Samenvatting
The new high-speed rail line between Madrid and Barcelona has been designed so that commercial vehicles can operate at maximum speeds of up to 350 km/h (219 mph). Criteria are outlined that have been adopted by the Spanish railways to ensure that the track geometry deterioration on the new Madrid-Barcelona line will be no greater than the track geometry deterioration found on the existing high-speed line between Madrid and Seville [300 km/h (187 mph)]. Attention has focused on two primary factors--(a) reduction of axle load and unsprung mass of the vehicles and (b) reduction of the vertical rigidity of base plates between sleepers and rails.