3315 x 3314 px | 28,1 x 28,1 cm | 11,1 x 11 inches | 300dpi
Data acquisizione:
20 agosto 2000
Ubicazione:
Kent, England, UK.
Altre informazioni:
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Track ballast forms the bed on which the sleepers carrying the rail lines are laid. It is made from hard and angular crushed stone that interlocks to form a stable base for the railway. It also provides good drainage and suppresses vegetation that might destablise the tracks. The faster and heavier the train using the tracks, the deeper the layer of ballast that is required - a high-speed line will be ballasted to around half a metre thick. Road-railers are ingenious and specialised self-propelled work vehicles that can be used legally on both roads and railways. Because they can drive on the road, they can gain access to rail work sites more easily than a conventional rail vehicle which may have to be lifted onto the tracks by a crane. Road-railers are usually converted rubber-tyred road vehicles with an additional set of steel rail wheels which can be raised and lowered. An efficient and integrated transportation system is essential for any developed or developing country. Transport drives productivity, improves the quality of life and, carefully planned, is good for the environment. An affordable, sustainable passenger and freight railway service is a vital component of a nation’s economic success. Railways are the safest form of mass transportation. Each day, the UK rail network carries around 22, 000 trains, many are full to capacity and the demand is predicted to grow by 30% in the next decade. It is essential to get more passengers onto an already crowded railway. The system receives a daily pounding from an ever-increasing number of faster and heavier trains and it's no surprise that a huge amount of the rail system needs to be upgraded or replaced to ensure a reliable, efficient and safe system. Unfortunately, for reasons of safety, major works must take place during prolonged 'possessions' or ‘blockades’ when the trains are stopped and the contractors can carry out their essential replacement programmes unimpeded. Skilled rail contractors using sophis
