CONCRETE AND WOOD TIE TRACK PERFORMANCE THROUGH 150 MILLION GROSS TONS

This report has been prepared as part of the Improved Track Structures Research Program sponsored by the Office of Rail Safety Research of the Federal Railroad Administration. The report presents an evaluation of concrete and wood tie track performance from test data taken at the Facility for Accelerated Service Testing (FAST). The primary purpose of this effort is to contribute to the establishment of the technical and economic feasibility of concrete cross ties in U.S. mainline service. The report neither proves nor disproves this feasibility, but a number of important problems in the design and application of concrete ties are identified.