The Use of Bituminous Subballast on Future High-Speed Lines in Spain: Structural Design and Economical Impact

The development of structural solutions for high-speed or very high-speed tracks that minimize total life cycle costs of the system is a key issue to improve the operational profitability of new investments. In opposition to conventional ballasted tracks, slab track solutions can be a cost-effective solution, but only in the cases where the benefits due to the increase in track availability and the reduction of track maintenance offsets its much higher construction costs. In the cases where such investment is not feasible, it is worth to evaluate possible structural improvements to ballasted track that allow reducing its maintenance needs without increasing too much its construction costs. This paper evaluates the design requirements and the impact of improving conventional high-speed ballasted tracks by using a bituminous subballast layer. It is divided into two main parts: first the design requirements of the structural solutions with bituminous subballast and its possible benefits on high-speed track deterioration, and secondly the evaluation of the economic impact, in terms of construction costs, of using this structural solution material in future Spanish high-speed lines.