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A Prospectus for Change in the Freight Railroad Industry

This report outlines prospective changes for the freight railroad industry. It details the status of the industry, the causes of railroad problems, estimated capital requirements, restructurings, intermodal policy, economic regulations, and alternatives for federal financial assistance. Its three...

A New Approach to Railroad Cost Estimation

Cost functions for railroad firms are an important element of management decision-making. They are also a principal basis for regulatory policy. Standard ICC cost-finding procedures which are based on a number of untenable assumptions regarding, the allocation of common and joint costs, are...

Wz Rating of Ride Quality Implementation for FRA/Amtrack Programs

[From the study's description] The Wz method of rating the ride of a rail vehicle has been widely used in recent decades. This method applies a single number to describe the quality of the ride. The instantaneous acceleration is measured and weighted in the frequency domain. This value is squared,...

Vertical Shaker System Laboratory Tests of Trailer on a Flatcar (CR-124)

This report describes full scale Trailer on a Flatcar (TOFC) optimization tests performed during 1976 on the Vertical Shaker System at the Rail Dynamics Laboratory, Pueblo, CO. The purpose of these tests was to evaluate the effect of TOFC system component changes on lading vibration levels and...

Users' Manual for Kalker's Simplified Nonlinear Creep Theory

The conversion of the computer program, "Simplified Theory of Rolling Contact," (used for calculation of a nonlinear creep force-creepage relationship) from the original Algol language to Fortran is considered. The Algol program was written by Professor J. J. Kalker and was derived from the paper...

Users' Manual for Asymmetric Wheel/Rail Contact Characterization Program

Wheel/rail geometric constraint relationships, such as the effective conicity and gravitational stiffness, strongly influence the lateral dynamics of railway vehicles. The principal curvatures of wheel and rail profiles are important parameters in the determination of creep coefficients used in...

Safety Appliance Standards and Power Break Requirements

This document outlines the FRA's standards and requirements for safety appliances and power brakes in 1977. It details the standards for different types of equipment and brakes, as well as rules for inspection, testing, and maintenance of equipment.

TLV Status Report

The worldwide status of Tracked Levitated Vehicle (TLV) technology and an assessment of its development, sponsored by the Advanced Technology Program within the Office of Research and Development in FRA, is presented here. This report along with a TLV Technology Workshop sponsored by the Office of...