Advanced Rail Radar

The ballast layer is designed to distribute the loading force of a passing train evenly over the formation layer to preserve a smooth ride. The ballast also acts as a drainage layer to prevent significant accumulations of moisture. The optimum ballast thickness is the thickness where ballast exerts constant pressure on the subgrade. The design thickness is a function of the load and speed of traffic.

A homogenous ballast layer results in a stable and safe track. Any departure from the construction design such as changes in the thickness of the ballast layer and the degree of contamination within the ballast matrix will affect the dynamic behaviour of the trackbed. Contaminated ballast causes an unstable pressure distribution on the subgrade.

ZARR utilises ground penetrating radar (GPR) and is a uniquely powerful desk study tool to continuously map changes in the thickness and quality of the ballast layer across a network.

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