The National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) has announced that it has started laying a reinforced concrete high-speed track at Surat for the Mumbai Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail project.
According to NHSRCL, this is the first time a J slab ballastless track system is being used in India.
Contracts for track works in the entire Gujarat portion have been awarded. Procurement for track works is in an advanced stage, according to a release from NHSRCL. 14,000 metric tons of JIS rails and 50 moulds for casting track slabs have already been received from Japan for a start.
Minister for Railways Ashwini Vaishnaw posted a video of the track laying work getting underway.
Track Slab Technology
J slab consists of a pre-cast track slab. Rail fastening devices and rails are fitted on this slab. This slab rests on the 2,420 mm wide and 300 mm thick reinforced concrete track bed. The track bed is constructed in situ for individual UP and Down track lines on the deck of the viaduct. Anchors are provided to avoid any longitudinal and lateral movement of the track slab. Anchors are 520 mm in diameter, 260 mm tall, and placed 5 m away from each other centre to centre.
A reference pin is installed in the anchor for achieving the required horizontal and vertical alignment to make the track fit for 320 kmph operations.
Track slabs are to be manufactured in dedicated factories. Two such factories have already been set up and equipped with sophisticated technologies and infrastructure. This is expected to ensure high precision in the production of slabs.
In addition, NHSRCL says that special equipment like rail feeder cars, slab laying cars, and CAM (Cement Asphalt Mortar) laying cars will be used for track works.
JARTS, Japan Railway Technical Services is providing extensive training and certification to Indian personnel for execution of the track laying work, according to NHSRCL.