Qshake, in the AREMA manual there is no referance as to how much the longitudinal force can be reduced due to the ballast, simply that the force shall be distributed to the various members of the supporting structure. But in order to do this the force needs to be transmitted from the rail to...
I am a frustrated highway bridge engineer trying to figuure out how to distribute the longitudinal loading from a E80 cooper load from the track through the ballast onto the bridge deck. According to the AREMA manual the load is distributed with respect to the relitive stiffness of the members...
