Part III. Iowa railroad resource guide, 2009

This section of the 2009 Iowa Railroad System Plan provides background information for the plan, grouped by topic. The resource guide also provides users with important information about the railroad industry and Iowa’s railroad system. The major topics covered below include: • Iowa’s railroad system and carriers. • Railroad freight and Iowa’s economy. • Rail passenger service and Iowa’s economy. • The safety of Iowa’s railroad system, including network safety and security, and railroad and communication interaction.

Iowa Railroad Service Map, July 1, 2012

Iowa railroad service map of Iowa trains in color.

Iowa State Railroad Map, July 1, 2004

Iowa railroad map of Iowa trains.

Iowa Railroad Traffic Density, July 1, 2011

Iowa railroad traffic density.

Iowa State Railroad Map, July 1, 2012

Iowa railroad map of Iowa trains.

Chronology of Iowa Railroad Abandonments, July 1, 2010

Iowa railroad chronology of Iowa Railroad Abandonments.

1980 railroad traffic density, Iowa, 1982

This map shows railroad traffic usage by Iowa Rail Carriers.

Chronology of Iowa railroad abandonments, 1982

This map shows the chronology of railroad lines that were abandoned in Iowa. It also indicates if the rails are still in place, or if they have been removed or if they are in the process of being removed.

Testing of Old Reinforced Concrete Bridges, HR-390, 1997

The objective of this research project was to service load test a representative sample of old reinforced concrete bridges (some of them historic and some of them scheduled for demolition) with the results being used to create a database so the performance of similar bridges could be predicted. The types of bridges tested included two reinforced concrete open spandrel arches, two reinforced concrete filled spandrel arches, one reinforced concrete slab bridge, and one two span reinforced concrete stringer bridge. The testing of each bridge consisted of applying a static load at various locations on the bridges and monitoring strains and deflections in critical members. The load was applied by means of a tandem axle dump truck with varying magnitudes of load. At each load increment, the truck was stopped at predetermined transverse and longitudinal locations and strain and deflection data were obtained. The strain data obtained were then evaluated in relation to the strain values predicted by traditional analytical procedures and a carrying capacity of the bridges was determined based on the experimental data. The response of a majority of the bridges tested was considerably lower than that predicted by analysis. Thus, the safe load carrying capacities of the bridges were greater than those predicted by the analytical models, and in a few cases, the load carrying capacities were found to be three or four times greater than calculated values. However, the test results of one bridge were lower than those predicted by analysis and thus resulted in the analytical rating being reduced. The results of the testing verified that traditional analytical methods, in most instances, are conservative and that the safe load carrying capacities of a majority of the reinforced concrete bridges are considerably greater than what one would determine on the basis of analytical analysis alone. In extrapolating the results obtained from diagnostic load tests to levels greater than those placed on the bridge during the load test, care must be taken to ensure safe bridge performance at the higher load levels. To extrapolate the load test results from the bridges tested in this investigation, the method developed by Lichtenstein in NCHRP Project 12-28(13)A was used.