Railway bridges on interoperable lines: Aspect of track/bridge interaction

Abstract

The Institute for Standardization of Serbia has adopted a large number of en standards in the field of bridges as Serbian standards. Unfortunately, technical regulations based on the implementation of the adopted en standards in the field of bridges are still not made. The paper presents requirements for railway bridges based on en standards, UIC leaflets and German technical regulations. The aspect of track/bridge interaction is primarily considered. The parameters of track/bridge interaction, principles of calculation, as well as the overview of open points are presented. As the most important parameters of the bridge structure were considered: bridge expansion length, stiffness of the bridge substructure, as well as the bending stiffness and height of the bridge deck. Further, the effects of vertical load, temperature changes, and acceleration/breaking of the vehicle on the mentioned interaction are especially analysed. In addition, the conclusions of the paper apply to both ballasted track and slab track. The aim of the paper is to create a basis for the harmonisation of technical regulations in Serbia with European regulations in order to meet the requirements of interoperability.