Ballasted Track versus Ballastless Track

Abstract

First concrete sleepers were made of normal reinforced concrete and used during the 1930s and 1940s. Concrete railroad ties became popular in Europe after World War II because of the advances in design, material quality and production of pre-stressed concrete. Now as before, concrete sleepers on ballast represent the primary basis of track construction, around the world, but the twin block concrete sleepers are also popular and widely used. The continuously increasing operational loads and speeds forced the railway companies to update their technical and economic system to keep their vital role in transporting passengers and merchandise. In this development a very important role played the superstructure of the railroad system, and this modernization process led to appearing of the ballastless track system approximately 60 years ago. The article presents a comparison of two main types of track systems, including technical and economic aspects.