A new high-speed switch of 140 meters long will be laid down on the track in Liempde on Thursday. It is a monster job for ProRail, which has been preparing for a year and a half. The switches are divided into small pieces and are placed on the track in the heat of the day by two cranes and dozens of employees. It is the first of this type of points to be installed in our province.
In total, twelve points will be replaced on the track in Liempde in the coming two weeks. Eight of these are high-speed switches. That is why there will be no trains between Eindhoven and Tilburg and Eindhoven and Den Bosch until 26 August.
Marco Verkuijl is project manager at ProRail. He sees mechanics hard at work in this heat to replace the switches. “Respect for all the mechanics who are now standing here in the heat. We can just do a lot of work, but it will be a puzzle whether a few things can continue. It is too hot to weld the tracks together. quite exciting.”
More sustainable and less noise pollution
The high-speed switches are an improved version of the switches that were already there. For example, they are more durable, because they are heated electrically instead of with a stove. They are also less prone to breakdowns and due to material that wears less quickly, maintenance is less frequent. In addition, the points will be placed on rubber plates, so that there is less noise nuisance.
“Most points are more than twenty years old. The sleepers rot and therefore everything has to be replaced. These are immense things, so replacing them is a lot of work,” explains Verkuijl.
There are different types of switches on the Dutch track. Trains are allowed to travel forty or eighty kilometers per hour over most points. But at the high-speed switches, the driver may continue to maintain the maximum speed of 140 kilometers per hour.
Travelers have to take the bus
Until August 26, buses will run between Eindhoven and Tilburg and Eindhoven and Den Bosch. Travelers should take into account about thirty minutes extra travel time. But after that, hopefully they will benefit from fewer train disruptions.