…And in with the new

This amazing bit of kit is the track laying machine – watch the video all the way through to see it in action.

It’s a kind of wheeled “factory”. Here’s how it works: The sleepers are pushed from behind on wagons behind the train. The white unit on top of the train moves back and forth picking up sleepers and depositing them on the conveyor at the front of the train. This then drops the sleepers on to the formed track bed, while at the same time pulling the pre-welded rail onto the sleepers and then clipping it onto the sleepers.

Ballast trains will then pass through dropping ballast, this will then be tamped into place by the tamper.