Elimination of Weight Restriction on Amtrak, NJ Transit, and Conrail Lines

New Jersey’s freight railroad system facilitates movement of a large volume of freight, and provides relief from alternative transportation methods of freight transportation and their associated negative effects, such as congestion, pollution, roadway deterioration, and diminished safety. In New Jersey, freight rail cars often utilize a portion of the passenger rail network to complete their trips. However, much of this infrastructure currently operates with a weight limit of 263,000 pounds per rail car while the more common freight-rail car standard restriction is 286,000 pounds throughout the national freight network. Thus, an increase in the weight restriction to 286,000 pounds provides uniformity and allows freight-rail shippers and receivers to maintain the economic advantage freight rail provides. Much of the infrastructure, such as bridges, was built prior to World War II, and the cost to build and maintain new infrastructure is extremely high. In this study, the research team investigated the impact of increasing rail car weight restrictions for bridges on passenger lines in New Jersey. The research approach adopted by the Rutgers Infrastructure Monitoring and Evaluation (RIME) Laboratory is aimed at evaluating the current load-carrying capacity of various types of bridges using American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA) Specifications, field testing, and finite element models. Based on load rating using finite element modeling, it is found that a sizable amount of repairs is needed for various structural elements of the Raritan Valley MP 31.15, the North Jersey Coast Line MP 31.15, and Bergen County Line MP 5.48 bridges to improve their performance and fatigue life and to maintain an adequate safety margin. Based on AREMA’s methods of evaluation, it was found that repairs are needed for all five bridges to maintain an adequate safety margin for allowing 286-kips railcars. It is also recommended to utilize existing sensors to operate a long term monitoring system to evaluate the long term performance of the bridges and take advantage of in-place sensors. In addition to a Cost/Benefit analysis for a typical rail line with the HX Draw bridge, a tentative cost estimate of repairs for all five bridges is also included.

• Record URL:
  http://www.nj.gov/transportation/business/research/reports/FHWA-NJ-2012-003.pdf
• 
• Summary URL:
  http://www.nj.gov/transportation/business/research/reports/FHWA-NJ-2012-003-TB.pdf
• Corporate Authors:

  Rutgers University, Piscataway

  Rutgers Infrastructure Monitoring and Evaluation (RIME) Laboratory
  ICS Center
  PIscataway, NJ  United States  08854-8014

  New Jersey Department of Transportation

  Bureau of Research, 1035 Parkway Avenue, P.O. Box 600
  Trenton, NJ  United States  08625-0600

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Nassif, Hani
  • Ozbay, Kaan
  • Iyer, Shri
  • Su, Dan
  • Lou, Peng
  • Kara, Etkin
  • Capers Jr, Harry
  • Valeo, Meghann
• Publication Date: 2012-5

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Draft Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Maps; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 304p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bearing capacity; Field tests; Finite element method; Freight transportation; Load factor; Railroad bridges; Railroads; Specifications
• Identifier Terms: American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association; Amtrak; Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail); New Jersey Transit Corporation (NJ Transit)
• Uncontrolled Terms: Load rating (Bridges)
• Geographic Terms: New Jersey
• Subject Areas: Freight Transportation; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01650599
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: FHWA-NJ-2012-003
• Files: TRIS, ATRI, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Nov 6 2017 7:16PM