Why Railroads Don't Need Expansion Joints
Why Hacker News recommends it
Linked in rail and heat-related threads as the clear explanation of why railroads need no expansion joints and how heat problems are handled.
What it is
Practical Engineering explains how continuous welded rail copes with thermal expansion by restraining it, using the relationship between temperature, stress and strain. The video is part of a series on railways.
Recommended by 1 HN commenters across 1 different months, 2024 to 2026.
What Hacker News said
Recommends jeffrallen · 2026-07 · on “Painting the sides of railroad rails white to reduce derailment”
Practical Engineering already explained the correct solution to this problem: [this video] But of course, American infrastructure was built on the cheap, and is not maintained correctly. This is why we can't have nice things.
Cites lesuorac · 2024-08 · on “America Has a Hot-Steel Problem”
They also expand the rail with thermite which is probably hotter than the sun is going to make the earth. [this video]
Cites whizzter · 2026-01 · on “At least 21 killed in Spain after crash involving high-speed trains”
Not going to be claiming to be an expert, but buckling is a well documented phenomenon and I'd be surprised if there wasn't possible issues due to contraction on the other end of the spectrum when it gets colder, the track was laid this last spring/summer so it's probably not been as cold for long before on the tracks. Also modern high speed rails are built with continious welding without thermal expansion joints. [this video] goes through track building and the effects and literally mentions at about 12:30 that they do need to do inspections when it gets cold if the track cracks (there was a photo linked in another post about a cracked track). Is it the cause? No idea but doesn't feel far fetche
Critical kragen · 2024-09 · on “Who Owns Nebula?”
admittedly, it does fall far short of being practical; if your preparation for building a railroad is watching [this video] and your preparation for building a landfill is watching [LINK] , your trains will derail and your garbage will leach into your groundwater but that's not really a difference between the two channels; real engineering manages to pack plenty of misstatements into videos that are equally superficial