Geotechnical design of railway embankments – requirements and challenges

Abstract

Intensive development of railway infrastructure in Poland is associated with significant support provided for that purpose by the European Union, especially, by investments in the modernization of existing railway lines. Together with the improvement of the infrastructure in less developed countries, an interoperability of rail system at the international level is sought through the technical harmonization, mostly by the introduction of European regulations and technical standards. The paper presents the main requirements associated with the geotechnical aspects of design of railway embankments, mostly relating to their overall stability and maintenance of serviceability. Some aspects of the European standards as well as international, national, and internal regulations, are discusses in the context of challenges encountered by designers. The main geotechnical issues are associated with safety requirements, loading conditions, geometry of railway embankments, as well as the scope of geotechnical investigation necessary to make an informed decision on a final design solution.