Track spacing

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The track spacing is the distance between two adjacent tracks , measured from track center to track center.

Regulations and History (Germany)

Today in Germany, according to the Railway Construction and Operating Regulations (EBO), a track spacing of at least 4 m is required for main tracks and continuous main tracks in stations without an intermediate platform. With a vehicle width of about 3 m, two trains passing each other are about 1 m apart. This distance has been prescribed as a minimum distance since the time of the Deutsche Reichsbahn . On the Prussian Railway , the minimum distance was initially only 3.5 m. Over time, however, this was viewed as unsafe, as in extreme cases the heads of travelers who leaned out of the window in the direction of the opposite track could collide.

The minimum track spacing at the boundary sign is at least 3.50 m depending on the curve radius , speed and elevation . It is dimensioned in such a way that a vehicle that maintains this distance does not protrude into the clearance profile of the adjacent track and thus does not touch or damage passing vehicles.

With the new version of the Railway Construction and Operating Regulations of May 28, 1967, a minimum track spacing of 4.00 m was required for new buildings. Minimum distances of between 3.50 and 4.00 m were still provided for existing systems. The minimum track spacing of 4.50 m has also been retained for train stations. Previously regulated minimum track distances for bend radii of less than 250 m in an implementation regulation from 1933 were adopted in the EBO. With the entry into force of the 2nd EBO Amendment Ordinance on January 1, 1982, the option was given to create a track spacing of 3.80 m when building pure S-Bahn tracks (at that time, Section 10 (1) sentence 4 EBO ). This track spacing was used - still with a special permit - for the design of the S-Bahn-City-Tunnel in Frankfurt .

With the Third EBO Amendment Ordinance of May 1991, a standard track spacing of 4.00 m was made mandatory for new buildings; the previously existing option of creating a distance between 3.75 m and 4.00 m for compelling structural reasons was no longer applicable. The special arrangement for exclusively of commuter trains traveled distances (up to 3.80 m track pitch) was maintained. The general minimum track spacing of 3.50 m was removed from the text of the regulation and replaced by a case-by-case analysis and a table of minimum track spacing depending on the curve radius and permissible speed was introduced. The minimum track spacing in stations (4.50 m) was retained.

Aerodynamic aspects must also be taken into account on the new routes that can be driven at at least 250 km / h . The track spacing is 4.70 m for the new lines built in the 1980s and largely 4.50 m for all other lines.

The standard track spacing of 4.00 m was sufficient in Germany for upgraded lines up to 200 km / h until the 2000s . Since December 2004, in connection with passenger safety systems, the Berlin-Hamburg railway has been traveling at this distance between 230 km / h.

In the case of curve radii less than 250 m, the track spacing must be increased due to the deflection of the vehicles .

Regulations in Switzerland

The regulations on track spacing are contained in the implementing provisions of the Railway Ordinance (AB-EBV). For standard gauge railways , the minimum clearances for new buildings are 3.80 meters and in train stations (stations) 4.50 meters. As an exception, smaller distances are permitted.

Platforms

If there is a platform between two tracks , the track spacing is increased accordingly. According to the EBO, a minimum distance of 6 m is prescribed for one-sided or baggage platforms, which corresponds to a platform width of around 3 m. Platforms used on both sides require a track spacing of at least 9 m; In busy train stations, up to 13 m is common, which corresponds to a platform width of around 10 m.

Track warping

The term track warping (also track swiveling ) describes a change in the track spacing, as it is, for. B. is necessary in front of platforms. In principle, it is an S-curve with very large radii (on the order of kilometers). Thus, a high speed is possible even without excessive elevation of these curves.

As Gleisverschwenkung also alterations in which the position of the track is changed are referred to in the track network.

measurement

Determination of the track spacing

In practice, the track spacing is not measured between the track centers, as this cannot be determined with millimeter precision without special measuring devices. Therefore, measurements are taken from the inside edge of the right rail on the left track to the inside edge of the right rail on the right track or vice versa.

This simplification is based on the assumption that the adjacent tracks have the same gauge and that the tracks are parallel to each other.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ § 10 (3). Railway building and operating regulations, accessed on June 14, 2010
  2. ↑ § 14 (17). Railway building and operating regulations, accessed on June 14, 2010
  3. ^ Heinz Delvendahl: The railway systems in the new railway building and operating regulations . In: Die Bundesbahn , ISSN  0007-5876 , 13/14/1967, pp. 453-460.
  4. ↑ ( Federal Law Gazette 1981 I p. 1490 )
  5. ^ Willi Keckeisen: V-Bahn Frankfurt (Main): The preliminary design and the design method . In: Railway technical review . tape 34 , no. December 12 , 1967, ISSN  0013-2845 , pp. 411-451 .
  6. ^ Walter Mittmann, Fritz Pätzold, Dieter Reuter, Hermann Richter, Klaus-Dieter Wittenberg: The Third Ordinance to Change the Railway Construction and Operating Regulations (EBO) . In: The Federal Railroad . No. 7-8 , 1991, ISSN  0007-5876 , pp. 759-770 .
  7. ↑ Implementing provisions for the Railway Ordinance (AB-EBV) DETEC , July 1, 2016 (PDF; 3 MB). AB 19.1 N  Track spacing between parallel tracks
  8. ↑ Implementing provisions for the Railway Ordinance (AB-EBV) DETEC , July 1, 2016 (PDF; 3 MB). AB 20 N center  distance for station tracks