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Railway Group Standard

GC/RT5204

Issue Two Date November 1995

Structure Gauging and Clearances

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Submitted by

Synopsis An engineering standard covering the clearance requirements in respect of physical size for the safe passage of rail vehicles. This document is the property of Railtrack PLC. It shall not be reproduced in whole or in part without the written permission of the Controller, Safety Standards, Railtrack PLC.

................................................................................................... Tom Stevenson Nominated Responsible Manager

Approved by

................................................................................................... Tom Stevenson Chairman, Civil Engineering Subject Committee

Authorised by

Published by Safety & Standards Directorate Railtrack PLC Floor 2 Fitzroy House 355 Euston Road London NW1 3AG

................................................................................................... John Mitchell Controller, Safety Standards, Railtrack PLC

Copyright 1995 Railtrack PLC

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Railway Group Standard

GC/RT5204

Issue Two

Structure Gauging and Clearances Contents

Section Part A Description

Date November 1995 Page 1 of 18

Page 2 2 2 3 3

Issue record Responsibilities and distribution Compliance Railway Group Standards - Health and Safety Responsibilities Supply

Part B 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Appendices A B C D

Purpose Scope Definitions Principles Maintenance of Existing Clearances Gauging Clearance Procedure Out of Gauge Loads

4 4 4 6 6 8 9

UIC Reference Profiles for Kinematic Gauges New Construction Gauge Standard Structure Gauge Standard Structure Gauge Applicable at and below 1089mm above rail level

11 12 14 16

References

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Structure Gauging and Clearances Part A

Issue record

This Railway Group Standard will be updated when necessary by distribution of a complete replacement. Amended or additional parts of revised pages will be marked by a vertical black line in the adjacent margin. Issue 2 Date Nov 95 Comments Replaces Issue 1. Revision clause 6.3.3.

Responsibilities and distribution

Controlled copies of this Railway Group Standard shall be worked to by anyone involved in the clearance process for the safe passage of rail vehicles and their loads on the railway network. It shall also be worked to by anyone involved in the design, construction, inspection, maintenance and renewal of the infrastructure. Roles and responsibilities of identified key players in these processes and the ongoing monitoring and maintenance of clearances are shown in Part B.

Compliance

The provisions of this Railway Group Standard are mandatory. The standard applies to all new design and new route clearances for railway vehicles and loads from 3 February 1996. All current design and construction as at 1 June 1995 must be checked against this standard and the commercial implications of non-compliance assessed. The management of existing clearances shall conform to this standard by 1 June 1997.

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Railway Group Standards - Health and Safety Responsibilities

Date November 1995 Page 3 of 18

Railway Group Standards are authorised by Railtrack plc following approval by the relevant Subject Committee(s) in accordance with Railtracks Railway Group Standards Code. Railtrack PLC makes no warranties, express or implied, that compliance with all or any of Railway Group Standards is sufficient on its own to ensure safety systems of work or operation. Each user is reminded of its own responsibilities to ensure health and safety at work and its individual duties under health and safety legislation.

Supply

Controlled and uncontrolled copies of this standard must be obtained from The Catalogue Secretary, Safety & Standards Directorate, Railtrack PLC, Floor 2, Fitzroy House, 355 Euston Road, London NW1 3AG.

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Structure Gauging and Clearances Part B

1 Purpose

The purpose of this Railway Group Standard is to set down the engineering requirements for the safe passage of rail vehicles and their loads by reconciling their physical size and dynamic behaviour with the opportunities offered by the railway infrastructure. This standard applies to infrastructure owned by Railtrack PLC and any other infrastructure interfacing with it and affecting its physical clearances (e.g. Private Sidings or Works into which, or out of which, trains will work onto Railtrack lines). This standard shall be complied with in the design, maintenance and alteration of the railway infrastructure, in the design and modification of traction and rolling stock and in the conveyance of out of gauge loads.

2 Scope

3 Definitions

ARL Above Rail Level at right angles to the plane of the rails. BR Loading Gauge The profile and table (shown in Sections D2/1 and D2/2 of the 'green pages' of the BR Working Manual for Rail Staff BR 30054/2) within which all wagon loads must be contained to be considered within gauge. Engineer's Line Reference (ELR) An ELR is the code for a route of railway which has continuous mileage (no mileage changes) and contains no duplicated bridge/structure number or identifier. Gauge Clearance The authority given by the Infrastructure Controller in respect of the overall size and dynamic movement of a vehicle for it to travel over a specified route(s). Infrastructure Controller An organisation which is responsible for the safe use and operation of the railway track, associated equipment and the signalling system. Kinematic Envelope The cross-sectional profile of a vehicle at any position along its length, enlarged to include the effects of dynamic sway and vertical movement caused by speed, (dynamic effects of) track curvature and cant, track positional tolerances, rail wear, rail head/wheel flange clearances, vehicle wear and suspension performance for the particular track location under consideration.

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Out of Gauge Load (OGL) Where the load in a vehicle or the vehicle itself protrudes beyond the BR Loading Gauge. The term and associated processes for dealing with out of gauge loads does not apply to vehicles exceeding this gauge which have already been cleared for the route(s). Passing Clearance The calculated distance between trains passing on adjacent tracks. * (See also note below) Standard Structure Gauge This is the recommended minimum structure gauge referred to in the HSE/HMRI publication Railway Construction and Operation Requirements and as shown in Appendix C. Static Load Gauge A maximum profile inside which rolling stock may be constructed or loads loaded onto wagons (e.g. W6-A, C1, etc, and future amendments thereto). Structural Clearance The calculated distance between a lineside structure and a passing train. * (See also note below) Structure Gauge An outline outside which structures shall be built on straight and level track. This outline must be enlarged on curved and/or canted track to allow for their effects. Substandard Clearance A structural or passing clearance of less than 200mm. * (See also note below) Swept Envelope The combination of Kinematic Envelopes and curve overthrows at all crosssections along a vehicle as the vehicle moves along the track. This represents the bounds of the volume that the vehicle can sweep through in transversing a particular section of track. * (Note: For locomotives, passenger vehicles and in-gauge freight vehicles the clearance is from the vehicle's Kinematic Envelope. For out-of-gauge loads it is from the static profile of the load with due allowance for end or centre throw.)

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Structure Gauging and Clearances

4.1 New Construction 4.1.1 Railtrack shall apply the Standard Structure Gauge (App. C and D) as a minimum standard for all new construction. 4.1.2 A commercial decision shall be taken by Railtrack as Infrastructure Controller for the particular line of route whether or not to use the New Construction Gauge (App. B) derived from the International Union of Railways (UIC) GC Reference Profile (App. A). 4.2 Existing Structures Railtrack shall ensure that clearances between existing track and structures less than the Standard Structure Gauge are not worsened and wherever reasonably practicable are improved. Clearances more than Standard shall not be worsened to the extent that they become less than Standard. 4.3 New Vehicles on Existing Routes 4.3.1 Clearances less than the Standard Structure Gauge shall not normally be created or perpetuated when new vehicles (including any vehicles new to the route(s) concerned) are under consideration. 4.3.2 On existing routes, if attainment of Standard Structure Gauge clearances is unreasonable, Railtrack shall apply the following clearances in order of preference: (a) less than the Standard Structure Gauge but above the minimum HSE/HMRI requirement of 200mm; (b) below 200mm but above 100mm, in which event the locations concerned shall be clearly identified, recorded, monitored and reported to HSE/HMRI; (c) below 100mm, in which event, in addition to the requirements in (b), dispensation shall be obtained from HSE/HMRI. 4.3.3 Clearances to platforms shall not be less than 50mm from the Kinematic Envelope described by any particular vehicle unless dispensation has been obtained from HSE/HMRI.

4 Principles

5 Maintenance of Existing Clearances

5.1 General 5.1.1 This section applies to the normal traffic of the railway. For the handling of Out of Gauge traffic see section 7.

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5.1.2 Railtrack shall ensure the safe passage of existing traffic in relation to existing clearances by means of: fixing of datum plates where appropriate and setting of track tolerances relative to these plates (para 5.2); (b) monitoring of clearances (para 5.3). (c) maintenance of records (para 5.4); (d) taking of appropriate action to restore clearances to those specified on the datum plates. 5.1.3 In addition, for vehicles new to a route Railtrack shall operate a gauging clearance procedure (section 6). 5.2 Datum Plates and Track Tolerances 5.2.1 Datum plates or markings shall be installed in the following circumstances unless a purpose made gauge for that particular structure has been provided: (a) where structural or passing clearances are less than 200mm; (b) on platforms; (c) on structures, including Overhead Line Electrification (OLE) masts, on lines electrified on the overhead system. 5.2.2 Datum plates or markings shall be easy to read and understand. They shall indicate the dimension to nearest running edge, cant and level, referring in each case to the design track geometry. Multiple plates or markings shall be used where more than one track is to be referenced at a specific location. In the case of structures over 40m long plates or markings shall be provided every 40m, or every 20m if the radius of track curvature is less than 2,000m. In the case of platforms plates or markings shall be provided every 20m or every 10m if the radius of track curvature is less than 2,000m. 5.2.3 Railtrack shall specify tolerances relative to the design track position, within which the track shall be maintained at all times. (a)

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Issue Two Date November 1995 Page 8 of 18 5.3 Monitoring of Clearances 5.3.1 Sub-standard Clearances Substandard clearances shall be monitored. Monitoring shall be at frequencies which give adequate warning of unacceptable clearances being created by relative movement of track and structures. 5.3.2 Platform and Underline Bridge Clearances Platform and underline bridge clearances, even though they conform in all respects to the Standard Structure Gauge or New Construction Gauge shall be measured annually. 5.4 Maintenance of Records 5.4.1 Railtrack shall keep details of the relative positions of its tracks and structures which are less than the Standard Structure Gauge. 5.4.2 Railtrack shall maintain a list of locations for which dispensations have been given by HSE/HMRI in accordance with para 4.3.2(c) 5.4.3 Railtrack shall identify routes which have been cleared for passage of specific rail vehicle types and shall keep up-to-date lists of approved vehicle types of each route.

Structure Gauging and Clearances

6 Gauging Clearance Procedure

6.1 General Requirements 6.1.1 Railtrack shall operate a procedure to ensure the safe passage of proposed new or modified vehicle types and loads on wagons (e.g. containers) in the context of existing clearances. 6.1.2 The procedure shall require the determination of the Kinematic and Swept Envelopes of the proposed vehicle and the assessment of the compatibility of these with existing structural and passing clearances over the proposed route(s). 6.2 Determination of Kinematic Envelope This shall be the responsibility of the operator of the proposed vehicle and shall be in accordance with Railway Group Standard GM/RT2149 Kinematic Gauging Requirements for Railway Vehicles.

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6.3 Granting of Route Clearance 6.3.1 If the swept envelope of the proposed vehicle (including pantograph where appropriate) is greater than that of vehicles already cleared for the route, a full clearance exercise involving assessment of both structural and passing clearances shall be performed for the route (or uncleared parts of a route). If acceptable clearances (i.e. exceeding 200mm) are available the proposed vehicle shall be considered clear of gauge for that route. 6.3.2 If the swept envelope is equal to or within that of vehicles already cleared for the route, no further assessment of clearances is required. However, before route clearance can be given it will be necessary for any HSE/HMRI dispensation granted for existing vehicles to be obtained for the proposed vehicle. It shall be Railtracks responsibility to seek this additional dispensation. 6.3.3 Railtrack shall give consideration to passenger safety by limiting the maximum stepping distance from the top edge of the platform to the top edge of the step board or floor of passenger rolling stock. The following maximum dimensions for stepping distances, calculated from the centre of the bottom of the door opening, shall apply unless dispensation has been sought from HSE/HMRI for site specific cases relating to identified rolling stock. All such cases must be recorded in writing and maintained for future reference. Horizontal Vertical Diagonal 275mm 250mm 350mm

7 Out of Gauge Loads

The safe passage of out of gauge loads (OGLs) shall conform to the following principles: 7.1 Provision of details by Train Operating Unit/Company Railtrack shall require the relevant operator to supply, in advance, full details of all proposed OGLs, their loaded dimensions and fixings, method of loading, proposed carrying vehicle and required routeing. 7.2 Assessment of Clearances Railtrack shall assess the structural and passing clearances on the proposed route, allowing for any eccentric loading of the OGL, its dynamic performance and for the swept static profile of vehicles on adjacent lines where these are not blocked.

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Issue Two Date November 1995 Page 10 of 18 7.3 Imposition of Special Conditions on Passage of OGL 7.3.1 Railtrack shall determine the minimum structural clearances below which an OGL shall not be permitted to travel and the restricted speeds to apply where those clearances are sub-standard. 7.3.2 Railtrack shall take appropriate steps to warn people on or about the line of the passage of an OGL which significantly encroaches on available cess walkways or other normal places of safety.

Structure Gauging and Clearances

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Appendix A UIC Reference Profiles for Kinematic Gauges

Date November 1995 Page 11 of 18

Notes: 1. All dimensions are in millimetres. 2. Diagram in accordance with UIC Codes 505-4 and 506.

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Structure Gauging and Clearances

Appendix B

New Construction Gauge

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New Construction Gauge
Notes for Appendix B 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Date November 1995 Page 13 of 18

6.

7.

8.

9.

This drawing is not applicable to viaducts and tunnels. All dimensions are in millimetres. Track centres for a mixed traffic railway. Applicable only to straight and level track. Refer to GC/TP0496 'Requirements for Constructional Work on or near Railway Operational Land for Non-Railtrack Contracts' for the design of supports for structures built over or close to railway lines. It may be possible in tight situations to reduce the dimension marked with an asterisk, but only where alternative access is available, via a route in a position of safety, connecting with the walkways each side of the structure or where the railway operates on a no person basis, whereby staff are only allowed on the track when special protection measures are in place. Platform clearances are subject to maintenance of HMRI stepping distances and specific requirement shall be calculated from the chosen Kinematic Envelope with an allowance made for structural clearance. This dimension shall be calculated from the dimensions associated with the chosen Kinematic Envelope with an allowance made for passing clearance. At the time of calculating the required dimension an assessment shall be made of traffic proposed for the route such that aerodynamic effects can be taken into account. This dimension accommodates full UIC GC Reference Profile and assumes train speeds up to 300 km/h. Commercial considerations will dictate whether it is necessary to amend this dimension and contact wire height for the actual type and speed of vehicles proposed for the route.

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Structure Gauging and Clearances

Appendix C

Standard Structure Gauge

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Standard Structure Gauge
Notes for Appendix C

Date November 1995 Page 15 of 18

1. This diagram illustrates minimum lateral and overhead clearances to be adopted in construction or reconstruction and for alterations or additions to existing track and structures for line speeds up to 165 km/h (100mph). 2. All dimensions are in millimetres. 3. * the dimension to be used when linespeed exceeds 165 km/h (100mph). 4. The clearance dimensions given are valid for straight and level track only and due allowance must be made for the effects of horizontal and vertical curvature, including super-elevation (cant). 5. The standard structure gauge allows for overhead electrification with voltages up to 25 kV. However, to permit some flexibility in the design of overhead equipment, the minimum dimension between rail level and the underside of the structures should be increased, preferably to 4780mm or more if this can be achieved with reasonable economy. The proximity of track features such as level crossings or OHE sectioning may require greater than 4780mm. 6. Permissible infringements in respect of conductor rail equipment, guard and check rails, train stops and structures in the space between adjacent tracks are not shown. 7. The minimum dimensions of a single face platform measured from the edge of the platform to the face of the nearest building structure or platform furniture shall be 2500mm for speeds up to 165 km/h and for speeds greater than 165 km/h the minimum dimension shall be 3000mm. The minimum distance to the face of any column shall be 2000mm. 8. Nearest face of all other structures including masts carrying overhead line equipment of electrified railways. 9. Nearest face of signal posts and other isolated structures less than 2m in length but excluding masts carrying overhead line equipment on electrified railways. 10. Vertical clearances to the canopy above the platform shall be minimum 2500mm up to 2000mm from platform edge or up to 3000mm where the line speed exceeds 165 km/h. At distances beyond 2000mm or 3000mm from the platform edge, as applicable, the minimum headroom shall be 2300mm. 11. Platform clearances are subject to the maintenance of HMRI stepping distances and specific requirements shall be calculated from the particular Kinematic Envelope with an allowance made for structural clearance. The minimum lateral dimension is 730mm and shown for guidance. 12. Where reasonably practicable these dimensions shall be increased by 300mm to facilitate the provision of a cess walkway in accordance with GC/RT5203 Infrastructure Requirements for Personal Safety in Respect of Clearances and Access.

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Structure Gauging and Clearances

Appendix D

Standard Structure Gauge Applicable at and below 1089mm above rail level

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Standard Structure Gauge Applicable at and below 1089mm above rail level
Notes for Appendix D

Date November 1995 Page 17 of 18

1. All dimensions are in millimetres. 2. The dimensions shown are for straight alignment and appropriate adjustments must be made for curvature. Except for dispensation which allows station platforms on curves with a radius greater than 360 metres to be placed at standard dimensions (as shown), the amount of platform set-back for curves with a radius less than 360 metres shall be determined by Railtrack. 3. Bridge girders, dwarf signals and other lineside equipment up to a height of 915mm ARL may be positioned in the space available for platforms. 4. The minimum dimension of a single face platform shall be 2500mm for speeds up to 165 km/h and for speeds greater than 165 km/h the minimum distance shall be increased to 3000mm. The minimum distance to the face of any column shall be 2000mm. 5. Platform clearances are subject to the maintenance of HMRI stepping distances and specific requirements shall be calculated from the particular Kinematic Envelope with an allowance made for structural clearance. The minimum lateral dimension is 730mm and shown for guidance.

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References

Railway Group Standards

GM/RT2149 GC/TP0496

GC/RT5203 BR 30054/2

Kinematic Gauging Requirements for Railway Vehicles Requirements for Constructional Work on or near Railway Operational Land for Non-Railtrack Contracts Infrastructure Requirements for Personal Safety in Respect of Clearances and Access BR Working Manual for Rail Staff Section 2, Loading and Conveyance of Freight Traffic (Green Pages)

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