The national manufacturer of railway turnouts, DT – Výhybkárna a strojírna, a.s., traditionally supplies turnouts for main and regional railway lines in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Following the development of railway networks not only in Western European countries, but all over the world, DT has been developing turnouts for high-speed lines since the turn of the millennium. The first step was the development of a swing nose crossing for the geometry of turnout intended for conventional lines.
The development was completed with the successful installation of the first turnout with swing nose crossing in 2003 in the station Vranovice. This was followed by a turnout allowing a speed of 130 km/h in the branch line, which was installed for the first time in 2007 in the station Poříčany. The development and knowledge from operation testing led to the design of the swing nose crossings for other turnout geometries intended for main lines.
In 2009, a project for the design of a turnout for a speed of 160 km/h in the branch line was launched. It was the first time that a completely new design of the turnout geometry of the branch line was applied with the use of transition curves. After the completion of the first phase of development, a functional sample of the switch panel and crossing panel of the turnout was produced in 2012 and placed on a test area on the DT site. It was used for internal and non-operational tests until 2019.
This turnout also used for the first time a hydraulic actuation, locking and detection system developed by DT, used to control its moving parts using hydraulic cylinders and a hydraulic drive. This is a new alternative to the commonly used electromechanical switch machine with clamp lock device.
After the successful completion of internal and non-operational tests, two turnouts were inserted in 2020 at the railway station Prosenice close to station Přerov. They are inserted in the configuration of a single cross-over. Currently, the operational testing has been running smoothly for almost 4 years.
The last in the series of turnouts needed for high-speed lines are those for a branch line speed of up to 230 km/h. With goal to complete the production range of turnouts for the high-speed lines, DT launched a project to develop this high-speed turnout in 2018. As a result, the geometry of the turnout was designed in accordance with the requirements of the standards. Currently, the production drawings have been fully developed and the production of the functional samples of the switch panel and crossing panel is underway.
For the purpose of internal testing, a test area has been prepared on DT premises where these samples will be placed after production is completed. In mid-2024, the installation of the hydraulic actuation, locking and detection system will take place and internal and non-operational testing will commence and run for approximately 1 to 2 years. Once these tests are completed, the turnout will be ready for installation into the track for operational testing. By completing this, DT can provide a comprehensive range of turnout geometries ready for use on the planned high-speed lines.
