Silent rail systems

Rail noise reduction system

The SilentTrack® system will benefit people living near railway lines, as trials have proven that noise can be significantly reduced without the need for erecting large, visually unattractive barriers. 

The patented Tata Steel SilentTrack ® system tackles noise at the source and can be fitted to established infrastructures with minimal change to railway practice.

Tata Steel's SilentTrack ® reduces noise generated by rails as train wheel pass over them. The 'silent rail' system employs patented "tuned dampers", developed in conjunction with Southampton University's Institute of Sound and Vibration Research, which are attached to either side of the rail. These dampers efficiently absorb vibrations and hence prevent noise from being generated by the rail.  The tuned damper can be fitted to a variety of standard rail sections, which makes it a significantly more attractive option than noise containment measures such as barriers that are visually intrusive and very expensive. The system has undergone extensive trials on a full-scale test track in Czechoslovakia and has been installed at two sites in Holland and one in France. Trials have shown that a reduction of about six decibels can be expected.

Installation

Tata Steel's SilentTrack ® tuned rail dampers can be either installed 'on track' onto rail that is already in service, or in factory conditions onto rail that is to be used in renewal or new-build programmes.

Tata Steel and VolkerRail have developed a technique for installation that minimises possession times and ensures the integrity of the installed product. Factory fitting of Tata Steel tuned rail dampers can be achieved at a location convenient to the client, for example onto long-welded rail strings at a welding facility, or at one of Tata Steel's own sites.

Benefits

Tata Steel's SilentTrack ® system has significant technical benefits over other solutions employed to reduce railway noise including:

• The ability to be "tuned" to absorb vibrations specific to a particular track form
• A multi frequency response over the important acoustic range for rail noise
• Noise reductions of 5 - 7dB, depending on track form and condition
• No maintenance requirement & no effect on other elements of the rail infrastructure
• The same life as the rail itself
• No interference with other track maintenance activities, e.g. tamping
• Visually unobtrusive, and eliminates or reduces the need for acoustic barriers

In association with

• Volker Stevin Rail & Traffic [now VolkerRail]
• University of Southampton
• Hyperlast [now Dow Hyperlast]
• Edilon [now edilon)(sedra]