Engineers from Loughborough University’s Control Systems Research Group have invented a mechanism that they say will eliminate switching-related train derailments.

Railway switches have worked the same way for over 200 years: switch blades are forced over from one position to another to change the path the train follows. If this movement is not fully completed and the blade stops in an intermediate position, then trains passing over the switch risk derailment.

To mitigate against this risk, layers of sensors, signaling protocols and operational procedures have grown up around switches, adding cost and complexity that increase maintenance costs and reduce capacity.

Repoint is a switch that may overcome these complexities, incorporating an arrangement of intermeshing rail ends combined with a lift-and-drop mechanism that provides a locking system with virtually no friction loss.

Repoint's developers say its fail-safe mechanism eliminates switching-related train derailments. Image credit: Loughborough University. According to the researchers, the lift-and-drop mechanism allows for several machines to act on the same points such that, in the event of one failure, the remaining machines can operate the points safely. The system also moves the switch faster than existing designs.

Repoint's developers say that the switching technology can be used on railways globally and is seeking development partners worldwide to introduce the device in local markets.