Large cities are now more ecological, quieter and sustainable, and are continually looking for new ways to increase greenery and reduce the urban heat sink impact. Where there are existing or proposed light rail systems in Australia, city planners and architects aim to maximise the amount of green track installed to improve the urban environment.
Green tracks, using lawn or sedum, retain a large amount of rain water and bind fine particulate and road dust to improve the micro environment in urban centres. Moreover, recycled rubber encapsulation of rail ensures primary airborne noise and vibration is reduced significantly.
The STRAILastic Top of Rail (TOR) Light Rail system provides, not only the opportunity for new routes to be greened using its various green track options, but also simple, cost-effective green track conversion of ballasted track using the STRAILastic R Green track design.
STRAILastic TOR Green Track Conversion could provide Sydney’s T1 Dulwich Hill Line and Melbourne’s Canterbury Road, St Kilda line with a new lease on life by converting the existing ballast track to green track.
Adapting to temperature changes
STRAILastic TOR provides a track system that is stable and reliable in Australia’s unpredictable climate. The benefits of the vulcanised rubber solution extend beyond its resilience and stability. While made from 70 per cent recycled rubber, the outer cover of virgin rubber contains UV, ozone and fireresistant materials to withstand the elements.
Cities across Australia can have rapid temperature changes. Melbourne often has four seasons in one day with temperature variations of ten degrees or more in an hour. A southerly change in Sydney can turn a 40°C day into a 20°C evening, and South-East Queensland’s tropical storms can rapidly drop the mercury.
Besides wreaking havoc on what to wear, these temperature variations place significant stress on tram and light rail track infrastructure, whether it be asphalt, pavers or concrete. Installing ‘green tracks’ can mitigate these rapid temperature changes, reducing the high stresses by expanding and contracting.
Andreas Göschl, STRAILastic’s International Operations Director, said, “Based on 40+ years experience in moulding vulcanised rubber, the STRAILastic TOR track systems have a high temperature stability, and easily manage the expanding and contracting of temperature ranging between -40°C and +90°C, with a glass transition point of -55C, ensuring a stable TOR product under normal operating conditions.”
Fits like a glove against rail
Installation is simple, with the precisely moulded self-clamping chamber filler fitting like a glove against the rail to finish level with the railhead. It withstands the wear and tear of traffic, is easy to undertake rail replacement, and has a non-slip moulded surface for bikes and pedestrians.
Its small tolerances avoid gaps, preventing entry of water, sand, sediments, and dirt between the rail and the chamber filler. This ensures there are no electrical conductivity issues or corrosion of the rail web. Chamber-filling elements are common in many light rail networks, but not all are created equal.
“STRAILastic does not use polyurethane as it is more like plastic, expanding when warm and shrinking when cold, reducing the life of the track,” Mr Göschl said. STRAILastic has experience in long-life light rail track damping in over 30 cities to date, keeping city’s trams and light rail quietly moving.
For more information, please visit www.strailastic.com.au.
