consideration in the TCRP project selection process. In many instances, the research requested has been similar to research currently being performed for the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the freight railroads by the Transportation Technology Center, Inc. (TTCI), Pueblo, Colorado, a subsidiary of the Association of American Rail- roads (AAR). Transit track, signal, and rail vehicle experts reviewed the research being conducted by TTCI. Based on this effort, a number of research topics were identified where TCRP funding could be used to take advantage of research currently being per- formed at the TTCI for the benefit of the transit industry. A final report on one of these efforts—Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation—is presented in this publication. A railroad train running along a track is one of the most complex dynamic systems in engineering due to the presence of many nonlinear components. Wheel and rail geometries have a significant effect on vehicle dynamic performance and operating safety. The W/R interaction in transit operations has its own special characteristics. Transit systems have adopted different W/R profile standards for different reasons. Older systems with long his- tories have W/R profile standards that were established many years ago. Newer systems have generally selected W/R profiles based on an increased understanding of W/R interaction in recent years. Transit systems are typically operated in dense urban areas, which frequently results in systems that contain a large number of curves with small radii that can increase W/R wear and increase the potential for flange climb derailments. Transit systems also operate a wide range of vehicle types, such as those used in commuter rail, light rail, and rapid transit ser- vices, with a wide range of suspension designs and performance characteristics. Increasing operating speed and the introduction of new vehicle designs have posed an even greater challenge for transit systems to maintain and improve W/R interaction. F O R E W O R D By S. A. Parker Staff Officer Transportation Research Board

Under TCRP Project D-7 Task 16, TTCI was asked to compare the effects of two guard rail installation philosophies on vehicle performance and to develop guidelines for the application of guard/restraining rails based on vehicle type, track geometry, and operations conditions. Simulations show that Philosophy I (shared contact between the high-rail flange and the guard rail on the low-rail wheel) leads to better vehicle dynamic performance than Philosophy II (no high-rail flange contact with the guard rail contact on the low-rail wheel) in terms of lower lateral forces on rails, lower vehicle rolling resistance, and lower leading axle wear. The effects of vehicle types, wheel flange angle, W/R friction coefficient, curve radius, cant deficiency, and track perturbations on flange climb derailments have also been inves- tigated through simulations. From this study, TTCI developed guidelines for guard/ restraining rail installation in terms of vehicle type and track geometry.

C O N T E N T S 1 Summary 3 Chapter 1 Introduction 3 1.1 Philosophy I 3 1.2 Philosophy II 5 Chapter 2 Literature Review 6 Chapter 3 Comparisons of Two Guard Rail Installation Philosophies 6 3.1 Transit Rail Cars (Type 1) 8 3.2 Light Rail Vehicles (Type 1) 12 Chapter 4 Transit Vehicle Flange Climb Derailment Simulation 12 4.1 Simulation Cases 12 4.2 Transit Rail Cars 19 4.3 Light Rail Vehicles 22 4.4 Summary of Flange Climb Derailment Simulations 24 Chapter 5 Conclusions 26 References

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TRB’s Transit Cooperative Research Program (TCRP) Report 71, Volume 7: Guidelines for Guard/Restraining Rail Installation explores two guard rail installation philosophies and the effects of vehicle types, wheel flange angle, wheel/rail friction coefficient, curve radius, cant deficiency, and track perturbation on flange climb derailments.

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