The multiple failures of a ballasted track 877 m long built to guide the wheels of a heavy gantry crane used in a logging yard in northern Alberta, Canada, are described. At the time of construction the crane was claimed to be the heaviest, and its wheels were supported by a ballasted track with wood lateral members (ties). The track was built in 1985 but exhibited excessive differential vertical and lateral deformations in subsequent years. The focus is on failure of a track related to freeze-thaw conditions and the solution to track instability problems, which was achieved geotextiles.
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