RAILROAD BRIDGE AND TRACK DESIGN AND

COORDINATION ISSUESLloyd M. Wolf, P.E.

Coordination with Railroad

• Meet with Railroad Early in Project Development to Discuss

• Railroad Track Operations are Very Important

• Minimize Impact on RR Operations• LOA and RR Agreement

Structure Type Selection

andBridge Design

Superstructure Considerations

• Safety

–Highway Users

–Railroad

• Required Span for Horizontal Clearance

–Column Protection

• Adequate Vertical Clearance

Preferred Railroad Grade Separations

1. Overpass2. UPRR Steel Deck Girder Standards3. Deck Plate Girder w/ Steel Deck4. Steel Girder w/ Conc Deck5. Prestressed Beam w/ Conc Deck6. Thru-Girder w/ Steel Deck

UPRR Deck Girder Standard• Depth-Top / Rail to Low Chord = 5’-5”

• Steel Deck

• 69 ft Max

Span Length

Thru Girder• Depth-Top / Rail to Low Chord = 4’-6”

• Steel Deck

• 155 ft Max

Span Length

Superstructure Considerations

• TxDOT Design Requirements

• UPRR-BNSF Design Guidelines

• KCS Design Guidelines

• Composite and Non-Composite Design

• No Sacrificial Beams

• Design for 30” Ballast

• Ballast Depth for Concrete Tie

Vertical Clearance

• Steel Deck Girder 16.5 ft

• Steel Thru Girder-Bolt Bot Fl 17.5 ft

• Prestressed Conc 17.5 ft

• Hwy Over RR 23.33 ft

Design Development and Review

Processwith Railroads

Railroad Underpass

• 30% Submittal - Exhibit “A”

• 60% Submittal

• 90% Submittal

• 100% PS&E Plans

RR Agreement with Exhibit “B”

30% Submittal - Exhibit “A”• Preliminary:

– Bridge Layout

– Track Plan and Profile

– Track Typical Sections

• Structure Type Selection Report

– Thru Girder

• LOA Facilitate RR Review

Structure Type Selection Report

• Required for Thru-Girder• Design Factors Considered

–Underpassing Roadway Width–Clear Zone–Vertical Clearance

• Consider All Options for Railroad

RR Requirements Sheets

60% Submittal

• Complete Bridge Plans

• Complete Mainline and ShooFly Track Plans and Profiles

• Railroad Track Standards

• Mainline and ShooFly Typical Sections

60% Submittal, ctd• Track Sections every 50 ft

• Division of Labor

• Sequence

of Work

90% Submittal

• Revised Complete Bridge Plans

• Revised Complete Mainline and ShooFly

• Track Plans and Profiles

• Mainline & ShooFly Typ Sections

90% Submittal, ctd

• Track Sections every 50 ft

• All Parts of PS&E that Affect the Railroad

• All Specifications

100% Submittal• Complete PS&E That Affects RR• Complete Bridge Plans• Complete Mainline and ShooFly• Track Plans and Profiles• Mainline & ShooFly Typ Sections• Sequence and Division of Work• RR Agreement w/ Exhibit “B”

Attachment

Mainline Bridge Replacement

Shoo-Fly Construction

Track Plans & Sequence of Work

• Bridge Replacement on Mainline• Longer Span and Increased

Clearance• Track Raise• Shoo-Fly Construction Best

Maintains RR Operations

Track Design Speed

• Railroad Operating Dept

Determines Speed

• Mainline & ShooFly Same Speed ?

–Existing Conditions

–Future Upgrades

–Design Speed Agreement

Railroad Track Grade Raise

• No Grade Raise is Desirable

• 6” Max Raise with Ballast Only

• Use Subballast for Greater Raises

• ShooFly Profile Grade

• Ballast Delivery May Be an Issue

Bridge Designand

Track DesignResources

Bridge and Track Design Resources

• TxDOT and Individual Railroad• Use TxDOT Annotated Guidelines

–TxDOT Website• BRG Project Development Web Page

–BRG FTP Site• AREMA and AASHTO

Bridge and Track Design Resources

• UPRR, BNSF, KCS Guidelines and Standards

• Updated Requirements and Standards

TxDOT Bridge FTP Site:

–ftp://bridge:txdot1@ftp.dot.state.tx.us

–Railroad Bridge and Track Design

Ballasted Track Construction Specification

• Bridge Division has a Reference Spec Available for Project Use

• Bridge Division is Workingto Develop StatewideSpecial Spec

ThankYou

Lloyd M. Wolf, P.E.512-416-2279

lwolf@dot.state.tx.us

Estimated Costs 2008

Bridgeand

Track

Estimated Railroad Costs 2008

Steel Deck Girder = $350 / SFwith Steel Deck

Steel Thru Girder = $450 / SFwith Steel Deck

Prestressed Beam = $225 / SFwith Concrete Deck

Estimated Railroad Costs 2008

ShooFly Bridge

with Open Deck =

$350,000 / EA

Temp SpecialShoring = $60 / SF

Estimated Railroad Costs 2008

Ballasted Track = $240 / LFwith 1 ft Raise

Ballasted Track = $170 / LFNo Raise

Ballasted Track = $45 / LFRemoval

Estimated Railroad Costs 2008

Turnout / Switch = $85,000 / EA

Signal for Switch = $50,000 / EA

Including Circuit

Estimated Railroad Costs 2008

Engineering Design Review = $100-175,000

And Construction Inspection

Railroad Flagging = $900 / Day

Mainline Track Raise at Turnout

Mainline Track Raise with Ballast Retainer