Leaves and trains don't mix: Maliebaan edition

Well, it’s time to revisit the topic of leaf fall. About a month has passed since my last post on the subject of adhesion and leaves on the track, and it is time for a quick update. As of 8th November, ProRail has deemed it unsafe to operate trains between Utrecht Centraal and Utrecht Maliebaan, the home of the railway museum. The culprit? Leaves on the track causing the train to go incognito.

There are two primary methods for detecting a trains presence: track circuits and axle counters. Track circuits feed electricity into the rails, and when a train’s wheelset rolls on, it creates a short circuit, signaling the occupied status of the block. However, this is susceptible to wet leaves and dirt on the track which can prevent the train from being detected. On the other hand, axle counters count the number of wheels entering and leaving a track section. This does not rely on the contact patch and so is not directly affected by any track contaminants. This is purely my assumption here, but I believe track circuits are therefore used on this section of the track.

Along the approximately 3.2 km stretch between Blauwkapel Oost and Utrecht Maliebaan, there are at least 6 level crossings (depending on how you count them) in what ProRail describes as “hoogstedelijk gebied” or highly urban areas. Train detection issues at these protected level crossings mean they don’t fully close when a train passes through. Also, this part of the track isn’t heavily occupied, with only about 8 services per day during the museum’s opening hours. This further allows the leaves and dirt to settle in on the railhead.

While writing my last post on track adhesion and leaves it was difficult to find actual numbers related to resulting incidents. ProRail in their article has provided some numbers: 13 train detection issues have been flagged in the last 12 years on this section of track with one earlier this year which resulted in the level crossings not being fully closed. It’s important to note that the number of incidents isn’t specifically mentioned to be caused by leaves but only that they resulted in a short loss of train detection. So I need to do some more digging to get some stats.

In the meantime, the service to Maliebaan will remain stopped until ProRail does some more research on the situation. If you do plan on visiting the railway museum there are a number of buses that will drop you off around the area and it’s also a 20 minute walk from Utrecht Centraal.

Update (2023-11-13T20:22): According to RTV Utrecht, the incident from earlier this year that ProRail referred to was in February on Kardinal de Jongweg. This coincidentally is where the picture used on this blog was taken. Here’s two videos one of an SLT and the other of de Karel’s Mat ‘64 in July this year, with a working level crossing.

Update (2023-12-09T19:40): Good news everyone, ProRail has announced that regular traffic from Utrecht Centraal to Maliebaan will resume on 12 December, just in time for Christmas! After being stopped for a little over a month no real details were given on the changes made besides mentioning “temporary adjustments” (“tijdelijke aanpassingen”). In the coming days leading up to 12 December, leaves and rust will be cleared from the track. ProRail still seems to be investigating a long-term solution and will be conducting more inspections at level crossing in the coming weeks.