2023 TIDC New England Railroad Symposium

Emerging Challenges and Solutions in Railroad Infrastructure

Join TIDC Researchers and Industry Professionals at the
2023 TIDC New England Railroad Symposium
Hosted Virtually on
February 16th

2023 New England Railroad Symposium Certificate of Attendance Request

Agenda
Speakers
Planning Committee
Recordings

Agenda Summary

9:00 AM – Opening Remarks: Dr. Bill Davids, P.E. Professor of Civil & Env. Engineering, University of Maine

9:30 AM – Keynote: David A. Fink, President, Pan Am Group LLC

10:15 AM – Session 1: National Perspective

Moderator
- Dale Peabody, P.E., Director of
  Research & Innovation
  Maine DOT
Speakers
- Jeff Gordon, Manager, Passenger Safety Research Program, Federal Railroad Administration
- Dr. J. Riley Edwards, P.E., Research Associate Professor, RailTec, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- Joseph Barr, Director of Network Development-East, Amtrak

11:15 AM – Break

11:30 AM – Session 2: TIDC Research in Action

Moderator
- Dr. Aaron Gallant, P.E. Associate Prof. Civil & Env. Engineering, University of Maine
Speakers
- Dr. Moochul Shin, Associate Professor of Civil & Env. Engineering, Western New England University
- Dr. Ramesh Malla, Professor of Civil & Env. Engineering, University of Connecticut
- Dr. Roberto Lopez-Anido, P.E. Professor of Civil & Env. Engineering, University of Maine
- Dr. Sunil Bhandari, Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Maine

12:30 PM – Lunch

1:30 PM – Session 3: New England DOT, Owner & Operator Perspective

Moderator
- Nathan Moulton, Director, Office of Freight and Passenger Services,
  MaineDOT
Speakers
- Yure Kuljis, P.E. Assistant Rail Administrator, Bureau of Public Transportation, Office of Rail, ConnDOT
- Michael Muller, Commuter Rail Team, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
- Jay Neider, Chief of Capital Programs, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
- Ed Sparks, Chief Engineer – Bridges, Design & Construction, CSX

2:45 PM – Closing

UMaine team with concrete railroad bridge ballast retainers designed with 7,000lbs of 3D printed formwork and cast by American Concrete in Veazie, Maine

WNEU Project to reduce stress induced failure of concrete railroad ties using carbon fiber strands

WNEU Project to reduce stress induced failure of concrete railroad ties using ultra-strong concrete with carbon fiber strands

Century old Devon bridge being studied by UConn Researchers

UConn Student wit assessment and monitoring equipment underneath a railroad bridge

UConn Student with assessment and monitoring equipment underneath a railroad bridge

Meet the Speakers

Keynote Speaker

David A. Fink
President,
Pan Am Group LLC

A look back through the eye of Pan Am President David Fink of railroading in New England. The railroad map has drastically changed leading to a renaissance of railroading in the region.

Session 1: National Perspective

Panel Discussion

Moderator
Dale Peabody, P.E.
Director of
Research & Innovation, MaineDOT

Jeff Gordon
Manager, Passenger Safety Research Program, Federal Railroad Administration

In August 2022, FRA performed a full-scale crash test at the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, CO. The purpose of the test was two-fold: (1) demonstrate the effectiveness of retrofit crash energy management components installed on the front end of a passenger locomotive in inhibiting override in a head-on collision, and (2) assess the performance of off-the-shelf securement devices typically used on transit buses to restrain occupants in wheelchairs and the wheelchairs themselves and limit injury. The test was successful on both counts in that the CEM components performed as intended and there was no evidence of wheel lift or incipient override and the wheelchair securement devices retained their structural integrity, remained attached to the carbody, compartmentalized the ATDs, and resulted in injury values that are likely survivable for an occupant.

Dr. J. Riley Edwards, P.E.,
Research Associate Professor
RailTec, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

This presentation reports on the results of an exciting research program at the University of Illinois that’s been ongoing for the last four years. This project involves extending the reach of current track geometry data collected on a routine basis around the US railway network by adding some unique data obtained from 3D laser scanning technology.

Joseph Barr
Director of Network Development-East,
Amtrak

A report on the present and future of Amtrak operations including data from the previous year, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, plans for rebuilding current infrastructure, renewing the passenger train fleet, and Amtrak’s Climate Resiliency Plan.

Session 2: TIDC Research in Action

Panel Discussion

Moderator
Dr. Aaron Gallant, P.E.,
Associate Prof. Civil & Env. Engineering,
University of Maine

Dr. Moochul Shin
Associate Prof. Civil & Env. Engineering,
Western New England University

This study focuses on developing high-performance concrete using non-metallic micro-fibers to improve the impact resistance and the tensile strength of prestressed concrete crossties. When cracks open, prestressed concrete crossties become vulnerable to complex loading conditions such as impact loading coupled with environmental deterioration (e.g. corrosion). This study discusses the recent development of high-performance concrete that can be adopted for prestressed concrete crossties by using non-metallic micro-fibers. Fibers have become a key element to bridge microcracks of ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) and improve tensile strength and the corresponding crack resistance. Finally, this study demonstrates that the developed high-performance concrete with non-metallic micro-fibers shows high impact resistance, tensile strength, and corrosion resistance.

Dr. Ramesh Malla
Prof. Civil & Env. Engineering,
University of Connecticut

The Northeast Corridor (NEC), rail line between Washington, D.C. and Boston, MA, is the busiest passenger line in the United States, The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) has designated NEC as the highest priority area for upgrading railroad infrastructure for high-speed trains. Many bridges along NEC, including those selected for this study, were built more than 115 years ago. Although those bridges still operate under a well-supervised maintenance plan, they often exhibit unusual structural responses. This study presents the health/condition monitoring methodologies for structural safety and integrity of long-span old railroad bridges, using material testing, field-testing and finite element (FE) computational modeling. This paper presents the results from the research investigations on two long-span truss bridges, the Devon and Cos cob bridges, that lie in NEC rail line and are located in southern Connecticut. The paper presents the tensile test results performed on the original materials from the bridges using ASTM specifications, (b) the dynamic structural response and characteristics of the bridges from the time- and frequency-domain analyses of the bridge response data collected from the field tests; and (c) those obtained from the Finite Element models of the bridges.. The material tensile test results have shown consistency with values recommended by the design codes. Similarly, the results from the study have shown a reasonable agreement between bridge structural response and characteristics obtained from the theo theoretical/finite element models and the field test data. The methodology developed in this research study can be applied to understand better and help mitigate dynamic structural problems encountered in typical long-span railroad bridges.

Dr. Roberto Lopez-Anido, P.E.
Prof. Civil & Env. Engineering,
University of Maine

A 3D printed formwork was designed and manufactured using carbon fiber/ABS material for casting a 6.1 m wide, 1.98 m high, and 3.66 m long railroad bridge ballast retainer. The ballast retainers are installed for rehabilitating BR No 7783 at Sheridan Road in Ashland, Maine. A cellular design was adopted for the formwork to reduce material usage and lower the 3D printing time. The formwork was divided into ten pieces to enable easy assembly during casting and disassembly during demolding operations. The precast concrete ballast retainers were manufactured at the American Concrete Industries plant in Veazie, Maine. The concrete part was demolded and the 3D printed formwork assembly was reused a total of six times to cast the concrete ballast retainers. The 3D printed formworks are planned to be used for a recycling study, where the recycled carbon fiber/ABS material will be used to 3D print new precast concrete formwork.

Dr. Sunil Bhandari
Postdoctoral Research Associate
University of Maine

Session 3: New England DOT, Owner & Operator Perspective

Panel Discussion

Nathan Moulton
Director, Office of Freight and Passenger Services, MaineDOT

Yure Kuljis, P.E.,
Assistant Rail Administrator Bureau of Public Transportation, Office of Rail, ConnDOT

ConnDOT is about to undertake an historic investment program in modern, high performing rail service. These investments will achieve historic travel times between New Haven and New York City and will undoubtedly pay for themselves by improving the quality of life of residents, improving productivity, raising property values, and leveraging rail service for transit-oriented development and community development.

Michael Muller
Commuter Rail Team, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

The MBTA is planning to transform its legacy commuter rail system into a high-frequency,
electrified, regional rail system, but as we look to the future, there is still a significant amount of
capital investment needed to address state of good repair needs of the current system—most of which
are prerequisites to any kind of transformation program. All of this requires balancing the needs of
the capital program with the need to continue operating a commuter rail/regional rail service that is
responsive to ridership and demand and that meets the mobility needs of the region.

Jay Neider
Chief of Capital Programs, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Ed Sparks
Chief Engineer – Bridges, Design & Construction, CSX

A glance into the challenges that CSX faces in everyday operations, including safety, aging infrastructure, and public partnerships. To counter these challenges, there are also examples of current solutions that CSX has already implemented to meet these challenges, and plans for future solutions.