Axle load

The axle load of a wheeled vehicle is the total weight bearing on the roadway for all wheels connected to a given axle. Axle load is an important design consideration in the engineering of roadways and railways, as both are designed to tolerate a maximum weight-per-axle (axle load); exceeding the maximum rated axle load will cause damage to the roadway or rail tracks.

Railway use

On railways, a given section of track is designed to support a maximum axle load. The maximum axle load is determined by weight of rails, density of sleepers and fixtures, train speeds, amount of ballast, and strength of bridges and earthworks. If the track is overloaded by trains that are too heavy, it can be damaged. Because track and especially the rails, are expensive it is important to know the axle load that a stretch of track can support. Higher operating speeds can be achieved through reduced axle loads and increased density of sleepers.

United Kingdom

The standard rail weight for British railways is now 113 lb/yd (56.1 kg/m). Before the 1990s, most diesel locomotives were built to a maximum axle load of 19 long tons (19.3 tonnes; 21.3 short tons) so the maximum locomotive weight was 76 long tons (77.2 tonnes; 85.1 short tons) for a four-axle locomotive and 114 long tons (115.8 tonnes; 127.7 short tons) for a six-axle one. Higher axle loads are now permitted, e.g. the Class 67 locomotive is a four-axle machine weighing 90 tonnes (88.6 long tons; 99.2 short tons), giving 22.5 tonnes (22.1 long tons; 24.8 short tons) on each axle.

Australia

The Fortescue Railway uses 68 kilograms per metre (140 lb/yd) rail on concrete sleepers and has a maximum axle load of 40 t (39 long tons; 44 short tons), which is the highest axle load of any railway in the world in 2016.[1] In 2011, it was proposed to increase the axle load of the railway to 42 t (41 long tons; 46 short tons)[2]

Maximum

The absolute maximum axle load for railways depends on the rail used, above the indicated load the rails will start to bend between sleepers and can cause de-railment.

Bridge loading

Bridges may have to carry several locomotives or wagons at the same time, especially for longer spans. They require separate calculation of maximum allowable axle load, and a weak bridge may limit the axle load of the full line. Theodore Cooper developed the E10 loading system for calculating the strength of bridges.

Roadway use
Further information: road wear

The term axle load is also applicable to trucks which is complicated by the fact that trucks may have more than two wheels per axle. In this case, the axle load remains the same, but the load borne by the individual wheels is reduced by having more contact area (more wheels, larger tires, lower tire pressure) to distribute the load.[3]

See also

References
  1. "Fortescue opens the world's heaviest haul railway". Railway Gazette. 2008-07-14. Archived from the original on 2016-02-22. Retrieved 2016-02-18.
  2. Peter Ker (2011-10-24). "Fortescue takes another step in plan to boost Pilbara railway loads". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 2018-05-11. Retrieved 2012-08-06.
  3. Hjort, Mattias; Haraldsson, Mattias; Jansen, Jan (2008). "Road Wear from Heavy Vehicles: An Overview" (PDF). NVF committee Vehicles and Transports. p. 17+36. ISSN 0347-2485. Archived from the original on 2016-08-18.
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