Huge ‘vacuum cleaners’ cut ballast replacement time

Network Rail engineering teams are deploying industrial-sized ballast excavators on the West Coast main line on four successive weekends from Saturday August 10 onwards as part of track upgrades through Stoke-on-Trent.

The £2.5m of essential improvement work will include replacing 3720 tonnes of ballast and upgrading 32 bearers, which help the track switches and crossings to stay in place.

Ballast supports railway tracks and provides water drainage, but over time the stones wear down, reducing their effectiveness.

Specialist ‘Railvac’ excavation machinery from Swedish firm Railcare will be used to replace ballast without the need to lift tracks. The machine operates like an industrial vacuum sucking up the old stone, which is replaced afterwards using rail-mounted vehicles.

This method of working avoids cutting through rails and removing sleepers, enabling shorter closures of the railway and less impact to journeys.

Over the coming four weekends some trains will be diverted with rail replacement buses running between Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent / Macclesfield.