AboutChris Holliday Expertise Questions related to contemporary passenger rail vehicles and their technology, including subway, light rail, commuter and intercity rolling stock. Includes all vehicle systems and features along with integration of the vehicles into the general railroad system.
Experience I have over 22 years of experience in the passenger rail vehicle business as both an engineering manager at a car builder and as a provider of engineering services to commuter railroads and transit agencies in the US. I have worked to apply the latest technologies to passanger rail equipment. I have worked with leaders in our industry to develop and establish Standards and Recommended practices.
Expert: Chris Holliday Date: 8/10/2007 Subject: railroad rail
Question I need to know the height of a standard railroad rail
Thanks
JEff
Answer Thanks for your question.
Like so many things that seem simple, the answer to your question depends. As much as it seems that all railroad rails are the same, there are a range of sizes, all of them slightly different. Rails are basically characterized by the weight of a yard length of that rail. There are other ways to characterize them, but for rail vehicular applications, this is the common method. Size can range from 115 lbs(per linear yard) for lighter weight rail, to over 140 lbs heavy rail. Height from bottom plane to the top of an unground rail will range from 6 1/4" to 7 5/16" for the foregoing rail sizes.
So there you have it. I hope this is useful to you.
