Railway Transportation Policies, Technology and Perspectives

This book provides the latest scientific research regarding the importance of infrastructure charges in establishing competitive conditions in the railway market. The current charging regimes applied throughout the EU member states are analysed as well as the planning and scheduling that determine how and when the company's resources will be used in the case of railway organisations. Railway noise emission and its reduction are considered among the most important topics in the future development of transportation systems. This book gives an overview on the noise emitted by wheels and rails from the basic emission mechanisms up to noise attenuation by means of passive/active control. The importance of the vertical track stiffness as a means to guide railway track bed design for high speed railway lines are discussed as well. A rational approach to substructure design is described, which it is hoped will further an understanding of the process of appropriate track design and enable the adaptation of existing design procedures to provide a realistic design for the conditions at hand.