Pointing to a smoother future at Bodmin Parkway
THE Bodmin & Wenford Railway’s permanent way gang has completed the partial reconstruction of the main to yard point at Bodmin Parkway.
The job involved removing the switch and stock rails, together with the timbers (the long sleepers which support rails within the point work) and the old ballast.
New switch and stock rails were installed onto good used hardwood timbers. These were then placed on new ballast that had a geotextile membrane installed on top of the existing formation.
The membrane is intended to permit water to pass through it, but not letting any mud or dirt travel up into the top ballast, thus helping to ensure that the ballast stays cleaner.
The line’s chief mechanical engineer Tony Phillips said: “It can be a slightly tricky job to get everything at the correct matching height and also to ensure that the cutting and joining of the old and new rails is accurate, with just the correct amount of expansion gap.
“The fitting of the replacement sole plate and stretcher bars also requires careful co-ordination, and reminds me of what a time-served joiner once said - ‘measure three times then cut once!’
“It’s a big improvement on the previous pointwork. All we need now is a train or two to run over it.”
The new pointwork was completed on January 14.