Coffeyville, KS — Track Closure Avoided with Snap-Tite
Three Damaged Culverts Beneath Railroad Tracks Relined with Snap-Tite®
The Problem
Drainage culverts installed 40 – 50 years ago are now past their design life and failing. Union Pacific (UP) Railroad, a major U.S. railroad, needed to replace three failing culverts underneath its railroad tracks near Coffeyville, KS. The three corrugated metal pipe (CMP) culverts were completely worn out. Leaving them in this condition might result in a total track collapse, disrupting service. Each of the old culverts was approximately 50 feet in length and 48 inches in diameter.
The Solution
Snap-Tite representatives Russ Wosk and Brad Elisar consulted with Clint Jones, the maintenance supervisor for the railroad, to find the best solution for fixing the damaged pipe.
UP Railroad has an established relationship with Snap-Tite because the Snap-Tite culvert lining system offers a no-dig solution for relining the pipe. Made of high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe, Snap-Tite’s patented male/female machined pipe ends are ‘snapped’ together, piece-by-piece, and pushed into the full length of an existing pipe. Then grout is used to fill in any annular space or voids between the old culvert and the new pipe liner. Snap-Tite® pipe liners also typically increase drainage flow even though the diameter of the pipe liner is smaller than the diameter of the original pipe. Snap-Tite also meets AASHTO Standard M326 for rehabilitating culverts.