To develop low-maintenance, long-life track systems with optimised material use. Addressing this challenge will require:
- developing, and demonstrating the effectiveness of, new track forms or components and promising interventions identified in TRACK21 e.g.. under-sleeper pads and random fibre ballast reinforcement (1A)
- developing an understanding of the relationships between the key measurable parameters of track stiffness and track settlement, and the key performance parameter of geometrical standard deviation, taking into account the interactions with rail geometry and vehicle dynamics (1B), and
- extending ballast life by reducing or eliminating the factors leading to its degradation, assessing the feasibility of design for the degraded state & facilitating re-use rather than downcycling or disposal (1C).