Indian steel manufacturer Tata Steel has successfully installed new sets of railway tracks that reduce train noise at Blackfriars station in London.
This is the first time this type of rail track has been installed in the UK. The tracks will ‘reduce rail traffic noise in and around Blackfriars, one of the capital’s busiest stations by up to 50%’.
The SilentTrack has been developed by British acoustic experts from the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research, University of Southampton and engineers of Tata Steel.
The installation of 0.8 miles (1.3km) of SilentTrack is part of the Thameslink Programme – a major project that will lead to the deployment of more frequent, longer, brand new trains on the Thameslink line and bring about big improvements to three central London stations by 2018.
David Benton, one of the Tata Steel engineers who developed SilentTrack, said:
“With increased traffic through Blackfriars as part of the Thameslink Programme it was important to consider measures to keep noise to a minimum for local residents and businesses.
“SilentTrack will reduce peak noise levels from moving trains by about a half. This means the enhanced railway, when it opens later this year, will have no greater noise impact than the existing railway.”
Globally, more than 140 km of these tracks are already under operation in 13 countries.
After standing on Rugby station recently, I feel that there is a place for this product at all stations where trains pass at high speed.