South: University of Southampton researchers help the UK rail industry cut costs and reduce delays

Researchers from the University of Southampton have led a national project to help the UK rail industry reduce delays and achieve multi-million-pound savings.

Practical measures to aid landslip prevention and enhance track stability are among the improvements pinpointed by recent research that will mean rail passengers face fewer speed restrictions, delays and cancellations in the future.

A whole range of potential improvements to how railway track is designed, built and maintained has been highlighted by ‘Railway Track for the 21st Century’ - a £3.1m, five-year research programme funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). It has been undertaken by a consortium led by the University of Southampton, working with the Universities of Birmingham and Nottingham as well as a range of industry partners, who have provided additional financial support.

Using innovative computer models and on-train and trackside measurement techniques to reveal in unprecedented detail the forces and pressures that railway track is subjected to, key outcomes and findings include the following:

Savings of £500,000 a year have already been realised through more effective management of lineside vegetation. Seasonal track movement on clay embankments can be addressed by using vegetation to manage water content.
Better risk assessment of earthworks has led to improved adverse weather management, delivering an estimated 14% reduction in the risk of trains running into landslides during high-rainfall periods.
The risk of landslips can be further reduced by piles driven into the earth to stabilise slopes forming part of cuttings and embankments. Annual savings estimated at between £13m and £20m are expected from improved design arising from the research, as well as big reductions in the time taken for the works.
“Trains have changed hugely over the last few decades, but the track and earthworks they run on are substantially the same as a century ago,” says Professor William Powrie of the University of Southampton, who has led the research. “Increases in the speed and weight of trains are putting our rail infrastructure under growing pressure, while increases in service frequency are reducing maintenance windows. The changes we’ve explored offer ways to help maintain and upgrade the infrastructure for the 21st century.”
Kedar Pandya, Head of Engineering at EPSRC said: “This is an excellent example of how research aligned to government transport policy produces significant benefits, in this case for the railways and passengers.”

Several of the most promising ideas generated by the programme are now being taken further forward by the £8.2m five-year follow-on initiative ‘Track to the Future’ primarily funded by EPSRC and being undertaken by the same consortium.