How is track maintained?

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July 19, 2019, 12:07 PM

Permanent way maintenance is largely done by gangs consisting of gangmen under the supervision of a gangmate. The gang goes down its assigned section of track (the gang beat or beat section), inspecting track and performing normal routine maintenance. A patrolman may be separately deputed to perform visual inspections along the length of a section of track by walking alongside it (two patrolmen in ghat or jungle areas). Typically the patrol may cover 6km – 10km of track.

The schedule and track sections to be monitored by gangmen and patrolmen is specified in a Patrol Chart prepared by the Divisional Engineer. This chart also indicates when and where the drivers of trains running to schedule may expect to meet gangmen. Patrolmen and gangs carry Patrol Books in which they record the status of the track and any maintenance they perform on it.

The gang is equipped to deal with minor problems such as fixing small deviations in gauge or elevation of the rails, rearranging ballast, etc. If problems are discovered with the permanent way that cannot readily be fixed by the gang, the details are reported to the station master of one of the adjacent block stations, and temporary engineering speed restrictions are put in place for the track. Trains going through that section are then subject to caution orders issued by the stations at either end.

A bigger maintenance of way crew with appropriate tools and machinery then works on repairing the track while it is protected by being restricted. In some cases traffic on the line may have to be completely stopped. Replacing ballast or sleepers, adjusting the rail profile by grinding, joint lubrication, rail creep adjustment, replacing short sections of damaged rail, welding rails, etc., are some of the other maintenance tasks that come up.

The regular patrolling of track is very important in order to maintain safe conditions for trains. If a patrolman or gang is unaccountedly late or if a patrolman misses his beat for some reason, caution orders are usually issued advising drivers to be alert for track defects and restricting trains on the affected sections of track to 40km/h (daytime, clear visibility) or 15km/h (night, bad visibility).

The permanent way inspector (PWI) for a division has ultimate responsibility for the condition of the permanent way under his jurisdiction. The PWI and his staff undertake separate regular inspection tours of the various lines, often in a motor trolley or inspection car. (In the past manually pushed trolleys were used quite often, but their use is declining now.)

Source – IFRCA.org

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