Straight Track #109

Illinois Concerned About Track Welds 
Along First High-Speed Rail Corridor

U.S. Rail News
Vol. 25 No. 8
Published April 10, 2002

U.S. Rail News, in Vol. 25 No. 8, wrote an article concerning the track welds along the first high-speed rail corridor in Illinois. Due to the issue's importance, we are sharing with you the article in its entirety.

Illinois Concerned About Track Welds 
Along First High-Speed Rail Corridor

Regulators in Illinois are raising alarms about the state’s plans to build a high-speed rail corridor. 

Safety is at risk because the state is trying to save time and money by joining different sized rails for a single high-speed corridor, increasing the risk of a track rupture and derailment as a passenger trains travel along it at 110 mph, a report from state transportation officials says. Other states also are proceeding with plans for high-speed rail corridors, such as Virginia and North Carolina, although they have not yet determined rail sizes. 

Union Pacific Railroad has been modernizing its rail and signals along a 120-mile section of track between Springfield and Mazonia, where the first segment of a high-speed line will be tested. Eventually, the high-speed corridor is supposed to stretch from Chicago to St. Louis. "We believe the prospect of passenger trains operating in the corridor at speeds of 110 mph requires a closer look to be taken at the rail welding process," Michael Stead, the Illinois Commerce Commission’s rail safety administrator, wrote to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA). The Illinois Commerce Commission recommends that the welds be examined before any additional changes are made to the track. 

The FRA, which shares jurisdiction over rail safety with the Illinois Commerce Commission, said it does not believe additional engineering tests are needed right now. 

Union Pacific officials have told the Illinois Commerce Commission that different sized rails its workers are welding together create no hazards to travelers. In a report to the commission, Union Pacific described the number of bad welds on the track as "minimal." 

Stead says Union Pacific has underreported the number of defective welds. The FRA does not require railroads to keep records of the number or locations of weld failures. 

The Illinois Department of Transportation is supervising Union Pacific’s work. The project is a first step toward a nine-state high-speed passenger rail system throughout the Midwest. It is funded through federal and state grants. 

Contact: Stephen Schindel, Illinois DOT, at 312-793-2111.

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