In many major German cities, underground trains take over a large part of local public transport alongside suburban trains and buses. The Berlin underground alone has a route network of over 155 kilometres and 175 underground stations. To ensure that the transport of passengers runs smoothly, both the tracks and infrastructure, e.g. tunnels, as well as the underground trains themselves must be regularly maintained. The various transport companies maintain their own maintenance workshops for this purpose. One of the workshops of the Berlin underground has elevated tracks, i.e. the railway rolls on rails that are arranged on supports approx. 1750 mm above the hall floor. There was a working level on the floor and walkways above the rail level at the height of the access doors. For certain work, however, it is necessary to have another working level at rail level. This level must be movable in the direction of the track. Work is carried out from this working level at the front of the underground carriages. For all other sides, railings against falling are required on the level. Access can only be gained from the ground level using a ladder. The entire fixture should be permanently installed in the track and be traversable by the underground railway. The railings should be integrated into the device.
A movable track bridge was used as the basis for the solution. This is supported by rollers in the flanks of the rails and can therefore be moved. It has brakes that are released by hand levers when moving. When the levers are released, the track bridge is braked again. The railings on the long sides of the track bridge are arranged as foldable levels, with one side of the railing overlapping the other when folded down. The lower clearance gauge under the underground railway is kept clear so that the railway can travel safely over the folded railings. Access doors are integrated into one end of the railings as additional fall protection. The railings are folded up and down using levers from the pit, so that the railings are already set up before the working level is entered. The access ladder is also stowed in a garage underneath the track bridge and is pulled out from there and folded down. The track bridge with railings enables safe working, with very little effort required until the working level is ready for use. It takes less than a minute to set up and dismantle, partly because all the necessary components have been integrated into the track bridge.
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The target group for the movable track bridge is primarily the maintenance workshops of transport companies. The track bridge can be adapted for various applications and environmental conditions.
Are there any legal requirements that make the use of such a mobile track bridge necessary?The basis is here ASR A2.1 of the Technical Rules for Workplaces, which regulates health and safety when setting up and operating workplaces.
