A key rail freight corridor along the Victoria and South Australia border will soon see its degraded timber sleepers replaced with new low-profile concrete sleepers.
Enabling works are about to get underway for the $150 million Maroona to Portland Re-sleepering Project. The Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) appointed Vossloh Sleeper Technologies Australia to manufacture and deliver 250,000 of the concrete sleepers for the 173-ilometre-long project between the Port of Portland in western Victoria to south-east South Australia.
Vossloh said its rail sleepers are specifically engineered to meet the unique conditions of each application, and all aspects of the project are taken into account before designing a new sleeper. These include operating conditions such as axle loads and speed, geographical factors, and environmental conditions such as climate and temperature fluctuations.
“As a load-bearing component of the railway superstructure, the sleeper transfers and distributes forces to the track substructure. It must securely anchor the rail in position to ensure consistent track gauge,” the company stated on its website.
Approximately 220,000 sleepers will be manufactured at Vossloh’s Wagga Wagga facility in NSW, supporting workflow and jobs, and a further 30,000 will be produced at its Geelong plant in Victoria.
By replacing ageing timber sleepers with new concrete sleepers and improving the overall track condition, it optimises the rail line’s efficiency and operational reliability, according to the ARTC.
This means that the line will be able to handle heavier and faster trains which will increase the competitiveness of rail freight and reduce the region’s reliance on road freight.
Image source: Vossloh Sleeper Technologies Australia
About the author
Desi Corbett
Desi is the Editor of Concrete in Australia, at the helm since December 2013, and our weekly news writer since 2016. Focused on concrete and construction for more than 11 years, her expertise in this field forms part of a journalism career spanning three decades. To get in touch please email desi@corbettcomms.com.