The influence of the train speed on vibrations due to high speed trains

This paper deals with the influence of the train speed on vibrations induced by high speed trains. In the past 10 years, free field as well as track vibrations have been measured at several sites on the Belgian part of the European high speed rail network. These experiments were performed within the frame of homologation tests, which has allowed data collection for a wide range of train speeds. This paper concentrates on the analysis of track as well as free field vibrations for different train speeds at a site along the line L2 between Brussels and Koln. At this site, 11 passages of the IC train at speeds between 156 km/h and 225 km/h have been recorded and 11 passages of the Thalys HST at speeds between 218 km/h and 326 km/h. The experimental data for different train speeds are analysed and compared to numerical predictions that have been performed by means of a numerical model that accounts for the dynamic interaction between the train, the track and the soil.