Influence of span-to-depth ratio on dynamic response of vehicle-turnout-bridge system in high-speed railway

For high-speed railways, the smoothness of the railway line significantly affects the operational speed of trains. When the train passes through the turnout on a long-span bridge, the wheel-rail impacts caused by the turnout structure irregularities, and the instability arising from the bridge's flexural deformation lead to a strong coupling effect in the vehicle-turnout-bridge system. This significantly affects both ride comfort and operational safety. For addressing this issue, the present study considered a long-span continuous rigid-frame bridge as an example and established a train-turnout-bridge coupled dynamic model of high-speed railway. Utilizing a self-developed dynamic simulation program, the study analysed the dynamic response characteristics when the train passes through the turnouts on the bridge. It also investigated the influence of different span-to-depth ratios of the bridge on the vehicle dynamic response when the train passes through the main line and branch line of turnouts and then proposed a span-to-depth ratio limit value for a long-span continuous rigid-frame bridge. The research findings suggest that the changes in the span-to-depth ratio have a relatively minor impact on the train’s operational performance but significantly affect the dynamic characteristics of the bridge structure. Based on the findings and a comprehensive assessment of safety indicators, it is advisable to establish a span-to-depth ratio limit of 1/4500 for a long-span continuous rigid-frame bridge.