Strathspey Railway track at Broomhill Inverness-shire Highland Region
Rail tracks are used on railways (or railroads), which, together with railroad switches (or points), guide trains without the need for steering. Tracks consist of two parallel steel rails, which are laid upon sleepers (or cross ties) that are embedded in ballast to form the railroad track. The rail is fastened to the ties with rail spikes, lag screws or clips such as Pandrol clips. The type of fastener depends partly on the type of sleeper, with spikes being used on wooden sleepers, and clips being used more on concrete sleepers. Usually, a baseplate tie plate is used between the rail and wooden sleepers, to spread the load of the rail over a larger area of the sleeper. Sometimes spikes are driven through a hole in the baseplate to hold the rail, while at other times the baseplates are spiked or screwed to the sleeper and the rails clipped to the baseplate. Steel rails can carry heavier loads than any other material. Railroad ties spread the load from the rails over the ground and also serve to hold the rails a fixed distance apart (called the gauge.) Rail tracks are normally laid on a bed of coarse stone chippings known as ballast, which combines resilience, some amount of flexibility, and good drainage. Steel rails can also be laid onto a concrete slab (a slab track). Across bridges, track is often laid on ties across longitudinal timbers or longitudinal steel girders.
Size: 5130px × 3407px
Location: Broomhill Inverness-shire Highland Region
Photo credit: © David Gowans / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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